If you had a study permit refusal roughly a decade ago and are applying again now, here's the general guidance from the group:
- Disclose the past refusal on your application and in your SOP. Immigration application forms typically ask whether you've been refused a visa to Canada before, and this should be answered honestly regardless of how long ago it happened.
- An old refusal generally doesn't carry a lasting negative impact on its own, especially after this much time has passed — it's treated as historical context rather than an active mark against you.
- Not disclosing it, on the other hand, risks being treated as a misrepresentation issue if it's ever cross-referenced, which is a more serious problem than the original refusal itself.
Bottom line: mention it. A single old refusal from many years ago is unlikely to hurt you, but failing to disclose it when the form asks is the bigger risk.