Well, in my case, since it's the professors themselves who've allowed this, even the university would not know... it's an in-person class that just happens to be done online with permission.
Is it worth potentially losing your future in Canada? IRCC and schools are now actively monitoring who is showing up for classes which they were previously not. A professor has zero idea of the immigration implications of you studying online and had they been aware they would have likely refused the request. IRCC is now actively looking for ways to deny people temporary status and even PR so people need to make sure they follow the rules.
How exactly are IRCC and schools monitoring this? There is no record of attendance in my grad classes, the university only sees the enrolment and grades from their end... Logistically, I think @Naturgrl 's point about knowing entry and exit dates is the only way....
They can ask the professor about their international students and whether they are attending in person. IRCC wants to know whether international students are both studying and attending in person. As already pointed out your exit and entries alone would make it clear you were not attending in person.
So the professor would allow this with permission. So the professor knows that you requested to attend online (to provide his/her permission)
Maybe I should have been more descriptive, the only course I'm enrolled in is a research course, where I work directly with a professor. I meet him online anyways once per week, and he's completely fine with me travelling cause it makes no difference since all the work related to research is done on the computer.
This is important details that you didn't tell us. So that's not really a class based course.
Did some googling around, and it appears that while the not recording exit dates was true in the past, I'm reading some forum posts that they're actually collected by the CBSA electronically through the airlines now?
Yes, it's more like writing a research project report and submitting it at the end of the term, which I'm mostly finished with anyway.
Yes, they have data from airlines and other sources. Canada doesn't have exit controls but this doesn't mean they don't know when you left. Best to assume they do.
CBSA receives your flight itinerary not IRCC. The information is available for both agencies if they want to find out. Canada doesn't care about exit dates and we don't have exit control. This hasn't changed in years and CBP does the same. It becomes relevant in your case when you try to re-enter. So, if your study permit is expiring soon, you can expect questioning possibly leading to denied entry.
My study permit expires in August, would it safe for me to return around April in this case?
