How many international students arrived in Canada in August 2026?

Canada welcomed 37,090 new international students in August 2026, up from 5,800 in July, an increase of 31,290 arrivals in one month.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada reported the figures. August is traditionally the busiest month ahead of the fall semester starting in September, and similar seasonal spikes occurred in August 2024 and August 2025.

What does the 155,000 student target mean if Canada is at 42% through August?

The federal target of 155,000 new international student arrivals for 2026 is a cap on how many new students Canada aims to welcome in the calendar year, not a guarantee of places at schools.

From January through August 2026, Canada welcomed 65,240 new international students, which is 42 percent of that 155,000 annual target with four months left in the year.

August 2026 arrivals were 17 percent lower than August 2025 and 53 percent lower than August 2024. Combined student and worker arrivals during the first eight months of 2026 were 63 percent lower than the same period in 2024.

Did temporary worker arrivals change in August 2026?

Temporary worker arrivals also increased in August by approximately 10 percent, reaching 16,850.

That rise happened in the same month as the student surge but did not close the wider gap versus earlier years for overall temporary arrivals.

What happens next for Canada’s international student intake in 2026?

Four months remain in 2026 for Canada to try to close the gap toward the 155,000 new international student arrival target after reaching only 42 percent through August.

Canada’s busiest month for new international student arrivals in 2026 is now past, yet the country remains well below its target, which points to continued pressure on the international education sector despite August’s large monthly increase.

Year over year comparisons show arrivals still far below 2024 and 2025, leaving Canada unlikely to meet its full year target without a sharp change in the remaining months.