What does “full-time” mean for the PGWP?
Full-time is whatever your school defines as full-time. IRCC does not set its own course load. Officers check your transcript to confirm you were enrolled full-time in each academic session of the program.
Your official transcript, or a letter of completion that states you studied full-time, is the main proof. If your letter already says you studied full-time except in your final term, IRCC may not need your transcript. If the evidence is unclear, the officer can ask for more documents before deciding.
Two situations are treated as full-time even though you were not in class:
- A strike or an unforeseen closure at your school, for example a wildfire or flood. You are considered full-time during that period, as long as you met your study permit conditions.
- Scheduled breaks, which are covered in the next section.
Do scheduled breaks like summer count as a gap?
No. Regularly scheduled breaks, such as winter and summer holidays or a reading week, do not break your full-time status. IRCC also includes these breaks in the time that counts toward the length of your PGWP.
Taking part-time courses during a scheduled break is allowed, but it does not count toward the full-time requirement. In other words, a summer course neither helps nor hurts, as long as you were full-time in the regular sessions.
The break must be one your school scheduled for everyone in your program. A term you decide to skip on your own is not a scheduled break. That is treated as a leave, which has its own rules below.
Can my last semester be part-time?
Yes. You can be part-time in your final academic session and still qualify, as long as you meet every other rule. Part-time study in any earlier session makes you ineligible.
IRCC reads “final academic session” as any semester in which you could have completed your program. If you were part-time in your final semester, failed a course, and needed one more semester to retake it, both semesters may be treated as final sessions.
The only other part-time exception was a COVID-19 measure for January 1 to August 31, 2020, when schools changed course delivery. It does not help anyone studying today.
You still need to show reasonable progress through your program. Repeated failed courses or many program changes can make an officer question whether you were actively pursuing your studies, which is a condition of every study permit.
What if I took a leave from my studies?
A leave approved by your school, of up to 150 days, can be accepted. You must include proof from your DLI that it authorized the leave when you apply for the PGWP. An unauthorized leave, or one longer than 150 days, puts your application at risk.
IRCC gives these as examples of reasons for an authorized leave: illness or injury, pregnancy, a family emergency, a change of program at the same school outside a scheduled break, a dismissal or suspension, and a postponed program start date. The 150 days run from the date your school granted the leave, and you must start or return to classes within that time.
Three things to know before you take a leave:
- You cannot work on or off campus during any leave, and you cannot do a co-op placement.
- If you take several leaves, the officer looks at the reasons. Many leaves can suggest you were not making reasonable progress.
- If an officer decides you did not meet your study permit conditions, they can refuse the PGWP. You may also be barred from getting a work permit for 6 months from the date the unauthorized study or work stopped.
Keep the approval letter, the dates, and any medical or family documents. You will need them for the PGWP application, and they are hard to get from a school years later.
I did two programs with a break in between. Am I still eligible?
Often, yes. IRCC’s PGWP instructions do not set a maximum gap between two programs. What matters is that each program meets the PGWP rules, that you kept your status and your study permit conditions during the gap, and, if you want to combine them, that you finish the second program within 2 years of the first.
Take a common case: a 1-year college program, a 4-month break, then a second 1-year program at a PGWP-eligible college. Here is how the rules apply:
- Each program must stand on its own. Both must be PGWP-eligible, at least 8 months long, and taken full-time (except the last semester of the final program).
- The 2-year limit for combining. To add the two lengths together, you must complete the second program within 2 years of completing the first.
- The rules for each program. If the study permit for either program was applied for on or after November 1, 2024, each program is checked separately against the field-of-study rule. If one program has a higher language level, you must meet the higher level to combine them.
- Your status during the break. Your study permit has to stay valid, or you need to change to visitor status. If you plan to work during the break, you can only work full-time between programs if you were allowed to work off campus before, you have a valid study permit (or applied to extend it before it expired), you have your completion letter and a letter of acceptance to a new full-time program, and the new program starts within 150 days of your completion confirmation.
A 4-month break is within that 150-day limit, so it can work. A longer break is more likely to raise questions about whether you were actively pursuing your studies, and you would not be allowed to work after day 150. In that case, get advice on your status before the break starts.
One more trap: the 180-day application window. If you only want a PGWP based on the first program, you must apply within 180 days of finishing it. If you are waiting to combine programs, you apply after the second one. Once you receive a PGWP, you can never get another, so do not apply early by mistake.
How does combining two programs change my PGWP length?
If both programs qualify and you finish the second within 2 years of the first, IRCC may base your PGWP on the total length of both. A total of 2 years or more can give you a 3-year PGWP.
IRCC’s instructions give three examples for students who got a study permit on or after November 1, 2024:
- Both programs PGWP-eligible: the PGWP can be based on the length of both.
- First program not eligible, second eligible: no combining. The PGWP is based only on the second program.
- First program eligible, second not eligible: no combining. The PGWP is based only on the first program, and you must apply within 180 days of finishing that first program.
The third case catches people. If your second program is not eligible, your 180 days are counting from the end of the first program, even while you are still studying.
What about changing schools or studying online?
Time at PGWP-eligible DLIs can be combined, and the total must be at least 8 months. Time at a school that is not a DLI does not count. More than 50% of your program done online makes you ineligible.
Since November 8, 2024, study permit holders whose permit names a DLI must apply for a new study permit before changing schools. This matters for the PGWP in two ways. First, studying at a school your permit does not allow can be found to breach your conditions. Second, a new study permit application made on or after November 1, 2024 means the field-of-study rule can apply to a college program, even if your first permit was older. An extension of your existing permit does not have this effect.
For online study, IRCC checks the date you started your program or the date on your study permit application receipt, whichever came first. If that date is on or after September 1, 2024, at least 50% of your program must be in class in Canada, and time spent studying from outside Canada is taken off the length of your PGWP.
See the full list of rules in our PGWP eligibility guide, or go back to the PGWP guide.