Canada restricts asylum tribunal access and expands power to cancel immigration documents
Change
Canada enacted Bill C-12 to bar asylum seekers who apply more than one year after entering the country from full hearings before the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada and to permit government cancellation of permanent and temporary resident visas, work permits and study permits on public‑interest grounds.
Why it matters
Claimants who miss the one‑year entry window will be routed away from independent tribunal adjudication and face only pre‑removal risk assessments that carry fewer procedural safeguards. The law also broadens authorities to cancel immigration documents and to share personal information across agencies and beyond, increasing immediate legal uncertainty and removal risk for affected individuals.
Implications
- • Immigration lawyers and legal aid clinics must prioritise filing refugee claims and documenting clients' arrival dates within the one‑year window — failure to do so will forfeit clients' access to full tribunal hearings.
- • Refugee and migrant support organisations and settlement agencies must collect and securely preserve clients' identity and entry documentation and refer late or high‑risk cases to legal counsel — failure to update intake and case management will increase clients' exposure to cancellations and removal.
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Source
Topics
Policy & Regulation Migration Human Rights Regulatory Actions