Provincial Attestation Letter (PAL)

The Provincial Attestation Letter is proof that the student has been accounted for under a provincial or territorial allocation within the national cap. If required, a PAL must be included with your study permit application when you submit your application to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC).

Provincial Attestation Letters are issued only to new applicants who have been granted an offer of admission, have accepted the offer, and have paid the $2000 non-refundable tuition deposit.

The applicant will be given a short window to accept the offer and pay the deposit.  After the application is accepted and the deposit is paid, the University of Manitoba will work with the Government of Manitoba to obtain the PAL. 

Once received from the Government of Manitoba, the PAL will be available for the applicant in their application portal along with the standardized letter of admission that is required for the study permit application. You will be notified via email once the PAL is available through your portal.

Obtaining the PAL is not immediate, please allow our office 5 business days to process this request.

Applicants who are given an official admission letter to the University of Manitoba and are prompted to make a tuition deposit payment, will need to pay $2000 CAD.

This deposit is to secure your acceptance to your program and for UM to request your PAL from the Government of Manitoba. The deposit will be applied towards your tuition upon registration and is non-refundable.

Applicants are strongly recommended to make the PAL tuition deposit payment using their own bank accounts or credit cards, in order to avoid fraudulent activity.

For faster processing, we ask that applicants pay for their acceptance fee and PAL with a credit card (not a visa-debit or debit card).

If a credit card is not possible, please pay for your tuition deposit in one of two ways: 

1. Convera (formerly GlobalPay)
2. PayMyTuition

Please carefully review the PAL Tuition Deposit Payment policy.

Yes, you will be required to have a PAL for your study permit application. Please contact graduate.studies@umanitoba.ca for further information.

No. Refunds will only be considered if your study permit is denied. 

Proof of the study permit denial is required.

Students must request their refunds within the allotted timeframe stated in the Refund Policy chart, this timeframe is based on the last available start date on your standardized letter. No refunds will be granted after this.

Please carefully review the PAL Tuition Deposit Refund Policy.

Please carefully review the PAL Tuition Deposit Refund Policy.

Applicants will have a short window to accept their offer and pay the deposit. 

The timeline to accept the offer and pay the deposit will be determined by the term of application and the date that the offer of admission is extended to you. 

Yes. Failure to submit payment by the deadline stipulated on your application portal will result in your offer of admission being lapsed, you will need to reapply when you are ready to complete the process and to a future term that you can attend and that is currently open for applications.

No. If you apply to more than one program for the same term, you will only pay for one PAL. If you are extended an offer of admissions to multiple programs at the University of Manitoba, please notify our office at admissions@umanitoba.ca with which program you will be pursuing. 

A tuition deposit refund will only be considered if your study permit was denied by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). We require official proof (documentation) of the study permit refusal for the refund process to occur. 

Please carefully review the PAL Tuition Deposit Refund Policy.

No. Refund payments are refunded only to the original method of payment. Refund payments will not go to another method of payment. 

If the applicant is not the primary holder of the method of payment, they will be responsible to make arrangements with the payee to receive the refund. 

Applicants are strongly encouraged to not use a third party when making any payments to the University of Manitoba to ensure legitimate payments and the ability to receive a refund if applicable. 

Please carefully review the PAL Tuition Deposit Refund Policy.

If applicants are unable to fulfill the PAL and IRCC financial requirements, they are encouraged to reapply to a future term when they are able to meet these conditions. 

Payment extensions will be dependent on the program you applied to and the term. Please email UMPALinfo@umanitoba.ca for information.
 

Once you have paid your $2000 deposit, obtaining the Provincial Attestation Letter is not immediate, it can take 5 business days to acquire (weekends and holidays are not included).

We urge students to apply for their study permits as soon as they receive their PAL, and prior to the PAL expiry date. 

Visa processing times can be lengthy.  View the IRCC site on how to apply for your study permit and your country processing times.

The additional start dates indicated on the standardized letter are to support IRCC’s lengthy processing timelines and are not intended for delays in submitting the application to IRCC.

Applicants that do not submit their PAL to IRCC prior to the expiry date will have to reapply for admission and pay an additional $2000 tuition deposit to obtain a new PAL.
 

The University of Manitoba Admissions Office does not have jurisdiction over student visas or permits. If you have questions about study permit/visa applications we suggest that you speak with someone at the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) directly for information or regulations, specific to your study permit application.

You can contact our International Student Advisors (ISAs), who can provide some information on immigration regulations as they relate to your studies in Canada such as study permit extensions and changes, Temporary Resident Visas, the Post-Graduation Work Permit Program, etc. 

• UM Immigration information

Questions can be emailed to international@umanitoba.ca.
 

If you paid with a credit card, the receipt for the $2000 non-refundable tuition deposit, is an email receipt and it was sent to the email address that was used on your application. You should have received it the same day you made payment, with the subject line University of Manitoba International Tuition Deposit Received.  Students are welcome to print that receipt for your study permit processing, as that is an Official receipt.

You can email UMPALinfo@umanitoba.ca if you would like this receipt to be resent to you.

If you paid the $2000 tuition deposit via another method of payment, please reach out to stdntfee@umanitoba.ca for your receipt.

The additional start date indicated on the standardized letter is to support IRCC’s lengthy processing timelines and is not intended for delays in submitting the application to IRCC.

The University of Manitoba does not defer admissions. The additional start dates indicated on the standardized letter are to support IRCC’s lengthy processing timelines and is not intended for delays in submitting the application to IRCC.

If applicants cannot attend in the term they applied to or in the second term on the standardized letter due to IRCC refusal or to other delays they will be required to reapply for admission and submit another $2000 tuition deposit to obtain a new PAL with a new expiry date. 
 

The student’s first name, last name, and date of birth displayed on the PAL must match the Passport/birth certificate.

If you notice an error in the name or birthdate after the PAL has been issued, email UMPALinfo@umanitoba.ca for assistance, and include a copy of Government issued ID (i.e. Passport). No changes other than name and birthdate will be considered.  

The Manitoba Provincial Government only enters a student's first name and last name on the PAL.  A student’s middle name will not be included on the PAL.  

International students transferring from other Canadian Universities and/or Colleges will need a PAL, for their study permit extension due to a DLI change.

As of November 8, 2024. the IRCC has stated that international students must be enrolled in the DLI named on your study permit. To change DLIs, you need to get a new study permit by applying to extend your current one.

• IRCC - Changing your school or program information

If your application was accepted by IRCC for processing but was refused as per IRCC regulations, you must get a new PAL before you reapply.

• IRCC regulations

Beginning on January 1, 2025 as per IRCC regulations, international students who are attending a Canadian high school on a “secondary school” study permit will require a new study permit and PAL to attend a Canadian college or university.   

Students must submit their application and PAL to IRCC prior to the PAL expiry date.  Once the PAL expiry date has passed, it is no longer valid for submitting an application to the IRCC. You must reapply for admission and pay an additional $2000 tuition deposit to receive a new PAL with a new expiry date. 

Please email UMPALinfo@umanitoba.ca to inform us of your payment submission and method of payment. In addition, please attached proof of payment to your email for our office to process this as efficiently as possible. 

If you are applying from within Canada, please reach out to the International Centre for assistance with required documentation. They can be emailed at international@umanitoba.ca.

If you are applying from outside of Canada, please reach out to UMPALinfo@umanitoba.ca for next steps information.