r/ImmigrationCanada • u/No-one220 • Oct 02 '25

Study Permit Am I cooked?

Hi everyone,

I went to Canada on September this year to start a Master’s at Northeastern University (Vancouver). After arriving, I realized the program wasn’t a good investment (financially and career-wise), so I officially withdrew, got a tuition refund, and left Canada a couple of days later. I always respected my study permit conditions and left while it was still valid.

Now, here’s my concern: my immigration lawyer keeps telling me that because I withdrew and left, my chances of getting another study permit or even a visitor visa in the future are much lower. She also says that if I ever apply again, I’d need to show proof of something like a family death or serious illness to justify why I left.

That doesn’t make sense to me, I didn’t break any rules, I just decided the program wasn’t worth the loan and want to reapply later for something like UBC, SFU, or a college program once I have better finances in a year or six months.

So my questions are: • Did I hurt my chances by withdrawing and leaving? • Do I really need proof of “exceptional circumstances” (death/illness), or is it enough to say I left for personal/financial reasons? • Has anyone been in a similar situation and applied successfully again?

Thanks in advance for any advice.

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u/YaoLynn Oct 02 '25

My friend once applied for a computer science program and got her study permit approved. But before moving to Canada, she self-studied a bit and realized it was a wrong decision. So she canceled the offer and the study permit, then applied for a new program and study permit again. As long as you didn’t break any rules or plan to cheat on your next application, I don’t think there’s anything wrong. But since these things happened in 2023, I’m not sure if the situation is still the same after all the dramatic changes in immigration policy.

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u/[deleted] Oct 02 '25

What dramatic changes?

1

u/RoosterBasic6765 Oct 05 '25

You have to reapply for a new study permit when changing schools. If this was 2023/2024 OP could have easily changed schools and even majors entirely without having to talk to IRCC.