The University Canada West has given access to the Provincial Attestation Letter (PAL) on 4th March. The system was created by the British Columbia Government to regulate the number of new international students studying in British Columbia.
The provincial Attestation Letter (PAL) is only required for the prospective undergraduate students of University Canada West. Since gaining access to the PAL system, the whole UCW team is now putting the final touches on their internal process for issuing PALs.
What is a Provincial Attestation Letter (PAL)?
The Provincial Attestation Letters system is like a tool made by the provincial government. It helps to control how many international students can come to study in the province, as decided by the federal government. PALs are special papers given by schools to international students who got accepted to study there. These papers prove that acceptance is real when the students apply for their visas. Each school can only give out a certain number of these papers every year. This helps to limit how many new students can join.
Who needs a PAL?
For people interested in joining UCW’s programs like Bachelor of Commerce, Bachelor of Arts in Business Communication, and Associate of Arts, they’ll need a PAL along with their acceptance letter when they apply for their study permit.
But if you want to join the Master of Business Administration program, including the MBA Foundation (MBAF) or University Access Program (UAP), you won’t need a PAL.
Do students who have already applied for or been approved for a visa require a PAL?
If you applied for a study permit with Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada before 8:30 am ET on January 22, 2024, or if you have already been approved and plan to come to Canada soon, you don’t need to do anything else. This applies to future MBA students and those already studying at UCW. You don’t need a PAL.
How will this affect the University Canada West?
Because UCW has enough attestation letters, we don’t think these new rules will affect how many undergraduates we enroll. Also, MBA students can skip a PAL. We want to thank the BC government for handling the federal changes to student visas fairly, considering our province’s special situation. We’re excited to keep giving our students great education and experiences.
How will students request a Provincial Attestation Letter?
Students will be able to request a Provincial Attestation Letter (PAL) through University Canada West after their deposit is paid and they receive their letter of acceptance. There are no additional fees associated with the PAL request.
When can students start requesting a PAL?
UCW will start dealing with PAL requests very soon. We’ll send out a message explaining how to ask for a PAL in detail, including when you can start sending in your requests.
The PAL system adds just one more step to the admissions process for undergrad students and UCW is confident that the PAL system will be efficiently integrated into our admissions pipeline. In the coming days, we will update you more about the Provincial Attestation Letter (PAL). To get more updates on the Canada immigration system, stay tuned to AIMS Education.
