General information for Indian families, not legal, immigration or financial advice. See the note at the end.
For years, Canada was the default answer after 12th. English everywhere, a big Indian community, a work permit after the degree, and a path to settling down. Many families still start there.
But the Canada of 2023 is not the Canada of 2026. Study permits are now capped, a bachelor's applicant needs an extra letter from the province before the visa application can even begin, and the amount of money you must prove has gone up again. Meanwhile the four-year bill, at published 2026–27 fees, runs from about ₹1.3 crore at a lower-cost university to about ₹2 crore at a top one.
Japan is the other option on the table in more families than before, usually because of that bill. So here is the honest comparison, for the student and for the parent who is signing the cheques.
In one paragraph: a four-year bachelor's at a Japanese national university comes to about ₹44 lakh all-in on a what international students report spending in a government survey (JASSO; includes study costs), and the Canadian examples we priced come to about ₹1.3 to ₹2 crore, roughly three to five times as much. Canada offers English-medium study and, for eligible graduates, a post-graduation work permit. Japan asks you to learn Japanese for the full benefit, but it is far cheaper and has no permit cap of the Canadian kind that we know of. The right answer depends on your child's field, their willingness to learn a language, and what your family can afford to lose if the plan doesn't work out.
How current is this?
A note on how current this is (6 Oct 2026). The Canadian rules and fees below come from the Government of Canada's own pages (IRCC) and from each university's 2026–27 fee page, read this week. The Japanese rules and survey figures were checked against Japan's government and university sources. Costs are examples to show the scale, not fixed prices: we assumed fees stay flat for four years, and in practice they usually rise. Canada's rules in particular change often. Always confirm on the official page before you pay anything.
Why did so many families pick Canada, and what changed?
It is worth being fair first. Canada was a reasonable choice: English-speaking, welcoming on paper, a clear work permit after a degree, a large Indian community, and an established road to settling. None of that was herd behaviour.
What changed is the door. In January 2024 Canada announced a cap on new study permits, aiming for about 360,000 for that year. It has tightened since: its own notice for 2026 says it will issue up to 408,000 study permits, of which only 155,000 go to newly arriving students, with 309,670 application spaces under the cap. (IRCC, 25 Nov 2025)
What that did to Indian numbers, from IRCC's own open data, by the year the permit started: 138,590 in 2019, 225,660 in 2022, 277,940 in 2023, 188,115 in 2024, and 93,735 in 2025. (IRCC open data, rounded to the nearest 5, recent years preliminary) The wider story is in our guide Where should Indians study abroad now?
Canada did not ban Indian students. It capped everyone, and Indian students had been the largest group.
What does a bachelor's actually cost? Four years, side by side
We priced the same thing for each country: the whole four-year degree, with tuition, living costs and visa costs counted once. These are real published fees for specific universities, used as examples. They are not averages.
| Four-year bachelor's, all-in (illustrative) | Local currency | In rupees (Komichi's arithmetic) |
|---|---|---|
| Japan, national university (government survey of spending: ¥151,000 a month × 48) | ¥7,248,000 | about ₹44 lakh |
| Japan, private university (same survey: ¥188,000 a month × 48) | ¥9,024,000 | about ₹55 lakh |
| Canada, University of Manitoba, Arts (lower-cost example) | C$186,000 | about ₹1.26 crore |
| Canada, Toronto Metropolitan University, Arts | C$249,000 | about ₹1.69 crore |
| Canada, University of British Columbia, Arts | C$300,000 | about ₹2.03 crore |
Engineering costs more in Canada: roughly ₹1.26 crore at Manitoba, ₹1.85 crore at Toronto Metropolitan, ₹2.43 crore at UBC on the same method.
How we built the Canada rows: four years of published 2026–27 international tuition (University of Manitoba Arts C$20,677 a year plus about C$2,300 of mandatory fees and health cover; Toronto Metropolitan Arts C$38,731, which includes its fees; UBC Arts C$51,530), plus four years of living costs at C$23,448 a year, the minimum the Canadian visa office asks you to show from 1 September 2026, plus a C$150 study permit fee and C$85 biometrics fee. Rates: C$1 = ₹67.76 and ¥1 = ₹0.6096 (Federal Reserve H.10 for 25 Sep 2026; our cross rates).
Read this table fairly:
- The Canadian living figure is a visa minimum, not a budget. Toronto Metropolitan's own site estimates total annual costs of C$62,435 to C$88,029, which puts living costs well above the visa minimum in a big city. Real Canadian bills can run higher than ours.
- The Japanese figure is what international students report spending in a government survey, and it already includes their study costs, so we have not added tuition again. It is a survey across all levels of study, not undergraduates only. A different kind of number to the Canadian visa figure, so treat the gap as scale, not a to-the-rupee difference.
