A set of immigration laws and regulations governs the entry and stay of foreigners in Canada. In this respect, Canada is no different from the rest of the world, each of which has its own immigration laws.
How your stay in Canada is regulated
The population of any state consists of citizens and aliens residing on the territory of that country.
Citizens are individuals who have citizenship of that country. By this fact they have all the power in that country, they are subject to all the rights guaranteed by the laws of that country, and they form what is the backbone of any state: its people. Citizens, of course, have the right to live on the territory of the country without any restrictions, to enter and leave freely.
The second category of inhabitants of the country are persons who have no citizenship and who are foreigners for this country, regardless of how long they have lived in this country and what their status is. The rules for the stay of foreigners in the country are stipulated in the laws, which fall under the section of immigration law.
Unlike nationals, aliens do not have an unconditional right to remain in Canada indefinitely or to enter and leave the country freely. In order to do so, they must obtain special permits which determine what they can and cannot do and for how long.
Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) is the agency that deals with all matters relating to immigration, including issuing entry visas, admission conditions, residence permits, and citizenship.
There are two categories of people who stay in Canada: temporary residents and permanent residents. These are two very different groups, each with different rights.
To become permanent residents, a foreigner must go through the immigration process under one of the immigration programs.
Permanent resident status allows the alien to live in Canada indefinitely, travel in and out of the country freely, study, work and run a business without any restrictions.
In practice, permanent residents are not much different from citizens in terms of rights and social benefits. In addition, after a certain period of time, permanent residents can apply for citizenship.
For foreigners who do not have permanent resident status, the picture is very different.
About 21 million people visit Canada each year (2018 data). This flow is divided into those who come as tourists (tourist), those who go to study (student) and those who go to work in Canada (temporary worker). All of them are issued only one visa – Temporary Resident Visa.
Those who come to Canada for business, academic or cultural exchange, to visit relatives, etc. – all fall under the definition of a tourist. They must have a Temporary Resident Visa to enter the country.
The maximum period of stay in the country on it is 6 months. If the length of stay needs to be extended, the visa can be extended at the Canadian immigration office. People who have come to Canada on a Temporary Resident Visa are not eligible to study in Canada, if the study takes longer than 6 months, and are even less allowed to work in the country. After their visa expires, they must leave Canada.
In addition to the Temporary Resident Visa, a Study Permit should be obtained for studies in Canada, if these studies take longer than 6 months.
This permit allows you to stay in Canada for the duration of your studies, i.e. it extends the validity of your entry visa. At the beginning of 2019, there were about 500 thousand foreigners with Study Permit living in Canada, which is twice as many as in 2007.
In order to be able to work in Canada without the status of a citizen or permanent resident, you should obtain a Work permit in addition to the Temporary Resident Visa.
This permit allows you to work in Canada for the duration of your stay in Canada, which extends the validity of your entry visa. Approximately 100,000 such permits are issued each year.
If we talk about the rights that persons temporarily residing in Canada have, they are limited. They are not eligible to work, they are not covered by many benefits like free health insurance or reduced tuition rates, they are not eligible to vote, and so on.