Large group of post-grad work permit holders ineligible for 2022 extension

A large group of former international students say they have been either overlooked or deliberately excluded from the government’s latest extension program for post-graduation work permit (PGWP) holders announced in early August.

In January 2021, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) announced a public policy that allowed people whose PGWPs were expiring on or before Nov. 27, to apply for an open work permit valid for up to 18 months — essentially an extension of their PGWP. The policy was in effect for six months, until July, 2021.

This allowed thousands of PGWP holders to stay in Canada and continue working throughout the pandemic as well as help the economy during a time of acute labour shortages.

For many, time is almost up on that 18-month extension. Under normal circumstances, most would have attained permanent residency (PR) — or at the very least, be well on their way toward it. But this particular group of PGWP holders is not even close.

“When I was given this last extension [in 2021], my understanding was that it was meant for people to transition to permanent residents,” says Gaurav Purohit from India, a finance professional whose work permit is expiring in October. “But then the process for transitioning people from post-graduate work permits to permanent residents was stopped for probably like 10 months.”

That process is IRCC’s online Express Entry system, which the agency uses to manage immigration applications from skilled workers.

Permanent Resident hopefuls create an online profile and enter themselves into a pool of Express Entry candidates. Thereafter IRCC sends out invitations to apply (ITA) for permanent residency, based on a number of criteria including education, work experience and English proficiency. Each criterion is assigned points in a Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) and in order to get an ITA, you need enough points.

There are three programs for express entry – Federal skilled trades, Federal Skilled Workers and Canadian Experience Class, also known as CEC  — which most post-graduate work permit holders apply through.

Invitations to apply via CEC were paused in Sept., 2021 and resumed in July this year, but those waiting for an invitation say the CRS score required is much higher than previous years.

“My score is 499, which is a pretty good score. And now they have increased the score so much that I’m not eligible,” says Jasgeet Marwah from India, an insurance advisor whose work permit expires in September.

The cut-off score for the most recent round of ITAs held on Aug. 3 was 533 and included candidates from all three Express Entry programs — which means it was even more competitive.

On Aug. 2, IRCC released the details of a PGWP extension program for 2022 — a relief for thousands who had been waiting for the news since it was first announced in April.

RELATED: Feds announce long-awaited post-grad work permit extension policy

When CityNews inquired whether last year’s extension recipients would be included in the 2022 PGWP extension program given the 10-month pause in ITAs and the current high scores required to qualify, IRCC tells CityNews it cannot speculate on what policy changes it could make in the future.

“We would note that a person who held a post-graduation work permit previously and then had an additional work permit through the 2021 public policy will have had between two and 4.5 years to gain work experience. This means that even those who qualified for a minimum length of post-graduation work permit originally because they graduated from a short program, will have had more than two years to work in Canada. Many more graduates are approved for the maximum three-year post-graduation work permit than the minimum length of eight months.”

However, Purohit and Marwah say that they and thousands like them have spent years studying and working in Canada and have not been given a fair shot at attaining PR status in order to stay and continue to build their lives in the country

“At this point of time, I have four years of lived experience in Canada, two years of work experience. My employer believes that I’m a strong performer. I recently got promoted. I would say I have an almost perfect score for English proficiency. I feel like I’ve done it all in terms of displaying all the qualities that would make for a successful permanent resident,” says Purohit, adding that despite it all, he still hasn’t qualified for an ITA.

Marwah says many in her position will have to go home and start from scratch if their permits expire.

“When you are sending people like me and so many others like me back, you’re trying to tell us that we are not qualified. I have had a reputable job in a Canadian company. I have more than two years of experience. I have a Canadian education. How is that fair? On what basis are you telling me that I’m not qualified to be staying in Canada as a permanent resident? I don’t think I’m not qualified. I think I’m overly qualified,” she says.

CityNews asked IRCC for clarification and to make explicit whether all recipients of the 2021 extension are ineligible to apply for the 2022 program.

In response to that inquiry, IRCC says that some 2021 extension recipients may qualify for this year’s program as well.

They say last year’s extension allowed people with permits expiring up to Nov. 27, 2021 to apply. This year’s extension allows those whose permits expired from Sept. 20, 2021 onwards until Dec. 31, 2022 to apply.

As such, there is an overlap period between the dates of eligibility for last year and this year’s extension program. So only those who received the extension last year and have permits that expired between September and November, 2021 could be eligible for this year’s extension as well.

Anyone whose permits expire outside of that two month overlap period and who received a permit extension under the 2021 public policy is not eligible for an extension again under the 2022 PGWP extension program.

‘They just use us like a tool’

Zichang Hu from China says the extension program announcement was not clear about who is eligible and he feels he’s getting a raw deal as his permit expires at the end of August.

“It’s very tough, not just for me but for thousands of international students who have received Canadian education here and also worked continuously during the pandemic to boost and help Canada’s economy. We feel like we have been fooled to stay here during this very difficult time – they just use us like a tool,” says Hu, who works as a structural engineer.

The matter is even more dire for some, like visual effects artist Ramkumar Muthanoor Narayanaraja – whose work permit is expiring in September and he will no longer be able to remain legally employed. His wife joined him in Vancouver from India in late May on a spousal work permit, which means it has the same expiry date as his.

“My wife is pregnant — in her last month … and she doesn’t have the medical service plan (MSP) because her permit is less than six months,” he explains, and the province of British Columbia will not issue a health card to someone whose permit is expiring in less than that time frame.

“We have to pay huge amount to the hospitals. If I lose my job, how would I have that huge amount to pay to the hospital? If she has a small blood test, it’s around $300-$400 every time. At this stage of her pregnancy we need [medical checkups] at least twice a week.”

Purohit says the situation is a “policy misstep” on IRCC’s part.

“How can you justify a policy, which is meant for addressing labour market shortages and yet at the same time that policy excludes people who already have jobs and asks them to leave Canada?” he asks.

Hu adds that amid all the stress and scrambling, one of the most frustrating parts of the ordeal is the uncertainty and what he feels is a lack of clear communication from IRCC about his fate in the country.

“They just discard us all without even giving us an answer, an official answer,” says Hu.