By Anna Serbinenko

“Can I get a work permit after completing an XYZ course?” This is probably one of the most frequent questions we are being asked.

And the simple answer is – we don’t know!

First of all, the disclaimer. We are NOT immigration consultants, we are a flight school. For all the official immigration answers, please contact your nearest embassy, check the Immigration Canada (IRCC) website or get in touch with an immigration consultant or immigration lawyer.

If you wish, we would be more than happy to help you find one!

Also, immigration rules change from time to time. And whatever the reality is today, may completely change tomorrow.

However, we can still share the experience we observed from our past students.

So yes, many of our past graduates obtained work permits upon completion of their training.

However, it does not guarantee, and nobody can guarantee, that you specifically will get one too. The IRCC’s decision about it seems to depend not only on the current regulations, but potentially on a number of individual factors.

1. Duration of your training. As far as we know, a minimum duration of 8 months+ for full time programs is needed.
2. The duration of the work permit seems to depend on the duration of your full-time training. So if you are hoping for a longer work permit at the end, you may choose to enroll into a longer duration program or a combination of programs.
3. You need to do training full-time. If you stretch a one year program to two years training duration by making it effectively part time, it will not guarantee you a two year long work permit. In fact, you may end up with none at all, because only full-time training counts, not its equivalent. This is one factor that is under your full control during your flight training, so make sure you make it happen.
4. Longer duration work permit seems to give you better chances to become eligible to apply for Permanent Residency in Canada.
5. The decision on issuing a work permit, and the duration of it, can also depend on a number of the applicant’s personal factors. Ultimately, only an IRCC officer can make the final decision in each case.

Again, this is NOT an immigration advise, but merely our observation of our students’ immigration process in the past. And maybe some ideas for you of the questions you may want to ask at the Embassy or your immigration consultant’s office.

From our end, we will support your study permit application with whatever paperwork is required from the school’s side. The main one being the Letter of Acceptance. It will be issued for the duration of the studies you enrolled into, as soon as the registration process is completed.