Coming to Canada as an Indian Student: Yes, Canada's a Safe Place for You

Canada's at diplomatic odds with India right now. Is Canada still a safe place for Indian students to study?

You may have seen some news lately about diplomatic relations between India and Canada going through a rough patch. At the core, Canada has concerns that the Indian government may have orchestrated the murder of a Canadian citizen on Canadian soil — a troubling allegation that hasn't been proven.

Still, the very suggestion was enough to set off an international incident: it's possible that a majority of Canadian diplomats may be ejected from India in the coming days.

You may even have seen reports about attacks on Indian people — including international students — on the rise in Canada. Fortunately, it's not true. Canada's an incredibly safe country, and despite the rhetoric around this issue, Indian students are more than welcome in Canada.

International students in Canada

In 2022, Canada welcomed over 800,000 international students from countries all around the world, with India making up the single largest country of origin for students, at 40% of the total: approximately 320,000 students from India came to Canada in 2022 alone!

Indian student perspectives

India's Economic Times newspaper spoke to many Indian students on the ground in Canada. Conditions are normal, they report: there's no change in attitudes and no evidence of violence against Indian students.

So, while the crime stats we'll look at below might be unsettling, the real odds of being involved in an altercation are slim. (Not zero, of course: you can never be 100% sheltered from risk!) So, to help convince you, let's look at some crime stats in Canada from the last couple of years. You'll see that Canada's a safe, welcoming country.

Low incident rate of hate crimes in Canada

In Canada, a hate crime is a form of discrimination, and includes crimes against individuals or communities based on indelible characteristics, like ethnicity or gender identity.

Hate crimes are rare, but they are on the rise. Still, in a country of 40 million people, 3,576 incidents were reported to police in 2022, up 7% from 2021 — unfortunately, these types of crimes accelerated during the pandemic, with most of the cases coming from Ontario, Nova Scotia, and Saskatchewan. Still, the incident rate is quite low.

Canada's low homicide rate

Again, the pandemic era saw a spike in the homicide rate, rising as high as 2.25 homicides per 100,000 people in 2022 — compare this to the United States at roughly 6.8 homicides per 100,000. Across Canada in 2022, 874 homicides were reported.

Of these 874 homicides, 265 victims were classified by police as "racialized," meaning they were members of a visible minority. Roughly 27% of racialized victims were identified as people of South Asian descent.

Coming to Canada in 2024 and beyond

Though India has imposed a travel advisory against coming to Canada, this is part of the diplomatic row described above: there's no substantial risk to international students, from India or otherwise, in Canada.

In fact, the Global Peace Index consistently ranks Canada in the top 20 safest countries on the planet, outranking places like Germany, the United States, and, yes, India itself.

So, if you're concerned about the rising tide of anti-Indian rhetoric in Canada, don't be. Being vigilant and aware of your surroundings is one thing — a necessary skill in any city worldwide — but avoiding Canada for fear of anti-Indian violence isn't necessary. You're safer in Canada than most places on Earth!