Post-Graduation Work Permit

After graduating from Douglas College, students may apply for a Post-Graduation Work Permit or PGWP. Duration and eligibility depends on meeting the general eligibility requirements and when students applied for their study permit. 

Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP) eligibility requirements

As you prepare to apply for your PGWP, your working eligibility will change as follows.

To maintain eligibility to work after completing your studies, students must: 

• have a valid study permit at the time of PGWP application
• maintained full-time enrolment status in each academic semester of their program of study
• have completed a PGWP eligible program of study
• be eligible to work off-campus with a study permit, and
• did not work off-campus more than the hours permitted during academic sessions
• have a valid SIN

The Graduation Team will assess your application and approve your graduation application by mid-May if you are completing your program in the Winter semester, mid-September if you are completing your program in the Summer semester or mid-January if you are completing your program in the Fall semester. Once approved, you will be able to download your Program Completion Letter via your myAccount. For more information on how to check your graduation application status or how to download your program completion letter, please visit our graduation page.

Please be aware of graduation application deadlines and that delaying your graduation application will result in a delay in receiving your completion letter. We recommend not delaying your graduation application. We also host Post-Graduation Work Permit workshops every semester to help guide students through the application process. 

You have 180 days to apply for your post-graduation work permit. We advise that you calculate the 180 days from the date the final grades are due.

For applications made inside of Canada, you must have valid study permit or meet one of the other requirements of section R199 to apply for a PGWP. Please be advised that your study permit becomes invalid 90 days after you complete your studies or the date marked on the permit (whichever date comes first). You have completed your studies on the date you receive an email confirming all graduation requirements were met or on the date your completion letter is issued (whichever comes first).

For applications made outside of Canada: you do not need to hold legal status in Canada when you apply, however if you plan to come back to Canada to work before IRCC makes a decision on your application, you should apply for your PGWP before your study permit becomes invalid. Please note that you must also leave Canada before your study permit becomes invalid. You will also be required to have a valid TRV or eTA to return to Canada. 

You must submit both your completion letter and your final transcript with your application. An unofficial transcript from your myAccount should suffice. Ensure that your transcript indicates explicitly “Credential Awarded” somewhere above your program name on the transcript. There is no blanket date for when this information is available, as it depends on each student.

If you completed more than one program, we suggest that you attach your Letter of Acceptance for the second program as an additional document when applying for a PGWP.

If you completed more than one program and have multiple completion letters, you should submit all the completion letters you have.

The length of a PGWP will depend on the length of your program. For example, if you complete 1 x two-years program, you may be eligible for a maximum of three-year PGWP if both programs are PGWP eligible programs.

*Due to changes in PGWP eligibility requirements, if you have changed your program during your time at Douglas College and will need to apply for a study permit extension after November 1, 2024, and your new program is not PGWP-eligible under the new requirements, please contact an International Student Advisor Specialist to discuss your case. You can check whether your program is PGWP-eligible under the new requirements on IRCC website. Douglas College program CIP codes are listed on our website, programs without listed CIP codes on our website are not PGWP-eligible.

PGWP applications made under maintained status (previously called Implied Status)

We recommend that you extend your study permit if it expires before applying for a PGWP, and apply within 6 months of your completion date. If you have applied for your study permit extension before its expiry, you are on maintained status after your study permit expires.

Students who are under maintained status are not allowed to make an application for a Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP) inside Canada. We recommend that students in this situation to return to their home country, submit a PGWP application outside of Canada and wait until a decision is made on their application.

Please note that if you study permit expired before the completion of your program, you only have 180 days from when your study permit expired to apply for a PGWP. Please refer to IRCC's website for more information.

You are NOT authorized to work in Canada after you submit your post-graduation work permit if your application was submitted while you were on maintained status. 

If you would like to discuss your options as maintained status applicant, please do not hesitate to contact us. 

Resources

To support your PGWP application to IRCC (Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada) you can submit our Enrolment Status and Scheduled breaks letter with your application.