Asylum seekers became the focus of a jurisdictional tug-of-war this month when federal Immigration Minister Marc Miller accused conservative premiers of trying to “weaponize” asylum arrivals for political gain.
The federal Liberal government is hoping to alleviate pressure on Quebec and Ontario, where the bulk of asylum seekers are entering through airports in Toronto and Montreal, by resettling asylum seekers more evenly in other provinces across the country.
Three premiers — Alberta’s Danielle Smith, Nova Scotia’s Tim Houston and New Brunswick’s Blaine Higgs — have said they are opposed to taking more asylum seekers than they already get. Miller has said he won’t take no for an answer and would use a “carrot and stick incentive” to push uncooperative provinces to take more.
With oceans on three sides, and only the U.S. as a neighbour, Canada has historically been able to limit unexpected asylum claims by pre-screening passengers who hope to travel here by air from countries known for high levels of asylum claims. But the numbers coming in at airports have skyrocketed in recent years.
Here’s what’s really going on:
How much have airport claims increased by in recent years?
The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) processed a record 41,350 asylum claims at airports of entry last year, a 140-per-cent increase from 2022, and a 400-per-cent increase from 2019.
Nine out of 10 claims were made in either Ontario or Quebec, with more than half of all claimants arriving at Montreal’s international airport.
Canadian airports are on pace for another record year in 2024, processing 31,000 asylum claims between January and July, more than three times the number that have been processed at land ports of entry.
What’s driving the increase?
In 2016, the federal Liberal government dropped requirements that travellers from Mexico obtain visa to come to Canada, a requirement imposed by the previous Conservative government. Canada’s intake of asylum seekers from Mexico more than doubled each year from 2016 to 2023.
Canada also succeeded in closing the Roxham Road border crossing in Quebec last spring, where irregular migrants from third countries had been walking into Canada after first finding their way to the U.S. That preceded a sharp increase in arrivals at airports in Ontario and Quebec, according to federal data. At around the same time, the federal government implemented measures to speed up its processing of visitor visas to clear up a mounting backlog. It quietly dropped requirements that passengers arriving here by air from certain countries demonstrate they are just visiting, for instance by proving they had a return ticket home and funds in a bank account.
It proved to be a hugely consequential move that coincided with the surge in asylum claims.
Migrants are using the Montreal and Toronto airports as landing points because they’re Canada’s two biggest hubs for international flights.
Where are the claimants coming from?
Approximately 24,000 Mexican nationals claimed asylum in Canada in 2023 — compared to just 250 in 2016, the year the visa restriction was lifted. In February this year, the Liberal government backtracked and reimposed the visa requirement for Mexican travellers that had been put in place by the Conservatives, in the face of so many asylum seekers.
Mexico was the largest source country for migrants seeking asylum in Canada last year, followed by Haiti, Turkey, India and Colombia.
Do airports have the resources to properly screen claimants?
David Thomas, a Vancouver-based lawyer and mediator with over 20 years in immigration law, says that the short answer is “no.”
Thomas said CBSA’s airport immigration screeners lack the resources to properly vet the asylum claimants who wind up in their queues.
“A lot of the time they won’t even know if the guy in front of them had a criminal record in his home country,” Thomas said.
“All (airport personnel) can really do is stamp a document and give the claimant their hearing date,” added Thomas.
Thomas said that CBSA personnel lack the resources of police and intelligence agencies, adding that it can take even the most well-resourced agencies upwards of a year to properly vet a foreign national seeking legal status in Canada.
“Airport personnel, through no fault of their own, generally don’t do a very good job of scrutinizing applicants,” said Thomas.
A source with knowledge of the CBSA’s screening procedures said that time is often a restricting factor for airport immigration agents. They are often trained to move people through the queue quickly, with limited time spent with each person.
The source said that time pressures are pushing airport screeners to “shunt people onto the next stage of assessment,” usually their admissibility hearing, and “hope they’re vetted more closely later on.”
How long can asylum claimants stay in Canada?
Asylum seekers can stay until the federal government decides whether they qualify for refugee status. The average refugee claim takes about two years to process.
Unsuccessful refugee applicants will be ordered deported but they can first appeal their decision, if they choose, and remain in Canada until after their appeal is heard. A typical appeal takes roughly a year to sort out.
Do all asylum claimants given refugee status qualify for permanent residency?
A claimant who succeeds with a refugee claim does not automatically become a permanent resident. Refugees can become permanent residents through government-assisted or private sponsorship streams. As of 2023, average processing times were 26 months for the government-assisted stream and 30 months for the private-sponsorship stream.
National Post
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