Ottawa has lost track of 25,800 asylum seekers

The number of rejected asylum seekers lost in Canada has been on the rise since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to figures obtained by our Bureau of Investigation, at the end of January there were 25,804 rejected asylum seekers wanted in Canada.

This is a 7% increase from data previously released in the spring of 2019, when their numbers reached 24,100.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the Canada Border Services Agency’s ability to conduct immigration investigative activities in 2020 and 2021,” the agency said.

It is not yet known whether the reopening last November of the Roxham Road entry point at the Canada-US border, which had been closed since March 2020 due to COVID-19, will cause a further increase in the number of immigrants wanted. .

The Canada Border Services Agency reminds us that there are several steps to go through before an asylum seeker is eventually refused and then searched for. Those who arrived via Roxham Road from November are in the early stages of this process.

Not all hidden

The president of the Quebec Association of Immigration Lawyers, Stéphanie Valois, brings a significant downside to these figures.

According to her, many of these rejected asylum seekers are simply no longer in Canada.

“I have a lot of clients who leave, but who won’t notify the Border Services Agency,” she explains.

Unlike some countries, Canada does not have exit border controls. We therefore know who enters the country, but not who leaves it. This means that a sought asylum seeker who slips away from Canada may do so neither seen nor known.

Lower number

According to Me Valois, the actual number of rejected claimants still in the country is actually lower than the official figures.

She also reminds us that life for undocumented immigrants in Canada is not easy, which does not encourage them to stay there.

“The phenomenon of illegals exists, of course. But it’s still quite difficult to live illegally in Canada, unlike for example in the United States, ”she says.

Immigration to Canada is…

• 30,087 accepted refugees
• 341 180 permanent residents admitted
• 74,586 people moved from temporary to permanent status
• 404 369 temporary work permits granted

Source: Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, 2019