Refugees

CIC relies on the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), other referral organizations and private sponsorship groups to find and refer refugees to be resettled in Canada.

People who can be resettled from outside Canada fall into two classes.

1) Convention Refugee Abroad Class

You may be in this class if you:

• are outside your home country; and
• cannot return there due to a well-founded fear of persecution based on:
  • race,
  • religion,
  • political opinion,
  • nationality, or
  • membership in a particular social group, such as women or people with a particular sexual orientation.

You must also be:

• outside Canada, and want to come to Canada,
• referred by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) or another referral organization, or be sponsored by a private sponsorship group, and
• selected as a government-assisted or privately sponsored refugee, or have the funds needed to support yourself and any dependants after you arrive in Canada.

2) Country of Asylum Class

You may be in this class if you:

• are outside your home country or the country where you normally live and have been, and continue to be, seriously and personally affected by civil war or armed conflict, or have suffered massive violations of human rights.

You must also be:

• outside Canada,
• referred by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) or another referral organization or be sponsored by a private sponsorship group, and
• privately sponsored, or have the funds needed to support yourself and any dependants after you arrive in Canada.

You will have to pass a medical exam and security and criminal checks.

Some people are not eligible

You are not eligible to resettle to Canada as a refugee from outside Canada if:

• you have another secure offer for protection, such as an offer to be resettled in another country;
• you become a citizen of another country and have the protection of that country;
• you choose to return to live in the country you had left; or
• the reasons for your fear of persecution no longer exist.

Want to live in Quebec?

The Province of Quebec selects its own refugees. Find out about Québec’s procedures for selecting refugees abroad.

You can sponsor refugees from abroad who qualify to come to Canada. Sponsors must provide financial and emotional assistance for refugees once they arrive in Canada.

Each year, millions of people are forced to flee their homelands to escape persecution, war or severe human rights abuses. Often these people can never return home.

The Private Sponsorship of Refugees Program helps thousands of refugees every year. You or your group can sponsor refugees from abroad who qualify to come to Canada. As a sponsor, you provide financial and emotional support for the refugees for the duration of the sponsorship. This includes help for housing, clothing and food. Most sponsorships last for one year, but some refugees may be eligible for assistance from their sponsors for up to three years.

Refugees must qualify for entry under Canada’s laws and must pass medical and security checks before they can come to Canada.

Sponsorship Agreement Holders

A number of groups across the country have signed agreements with the Government of Canada to help support refugees from abroad when they resettle in Canada. They are known as sponsorship agreement holders.

Blended Visa Office-Referred Program

The Blended Visa Office-Referred (VOR) Program matches refugees identified for resettlement by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) with private sponsors in Canada.

Groups of five

A group of five or more Canadian citizens or permanent residents over the age of 18 can sponsor one or more refugees to come to Canada and settle in their area.

Community sponsors

Some community groups can sponsor refugees to come to Canada.

Joint Assistance Sponsorship Program

Organizations can work as partners with Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) to resettle refugees with special needs.

Sponsors in Quebec

Quebec has its own process to sponsor refugees. Find more about refugee sponsorship in Quebec.

On December 15, 2012, Canada’s asylum system changed. Under the new system, asylum claims will be heard faster. This means that those who need Canada’s protection will get it faster, while those who do not, will be sent home faster.

Canada offers refugee protection to some people in Canada who fear persecution or who would be in danger if they had to leave. Some dangers they may face include the following:

• torture;
• a risk to their life; or
• a risk of cruel and unusual treatment or punishment.

If you feel you could face one of these risks if you go back to your home country or the country where you normally live, you may be able to seek protection in Canada as a refugee.

Canada offers refugee protection to people in Canada who fear persecution and who are unwilling or unable to return to their home country.

Eligibility

Some people are not eligible to claim refugee protection in Canada.

Officers receiving your refugee claim will decide whether it is eligible for referral to the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB), an independent administrative tribunal that makes decisions on immigration and refugee matters. The IRB decides who is a Convention refugee or a person in need of protection.

Your refugee claim may not be eligible for referral to the IRB if:

• You have been recognized as a Convention refugee by another country to which you can return;
• You have already been granted protected person status in Canada;
• You arrived via the Canada-United States border;
• You are not admissible to Canada on security grounds, or because of criminal activity or human rights violations;
• You made a previous refugee claim that was found to be ineligible for referral to the IRB;
• You made a previous refugee claim that was rejected by the IRB; or
• You abandoned or withdrew a previous refugee claim.

Please see the IRB website to find out more about making an asylum claim in Canada.

In addition, people who are subject to a removal order cannot make a refugee claim.

Safe Third Country Agreement

Canada has an agreement with the United States where people who want to make a refugee claim must do so in the first safe country they arrive in. This means that if you enter Canada at a land border from the United States, you cannot make a refugee claim in Canada. In some cases this rule does not apply (for example, if you have family in Canada).

Definitions

You may find the following definitions useful as you learn more about refugee claims in Canada.

Convention refugee

Convention refugees are people who are outside their home country or the country where they normally live, and who are unwilling to return because of a well-founded fear of persecution based on:

• race;
• religion;
• political opinion;
• nationality; or
• membership in a particular social group, such as women or people of a particular sexual orientation.

Person in need of protection

A person in need of protection is a person in Canada whose removal to their home country or country where they normally live would subject them personally to:

• a danger of torture;
• a risk to their life; or
• a risk of cruel and unusual treatment or punishment.