Dozens of Chinese graduate students are accusing Ottawa of discrimination because their study permit applications have been left in limbo for months, preventing them from beginning their advanced degrees at Canadian universities.
“It’s already [done] very serious damage to my life,” Yixin Cheng, a 27-year-old would-be PhD student in computer science at UBC, told CBC News from Hangzhao, China.
Cheng is one of a group of 25 students who have filed a case in Federal Court against Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), alleging their files have been unfairly stalled in the security screening phase. All of them have been accepted into graduate-level programs in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) at universities including UBC, McGill and the University of Waterloo.
All 25 were still in China as the new school year began this week.
“Basically, the IRCC pressed the pause button for my life for over one year,” said Cheng.
Cheng applied for a study permit back in May 2024, and quit a high-paying job because he expected to be at UBC last fall. The IRCC website says the standard processing time for students from China is four weeks.
“The IRCC is already make me lose like $170,000,” he said, referring to his former yearly salary.
“If we get the decision before the end of October I still got the chance to enrol,” he said. “But I only have like one month.”
“I probably will lose this opportunity.”
IRCC confirmed it received the last of his paperwork on June 20, 2024, but Cheng hasn’t received an update since then.
Similarly, Li Zhen resigned from his job at Microsoft to pursue a PhD in computer science at Polytechnique Montréal. He did a masters degree at Concordia.
But with his life on hold, he says he’s worried about paying for things like rent and medical insurance.
“All these things I need to pay [for] without income,” he said, from Beijing.
He said the delay has impacted his and his family’s mental health, and that he continually sees a psychologist to deal with the stress.
Zhen says he doesn’t understand IRCC’s delay, and that he has “confidence that my background is really transparent.”
He says it’s a pattern among Chinese students
“When they see this person is from China,” he said, “[they] leave this case longer.”
The 25 students want the court to compel IRCC to process their permits faster.
‘Something serious going on’
Their lawyer, Toronto-based Vakkas Bilsin, says their similarities — all Chinese citizens, all seeking graduate programs in STEM — made him think “there is something serious going on.”
He says the lack of transparency is particularly frustrating, saying that four or five weeks after some students had submitted their applications, IRCC’s application tracker said the agency had only just started the background check process.
“We still don’t understand why a detailed, extensive security check is necessary in this specific circumstance of these students,” he said.
IRCC said in an emailed statement it is “committed to a fair and non-discriminatory application of immigration procedures. All applicants seeking to come to Canada — regardless of their country of origin or the program under which they apply — are subject to the same screening processes.”
It says the website only offers a general idea of how long the process may take and that, under the law, all people looking to enter the country must meet admissibility requirements, including a security screening.
“As security screenings are conducted by agencies outside of IRCC, we are unable to provide average processing time.”
Many of the students’ professors delivered letters to Bilsin, detailing the impact these delays have had on their programs.
The “unreasonable” delays “are causing severe and ongoing harm,” wrote Prof. En-hui Yang of the University of Waterloo.
They are also putting an immense personal toll on his doctoral student. “The indefinite waiting period has caused him significant psychological and financial stress, eroding his academic readiness,” he wrote.
‘Not surprised’
But according to the former director of CSIS, the delays and scrutiny of these study permits reflect real security risks in Canada, especially for STEM students.
“All of that takes time. It doesn’t happen overnight,” said Ward Elcock. The spy agency, together with IRCC and the Canada Border Services Agency, jointly handle the security checks.
“I’m really not surprised that the Chinese students in STEM programs are being vetted very carefully,” he said, alluding to the 2019 security scandal at the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg.
The students “have a right to complain, but not necessarily a right to go to Canadian university — that’s subject to getting the security check,” Elcock said.
A CSIS spokesperson said in a statement the agency continues to see “high volumes of applications awaiting security screening,” which it is “working diligently to assess.”
For Cheng and Zhen, every day of waiting is a personal setback.
“I just cannot sleep,” said Zhen, adding that it’s been a struggle for him just to smile, and he doesn’t want to put more negativity on his parents.
Cheng hopes the situation won’t shape his perception of Canada entirely.
He says if you asked his impression of Canada, his experience with IRCC would make him say it was “totally negative and disappointed.”
“But for other people, they are kind,” he said, adding that he would like to truly visit Canada before he gives his real feelings.
Bilsin, the lawyer, says getting clarity from IRCC will be crucial.
“What I’m hoping is to receive a decision on these study permit applications for my clients as soon as possible, and I’m hoping they will decide to settle this case.”
But until that can happen, the students are in limbo, saying their careers, finances, and mental health are hanging in the balance.
