Canada hosted almost 495,000 students in 2017. This means that the country has surpassed its International Education Strategy goal of hosting more than 450,000 by 2022, five years early.

It was also revealed that the total number of study permit holders in Canada as of 31 December 2016 was 414,946, up from 351,330 (an 18% increase) in 2015. China and India are the largest growth markets.

Canada is looking for new ways to support the growing demand for visas for Chinese residents. So far this year, more than 500,000 applications have been received from China, a 15% increase on 2016.

The number of international students in Canada rose by 8% in 2015. However, figures indicate that growth has been dented by challenges in key source markets and slowing growth overall.