Frequently Asked Questions about the Provincial Attestation Letter/Territorial Attestation Letter (PAL/TAL)

PAL is short for Provincial Attestation Letter or Territorial Attestation Letter (TAL). Since Saskatchewan is a province, we will continue to use the term PAL throughout this document.

A Provincial Attestation Letter (PAL) is an official document that most applicants need to provide to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) when applying for their study permit. The PAL must be submitted with your study permit application, not after. Each PAL/TAL is issued by the province/territory where your university/school is located.

Most international students must include a PAL from the province where they plan to study with their study permit application, unless exempt. Please review the Government of Canada website for the most up-to-date information to determine if you meet one of the exceptions: Study permit: Get the right documents Provincial attestation letter or territorial attestation letter - Canada.ca

Students do not need to apply for their PAL. The process is automated based on the Letters of Acceptance (LOA) submitted to the Saskatchewan Provincial Government. At the University of Saskatchewan, students are endorsed for PALs once they have been successfully admitted and have completed the required steps to confirm their offer of acceptance. This may include paying a non-refundable international Tuition Deposit.

Once you confirm your offer and we receive your International Tuition Deposit, we will automatically request the PAL on your behalf. It can take up to two weeks from the time we receive your International Tuition Deposit to your PAL being issued to you.

Accessing your PAL is as easy as ABC, please follow these instructions below:

Access your University of Saskatchewan PAWS account by logging in at paws.usask.ca using your NSID (e.g. abc123) and password and open your USask email account. If you have difficulty accessing your PAWS account, please contact USask IT Support at (+1) 306-966-2222 or itsupport@usask.ca..

By opening your USask email, look for a message from MyCreds.ca | MesCertif.ca. It should look like this:

Click the link in the email to register for your MyCreds account by using the same email address the email was sent to. That email address is the one that the Ministry of Advanced Education will use to issue your PAL. You will not be able to access your PAL using any other email address.

After you receive your Letter of Acceptance (LOA) and your PAL, please apply for your study permit online on IRCC website as soon as possible. Please do not delay applying for your study permit. IRCC must receive your study permit application before the expiry date indicated in your PAL.

An international student at USask will only receive one PAL for the academic year in which they have been admitted. At USask, the academic year begins in the Spring Term (May) and ends at the close of the Winter Term (April of the following year).

Be aware of the expiry date indicated in your PAL. USask will not endorse students to receive a new PAL if the original one expires before you apply for a study permit. If your study permit is refused, you can use the same PAL if it is still valid to reapply for your study permit. This is why we advise that you apply for your study permit as soon as possible. Please note that your PAL is not transferable to another university or college in Canada.

No. PALs are not required for travelling to Canada purposes. PALs are required for study permit application purposes only. To find out more information about travelling to Canada, please review this page Study permit: Prepare for arrival - Canada.ca and contact the International Student and Study Abroad Centre (ISSAC) if you need more assistance.

No. You must apply for your study permit before the PAL expires. Please note the expiry date indicated in your PAL. This is why we advise that you apply for your study permit as soon as possible. If you apply for your study permit with an expired PAL, IRCC will cancel your study permit application.

All PAL tuition deposits must be made through the following link: https://admissions.usask.ca/requirements/international-tuition-deposit.php. You will need to make a $1,000 deposit through this portal. Tuition deposits are directly applied towards paying your first term tuition once you begin your program.

We are sorry to hear your study permit application was rejected. To request a refund, complete and submit the International Deposit Inquiry Form.

We are sorry to hear that you are having difficulty accessing your PAL. If you are having trouble accessing your PAWS account at https://pawscas.usask.ca, you can try resetting your password by selecting “Forgot password.” If you still cannot access your PAWS account, please contact IT Service Support at: (306)966-2222 or itsupport@usask.ca.

If there is an error in your PAL (e.g. wrong date of birth, name etc), please contact the Admissions office immediately to request a change to incorrect information at admissions@usask.ca or (306) 966-5788. Please note that middle names are not required information for PALs.

Nobody can guarantee that your study permit will be approved. Final decisions on all study permit applications are made by IRCC.

For questions related to study permit applications, please go to the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) website and contact ISSAC (International Student and Study Abroad Centre) if you require more assistance.

For questions regarding the MyCreds site and how to download your PAL, visit https://mycreds.ca/learners/faqs/

For additional questions about the USask admission or tuition deposit payment process, please contact admissions@usask.ca