- Not counted for either country: return flights, and the one-off admission fee in Japan (about ₹1.7 lakh at a national university).
- Fees rise. We held them flat.
What this means: even the cheapest Canadian example costs about three times the Japanese national-university figure over four years. The gap is large enough that it changes what the family is actually risking.
Japanese fees are not one number either
At national universities the government's standard tuition is ¥535,800 a year with a ¥282,000 admission fee, but universities may charge more. The University of Tokyo, for example, charges ¥642,960 a year to undergraduates entering from 2025. (UTokyo) A private university averages ¥1,507,647 in first-year payments (tuition, admission fee and facilities) in the education ministry's latest survey. (MEXT, published Dec 2025) Check the exact faculty's page before you apply.
Can it come down further?
Japan: yes. The Japanese government's MEXT scholarship for undergraduates exempts tuition, pays ¥117,000 a month and includes airfare. It is highly competitive and has fixed windows. For the 2027 intake, the Delhi embassy's first-round deadline was 25 May 2026, so that window has closed. (Embassy of Japan in India) The next cycle's dates are not yet posted on the page we checked; keep an eye on it. Other routes are covered in MEXT from India, scholarships beyond MEXT, studying in Japan for free and the scholarship finder.
Canada: scholarships exist, and each university sets its own, but we have not found one that reliably covers a four-year bill for an international undergraduate. Check each university's own awards page and do not build the plan on one.
Want your own number? Try the Can I afford Japan tool.
Can you even get a Canadian study permit?
This is the part of the comparison that did not exist three years ago.
- A provincial attestation letter first. A bachelor's applicant needs a Provincial Attestation Letter (PAL) from the province before applying for the study permit. The exemptions are narrow: from 1 January 2026, master's and doctoral students at public institutions no longer need one, along with school-age students, certain government priority groups and some extensions. A bachelor's student is not among them. (IRCC, PAL/TAL, page dated 2 Sep 2026) Each province receives a share of the cap: Ontario 104,780, British Columbia 32,596, Alberta 32,271, Manitoba 11,196 for 2026. (IRCC allocations) When the allocation is used up, no more letters.
- Proof of money. From 1 September 2026, a single applicant must show C$23,448 for living costs on top of the first year's tuition and the cost of travel to and from Canada. (Previously C$22,895.) (IRCC, updated 28 Aug 2026) A Guaranteed Investment Certificate (GIC) is only one example of acceptable proof, not a requirement on that page, though many families use it.
- Fees: C$150 for the study permit and C$85 for biometrics, if required. (IRCC fee list)
For a family, the point is not any one of these. It is that the plan depends on a cap and an allocation you don't control, set annually by the government.
We are not aware of a comparable national cap on student permits in Japan. It does have a student visa and a Certificate of Eligibility, which our guide to the student visa and CoE from India walks through, and it has been actively widening its welcome. The real hurdle in Japan is the language and the application process, not a published quota.
Can you work while you study?
| Canada | Japan | |
|---|---|---|
| Term time | Up to 24 hours a week off campus | Up to 28 hours a week, with permission |
| Holidays | Unlimited hours in scheduled breaks | Up to 8 hours a day in long vacations |
| Source | IRCC | Immigration Services Agency of Japan |
In both countries this is pocket money, not tuition. In Canada especially, with fees of C$20,000 to C$50,000 a year, part-time work will not close the gap. Plan on savings, family funds, a loan or a scholarship as the base. In Japan, working part-time in a cheaper city can cover a meaningful share of daily costs, but only a share.
After the degree: will you get to stay and work?
Canada: the Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP)
After a bachelor's, a graduate can apply for an open work permit that lets them work for almost any employer. For a four-year bachelor's degree:
- There is no field-of-study restriction for bachelor's, master's and doctoral graduates. The restriction applies only to college programmes and some other university programmes. (IRCC, PGWP eligibility, page dated 24 Jun 2026)
- You need a language score of CLB 7 in all four skills (reading, writing, listening, speaking) in English or French, proven with an approved test. That is a solid working level, and one that some graduates miss.
- For a bachelor's program of two years or more, a graduate may be eligible for a PGWP valid for up to three years (subject to passport validity and meeting all other requirements) — a four-year degree does not mean a four-year permit.
- You apply within 180 days of finishing.
It is a work permit, not permanent residence. Permanent residence in Canada goes through separate programmes whose rules and points move often, so we are not going to quote one here. Look at IRCC directly, and look at it as late as possible before you commit.
