The Canadian government will temporarily remove the limit on the number of hours that international students in the country can work from November 15.

African international student advisory agents are alleging bias over sustained low rates of student permits approvals for applications to study in Canada, when compared to those for the rest of the world.

International students are having to defer places to Canadian institutions after not having their study permits processed in time for this semester.

Statistics have revealed a sharp difference in approval rates in Canada with study permit applications made via the Student Direct Stream process compared with non-SDS applications.

The number of new study permits issued by the Canadian government increased by 5.4% in 2015, according to the latest figures from IRCC, which also show that international students spend more than $11.4bn in Canada annually.

Educators in Canada have voiced their concern over the impact of a rule change that will mean international students completing a pathway programme before postsecondary study must obtain a separate study permit for each course.

Students from Nigeria must wait an average of 216 days for a study permit to be processed for them to study in Canada, according to statistics published by CBIE. The data shows an overall rise in study permit processing times in 2015.

Multiple internal government reviews have revealed delays and errors in visa processing in Canada, seeing processing times increase by a third for study permits and double for permanent residence permits.