CANADA · CHAPTER 18
Staying safe and wellin Canada.
Call 911 for emergencies and 988 (call or text) for the Suicide Crisis Helpline. Colleges and universities offer free counselling, and provincial health lines (811 in most provinces) give nurse advice. The High Commission of India in Ottawa and consulates in Toronto and Vancouver help with passports and emergencies. The biggest risks for Indian students are fake IRCC or CRA calls, rental fraud, and recruiters who sell fake admission letters.
Published by Althéa Consulting · Adviser: Harshita Kohli
Source review: · How to use our guides
- Emergency
- 911
- Suicide Crisis Helpline
- 988
- Call or text, 24 hours
- Health advice
- 811
- Most provinces
- Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre
- 1-888-495-8501
Mental health and wellbeing
Every DLI has counselling or wellness services, and many provinces fund free student support lines. Long dark winters affect mood: get daylight, stay active and ask for help early. Your student or provincial health plan covers emergency care; check what it pays for counselling outside campus.
Scams aimed at international students
- Callers posing as IRCC, CBSA, the CRA or police threatening deportation or arrest unless you pay. They never demand gift cards, crypto or wire transfers.
- Recruiters selling admission letters: check your letter with the institution directly and confirm it is on IRCC's list of designated learning institutions. A fake letter can lead to refusal and a five-year ban for misrepresentation.
- Rental fraud: deposits for places you have not seen or that are listed by someone who cannot show ID and a lease.
- Report fraud to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre and your local police.
Discrimination
Discrimination in jobs, housing and services is illegal under human rights laws in every province. Report it to your institution, the provincial human rights commission or tribunal, and to police if it is a crime.
Winter and everyday safety
- Dress in layers with insulated, waterproof boots; frostbite can set in fast in wind chill.
- Follow Environment Canada weather alerts on your phone.
- Use campus walk-safe programmes at night.
- Keep your study permit and passport at home; carry copies.
When to contact the Indian mission
- The High Commission of India in Ottawa (and consulates in Toronto and Vancouver) issues emergency certificates if your passport is lost or stolen (report it to the police first and keep the report).
- It helps in arrests, hospitalisation, a death, or when a student is missing; families in India can raise a request on the MEA's MADAD portal.
- It cannot pay your bills, get you out of a legal case or intervene in visa decisions of the host country.
- Save the mission's emergency number from its website in your phone before you fly, and register any address change with it if asked.
QUICK ANSWERS
Your questions, answered.
No. IRCC, CBSA and the CRA do not threaten arrest or ask for gift cards, crypto or wire transfers. Hang up and report it to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre.
Confirm it on IRCC's list of designated learning institutions and verify your letter of acceptance with the institution directly, not through an agent.
WHERE TO GO NEXT
Keep going: the pages that help next.
Each card says what you will find there. Looking for something else? See every page on the site.
CANADA GUIDE
Health, bank & phone
Provincial health plans and university insurance for international students in Canada, banking and phone plans.
CANADA GUIDE
First weeks in Canada
After landing in Canada: check your study permit, get a SIN, open a bank account, enrol in health insurance and get a transit pass.
FROM INDIA
Scams & emergencies abroad
Study abroad fraud warnings for Indian students: fake agents, offer letters and visas, forex and job scams, plus lost passports and emergencies abroad.
FROM INDIA
A guide for parents
Study abroad answers for Indian parents: true costs, loans and co-applicants, sending money, safety, health, visiting your child and checking an agent.
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FRANCE
Study in France
The full France guide: degrees, fees, Campus France, visa, housing and work, chapter by chapter.
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