Toronto, Feb. 23 -- The number of study permits issued to international students in Canada last year fell by a quarter as compared to the corresponding figure for 2024. The drop in the permits issued to Indian students was even sharper in 2025, almost half of the number in 2024. According to the annual data from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada or IRCC, the total study permits issued fell from 514,915 in 2024 to 383,905 in 2025, a 25% reduction, having already declined from its 2023 record high of 680,795. This was also the lowest intake since 2018 when 354,260 permits were issued during 2020 when the Covid-19 pandemic disrupted international travel and the number plummeted to 255,530. As far as Indian students were concerned, the number of study permits holders last year nearly halved, dropping from 188,715 to 94,605. The number for 2023 was 277,965. IRCC noted it was reducing international students numbers to a "sustainable level." It pointed out there were 61% fewer new student arrivals in 2025 compared to 2025, a drop of 177,595. The total number of study permits issued includes these new arrivals as well as those already in the country with such valid visas. In a speech in Toronto last week, Canada's Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, Lena Metlege Diab, said when she was appointed to the post by Prime Minister Mark Carney last spring, "the task was clear" and it included restoring control and balance, and rebuilding confidence in the immigration system. As part of the process, Canada has capped international student numbers, made acceptance letter review mandatory to prevent study permit fraud and raised financial requirements. The decline follows policies instituted in the last quarter of 2023, as further restrictions were ordered over the following months amid concerns over a surge in temporary immigrants contributing to a spike in housing affordability and placing pressure on public infrastructure. In its levels plans announced in November last year, the government projected a 7% decrease in the total number of international students issued permits this year. IRCC noted that the total number of study permits to be issued in 2026 will be capped at 408,000, including 155,000 visas issued to newly-arriving international students plus 253,000 extensions for current and returning students....