Schooling Visa: Studying in Canada as a Minor

Most people stay under the impression that a study permit is only for young adults who wish to study in Canada as an international student. But this is untrue.

Just like any young adult a minor student too, can apply for a study permit given, they fall under the eligibility criteria. A minor child is someone who is unable to live and study independently. Such children require financial and emotional support of an adult. Different Canadian provinces have different criteria to declare one’s adulthood.

Province or territory	Age of Maturity
Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, Saskatchewan	18
British Columbia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Northwest Territories, Nova Scotia, Nunavut, Yukon	19

When can a minor apply for study visa?

Not every minor child arriving in Canada is eligible to apply for a study permit. They must fall under any one of the two conditions to apply, which are:

They have a Canadian Citizen/Permanent Resident as a relative willing to become their legal custodian
The minor travelling is being accompanied by their parents/legal guardian

To know about How to appoint a custodian in Canada, fill out a form that is to be signed by the custodian, notarized, parents/legal guardians.

After ensuring that the minor does fulfill any one of the two conditions mentioned above, they still need to take care of certain things. One being, they must know the requirements that are to be fulfilled before entering Canada/if they are already in Canada.

Before Entering Canada

If you know that a minor child will be accompanying you for your visit to Canada and they wish to study there, you must apply for their study permit before reaching the destination.

The candidate must apply before arriving in Canada
The applicant should have a Letter of Acceptance from a Designated Learning Institute
Make sure the DLI is listed in the Covid-19 readiness plan for DLIs

Minors Already in Canada

Canada gives advantage to the minor children who are already in Canada. They do this by exempting them from a study permit if they:

are in kindergarten, no matter what their parents’ status is in Canada
want to go to pre-school, primary or secondary school and have a parent who is allowed to work or study in Canada
are refugees or refugee claimants
have parents who are refugees or refugee claimants
came to Canada as a visitor for a course or program of studies of six months or less
will study in a course or program of six months or less
are in Canada by themselves

Here is a detailed list of students who might or might now require a study permit and the documents that they must have with them.

If the child is…	Documents needed	Study permit required
a Canadian	Passport, citizenship card, or birth certificate	No
a permanent resident	Record of Landing (IMM 1000), Confirmation of Permanent Residence (IMM 5292); or Permanent Resident Card	No
a foreign national accompanied by a parent in the visitor class	Stamp on the child’s passport or on the father’s or mother’s passport on which the child is listed as a son or daughter	Yes
alone or with a parent who is a temporary resident and has a study or work permit	Child’s passport or child listed on the parent’s passport. The child may have a visitor record. The parent has a study or work permit.	No
a refugee claimant, accompanied or not by a parent	Determination of Eligibility letter from us. Child’s passport or child listed on a parent’s passport, or any available travel or identity documents. May also have an expired IRCC document.	No
in Canada without status	Child’s passport or child listed on a parent’s passport, or any available travel or identity documents. May also have an expired IRCC document.	No

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