Japan: stay, switch, settle
- Job-hunting time: a job-hunting status of 6 months, renewable once, up to about a year, on your university's recommendation. (ISA)
- Switching to a work visa: an ordinary application, with no lottery and no fixed salary floor (the job must match your studies and pay at least what a Japanese worker would get). Among international students who applied to change from a student status to an employment status in Japan in 2024, 96.7% were approved (39,766 approvals). This is an approval rate for status-change applications — not a graduate employment rate. (ISA report, Nov 2025)
- Permanent residence: Japan's Highly Skilled Professional points route allows permanent residence after 1 year at 80 points or 3 years at 70, against 10 years on the ordinary route. (ISA guidelines, revised 24 Feb 2026) Check where you would score with the HSP points calculator, and read how the HSP visa works and permanent residency in Japan.
The honest counterweight for Japan: of those 39,766 approvals, only 401 were Indian nationals, and starting pay was modest: 46.1% earned ¥200,000 to ¥250,000 a month and 25.7% less than ¥200,000. (Same ISA report.) Japan's post-study transition is comparatively structured, at lower starting pay than many families hope for, and Japanese helps enormously.
What a bachelor's in Japan looks like
It is a four-year degree, same as in India. For an Indian student there are two routes in, covered in full in our guide Studying in Japan after 12th.
- Route 1: a degree taught entirely in English. These exist, so your child can graduate without Japanese. At bachelor's level they are fewer than at master's, concentrated in certain universities and fields. The English-programme finder and the programme list show what is currently on offer.
- Route 2: a Japanese-language year first, then a Japanese-taught degree. The student studies at a Japanese language school, then sits the EJU (a standard entrance test for international students). In 2026 it was held on 21 June and 8 November, with New Delhi as the Indian test centre, at a fee of INR 1,300. (JASSO, EJU 2026) This route opens the full range of Japanese universities, at the cost of an extra year or more.
A language-school year and the EJU are not in our cost table above, so they add to the Japan figure.
What Japan actually offers
Japan's case is not only "it's cheaper."
- You study near where the work is world-class. Japan leads in semiconductors, electronics, automotive and robotics, materials and precision manufacturing.
- A long-term need for skilled people. Japan's working-age population is shrinking, and the study-to-work approval rate above shows the door is open.
- A route to permanent residence you can plan. The points table is published, so you can see roughly what it would take before you apply anywhere.
- Lower financial risk. If the plan changes, you have spent about ₹44 lakh, not ₹1.3 crore or more.
- Day-to-day life that parents ask about first. See student life in Japan for Indians and vegetarian and Indian food in Japan.
The honest downsides of Japan
- You will need Japanese for daily life and most jobs, even with an English-taught degree. See what Japanese level each visa needs.
- The English-taught bachelor's choice is narrow. If your child wants a specific course, it may not exist in English.
- The Indian community is small. About 2,000 Indian students were in Japan on 1 May 2025 (JASSO), against a very large presence in Canada.
- Starting pay is lower than a good Canadian graduate job.
- Being a visible foreigner is not always easy. We don't hide it. See racism and discrimination in Japan for Indians.
When Canada is the better choice
Often it is. Choose Canada if:
- Your child will study and work in English only, and is not willing to learn another language.
- Your family can comfortably fund ₹1.3 crore or more and a failed job search would not be a crisis.
- The course your child wants is not available in English in Japan, and is strong in Canada.
- Your child has a realistic way to reach CLB 7 and a plan for the PGWP.
- You have a provincial attestation letter in hand or a university that can help secure one before you commit any money.
- The goal is a Canadian degree and Canadian work experience in itself, with settling as a bonus rather than the plan.
How to decide, in the right order
- Can your child get the permit? For Canada, ask the university about its attestation letter before you pay a deposit. For Japan, check the route.
- Assume you don't get to stay. Is the degree still worth the money? A ₹44 lakh Japanese degree passes that test easily. A ₹1.3 to ₹2 crore Canadian degree passes only if the brand and the career back home repay it.
- Language or cost: which is your real constraint? English only and cost is secondary → Canada. Willing to learn Japanese and cost matters → Japan.
- Only now compare exact fees for the programmes you would actually apply to. Cost comes last on purpose: it rules options out, it should not choose between them.
If Japan is on your shortlist, start here
- Is the single-country case strong enough? Why study in Japan, for Indians, including where it falls short.
- The full after-12th guide: Studying in Japan after 12th.
- Can your child be taught in English? Search English-taught programmes, then choose a university.
- Can it be funded? MEXT from India and the scholarship finder.
- Comparing other options too? Where should Indians study abroad now?, MS in Japan vs USA, MS in Japan vs UK, Japan vs Germany, and the master's-level Canada comparison.
This article is general information for Indian readers, not legal, immigration, tax or financial advice. Fees, visa rules, caps and exchange rates change, and Canada's rules in particular change often. Check every figure against the official source (IRCC and your university for Canada; the Immigration Services Agency of Japan, JASSO and your university for Japan) before you spend money, and take advice from a qualified professional, such as a regulated Canadian immigration consultant for Canadian visas, for your own situation. Komichi is not affiliated with any government, university or agent.