As of January 22, 2024, international applicants who are applying for a study permit in Canada must have a Provincial Attestation Letter (PAL).

As part of the changes to the study permit requirements, each province and territory in Canada has been allocated a maximum number of study permit applications for the year. The purpose of the PAL is to provide confirmation from the province that each applicant has a space for a new study permit application within their allocation.

The attestation letter is a document issued by the Province of Ontario confirming that you have applied to study at a post-secondary institution in Ontario.

There are some exceptions to this requirement; see Study permit: Get the right documents on the Canada.ca website.

How to get an attestation letter

At some point during the application process, the post-secondary institution will submit a request for a PAL for you. When the request is approved by the Ministry of Colleges and Universities (MCU) and the PAL is available, you will be notified by the institution, and you will receive a copy of the letter. The notification and sharing process may be different for each institution.

To be clear, you will not be required to request a PAL. The college will do this on your behalf.

If you applied through the IAS portal, and the college has posted the letter in your account, it is listed in the Supporting Documents section, under Visa Documents.

After you receive your PAL, you must submit it to the IRCC (Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada) with your study permit application, payment receipt, and Letter of Offer from the institution.

If you have questions about how the institution that you are applying to is managing the PAL process, you can contact them directly. Go to the Contact the Colleges page on ontariocolleges.ca to find contact information.