Himuda,
Can you please specify exactly which official website you are referring to? In my case, I pull the information directly from the CIC website. To read the specifics doirectly at the source, simply go to the main CIC site, and drill down through the links having to do with the eligibilty and procedures for obtaing a study permit. The section entitled "Proof of Financial Support" specoifies thge following ...
"You must prove that you can support yourself and the family members who accompany you while you are in Canada. You can prove that you have sufficient funds to support yourself in Canada by showing some of the following:
* proof of a Canadian bank account in your name if money has been transfered to Canada;
* your bank statements for the past four months;
* a bank draft in convertible currency;
* proof of payment of tuition and accomodation fees;
* a letter from the person or institution providing you with money; and
* proof of funding paid from within Canada if you have a scholarship or are in a Canadian-funded educational program."
The section then goes on to provide information about the specific amounts of money you need to show you have available to you, based on how many family members (if any) will be accompanying you.
It's important to view this information in the proper perspective, and think about the reasoning and intent behind the CIC policies and requirements. The list I quoted above is a list of suggestions of acceptable ways that you can use to reassure CIC that you have sufficient money to support yourself. You can use some of these, one of these, or combination of some of these and others you may have. The point is, they are simply suggested ways in which you can verify sufficient funds.
In my personal situation (yes, I've actually goine through the process myself) I paid for my first term up front (ca. $8,000), and I had a letter from the university stating that. Several months prior to the start of school, I also opened checquing and savings accounts at TD Canada Trust Bank, and wire-transferred sufficient funds into my TD bank account from my home bank account. The day before I went in to get my study permit, I simply went to the TD Bank web site and printed off an up-to-date bank statement, and I was good to go.
The main point I'm trying to make here is this: There are many differnet ways to prove financial sufficiency, but some are better than others. Some of the "proofs" are downright laughable. The reaseon one of the suggested methods is showing 4 months of bank statements, is because too many dishonest individuals tried to "prove" they had enough funds by temporarily borrowing money from family or friends, putting it into an account of their own, and then simply returning it once they'd gotten their study permit and made past immigration controls. People are much less limely to lend you money if they know it will be tied up and unavailable to them for a lengthy period of time. If a CIC official looks at four months of bank statements that reflect a sudden and mysterious large deposit just a few days or weeks prior to trhe permit application, then they begin to wonder how genuine the funds really are.
On the other hand, other ways are considered much more genuine and less likely to raise suspicion. Opening a Canadian account IN YOUR NAME and transfering the funds directly, as I suggested, is one of those ways. Carrying the funds on your person, in the firm of a certified bank cheque or traveller's cheques, is another way. Prepaying tuition to the school and presenting an official letter from the school as a receipt is another way to instill confidence in your honesty and integrity. Handing the CIC officer a hand-written note from your "Uncle Bob" stating that he's rich and is paying for everything you might need WILL raise questions!
Approach the process logically, and think about what thee official on the other side of the table is thinking. Be honest and provide legitimate proof, and you wiill have no difficulties with the "Proof of Financial Sopport" area of the study permit process. Good Luck!