Two related concerns come up often: whether a lack of travel history hurts study permit chances, and whether it's worth studying in Canada first (then applying for a spousal open work permit) instead of starting Express Entry from scratch.
What group members advised:- Travel history is not an official IRCC requirement for a study permit. Not having previously traveled internationally does not disqualify you or automatically lower your chances — officers assess the full application (funds, ties to home country, genuine intent to study), not travel history alone.
- Processing delays were widely reported around this period across visa categories, not just study permits — several members noted general slowdowns in IRCC processing at the time, so a slower timeline shouldn't necessarily be read as a sign of a weak application.
- The alternative strategy (study permit → spousal open work permit) also carries its own wait times. One member who tried this route reported over a year with no update on their spousal open work permit application, illustrating that switching strategies doesn't guarantee a faster overall path to Canada.
Given both routes can involve significant waiting, the choice between starting Express Entry directly versus a study-permit-then-spousal-permit path should weigh your specific eligibility and timeline tolerance rather than assuming one is definitively faster — and note that processing times reported here reflect a specific period and may not match current IRCC service standards.