National Adult Literacy Database

This document is housed on the Community Legal Education of Ontario (CLEO) server.

The authors explain that the Canadian constitution gives the provinces exclusive jurisdiction over education but, at the federal level, Canada’s immigration laws state that any child under the age of 18 living in Canada can attend school. This means that a child under 18 years of age who is claiming refugee status or who has no status in Canada does not need a study permit from Citizenship and Immigration Canada to go to school.

The authors also explain the specific law in Ontario governing children’s attendance at school and discuss Canada’s obligations as a signatory to the United Nations Conventions on the Rights of the Child.