+1(514) 937-9445 or Toll-free (Canada & US) +1 (888) 947-9445

Study permit for Yoga training i.e. self-improvement course

PeterP

Newbie
Sep 16, 2019
1
0
Hello,

I am a little bit confused about what really applies to me right now. So I want to do a course to improve my Yoga skills. I found one in my area and it is a 7 months course. In the end I get a certificate as a Yoga teacher. But I do not want to work with this in Canada, this is just for myself and I wouldn't even have the time to do so, because I will leave Canada pretty soon after the end of this course. Right now I have a visitor status because I am here with my partner and he has a work permit. We'll only live in Canada until next August.
On the IRCC and CIC homepage it says that every course that is longer than 6 months needs a study permit, but I don't need a study permit if I just do this for self-improvement, which is my intention. And this institution is not on the DLI list.
So my question is just: do I need a study permit for this? There is no definition on the IRCC homepage on what a course of self-improvement exactly is, how long it can be etc. But courses of self-improvement are headed on the homepage with: The following activities are not considered studies for the purposes of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) and do not require a study permit:
  • pre-school (pre-kindergarten)
  • courses of general interest or self-improvement
  • distance learning
  • audited courses (typically by sitting in on an academic course, but without obtaining credit for it, or having the ability to obtain credit for it retroactively)
Any suggestions? Thanks :)
 

PMM

VIP Member
Jun 30, 2005
25,494
1,946
Hi

Hello,

I am a little bit confused about what really applies to me right now. So I want to do a course to improve my Yoga skills. I found one in my area and it is a 7 months course. In the end I get a certificate as a Yoga teacher. But I do not want to work with this in Canada, this is just for myself and I wouldn't even have the time to do so, because I will leave Canada pretty soon after the end of this course. Right now I have a visitor status because I am here with my partner and he has a work permit. We'll only live in Canada until next August.
On the IRCC and CIC homepage it says that every course that is longer than 6 months needs a study permit, but I don't need a study permit if I just do this for self-improvement, which is my intention. And this institution is not on the DLI list.
So my question is just: do I need a study permit for this? There is no definition on the IRCC homepage on what a course of self-improvement exactly is, how long it can be etc. But courses of self-improvement are headed on the homepage with: The following activities are not considered studies for the purposes of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) and do not require a study permit:
  • pre-school (pre-kindergarten)
  • courses of general interest or self-improvement
  • distance learning
  • audited courses (typically by sitting in on an academic course, but without obtaining credit for it, or having the ability to obtain credit for it retroactively)
Any suggestions? Thanks :)
1. You don't require a study permit for it. It is general interest/self improvement.
 

MaryDy

Newbie
Mar 18, 2020
1
0
36
Canada
Indeed, it is a difficult situation when you can't work legally because of some restrictions due to a lack of citizenship. I was in the same situation. It took some years to get all the documents and start a normal life with, my partner in the new country. I also finished courses in yoga and practiced it for some years. Now I stopped on the Hatha yoga sequence because it is the best direction in yoga that I liked. I even thought to film videos of my training and make my own YouTube channel and share my experience with others. It is a very popular topic nowadays.