For 22 days, hundreds of international graduates gathered in Calgary to protest the rejection of their Post-Graduation Work Permits (PGWPs). Many said they had invested thousands in Canadian education, believing their programs would allow them to gain work experience after graduation.
The protest ended in August after the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) checked the immigration status of 20 attendees, identifying 12 as “possibly inadmissible” under Canada’s Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and asking them to attend follow-up interviews.
Most protesters were graduates of Portage College-linked programs. While Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) maintains that non-credit programs are generally not eligible for PGWPs, students argue they were not adequately informed of the restrictions when they enrolled.
For Kanav Sharma, founder of Orange Nucleus Media, the frustration is less about opposing tighter immigration rules and more about when those rules are applied. “The loudest thing I hear isn't anger at the rules themselves. It's that the rules moved after people had already committed. The part that doesn't make the news is how quiet most of it is. Most international students weren't at the protest; they were working a shift—stressed, depressed, and not telling their family back home how bad it's gotten,” Sharma details.
He adds that the idea of simply leaving Canada overlooks the realities many students are confronting. “A lot of these students are carrying family debt, land sold, loans taken, parents' savings spent, so going home isn't the clean exit people imagine.
There is, however, another side to the debate. Canada has been tightening immigration and international student numbers amid concerns over housing affordability, jobs, infrastructure and pressure on public services. The discussion has also raised concerns about whether temporary residents should leave when their legal status expires, rather than assume that studying in Canada guarantees a path to remain. Nevertheless, Sharma points out that criticism can sometimes extend beyond those policy concerns. “What surprises people most is that the harshest judgment isn't coming from outside our community. It's coming from inside it,” he highlights.
That criticism from within the community is something Surinder Singh Sangha, author, historian, researcher and media coordinator with the Indo-Canadian Workers Association of Canada, emphasizes should prompt reflection on the South Asian community’s own history.
Earlier generations of South Asian immigrants also faced discrimination and racism when they arrived in Canada, he notes, including opposition from anti-immigration groups that objected to people of color settling in Canada. “Nobody welcomed us with open arms either. In fact, earlier generations of immigrants have often blamed those who arrived later for tarnishing the community’s image. Now, we’re seeing that same cycle repeat itself,” he outlines.
Sangha also believes Canada should consider what it stands to lose if international graduates are required to leave. “Why bring in temporary foreign workers when we already have people here who are willing and able to work?” he asks. He argues that many graduates are young, educated, English-speaking, and have already gained Canadian work experience, potentially making them well-positioned to fill labor shortages, including in remote communities.
Sangha is also careful to distinguish his position from a blanket defense of every international student. “I’m talking about people who are law-abiding and want to contribute,” he says.
Ultimately, the situation reflects a difficult balance between Canada’s changing immigration priorities and the expectations of those who came here to study. For now, many graduates remain uncertain about what comes next.
