Canada’s Refugee System

Canada’s refugee system, among other privileges, allows refugees to file for their permanent residency under humanitarian and compassionate grounds.

These applications can be divided into two categories:

1. Resettlement from outside Canada.

2. Claiming refugee protection from inside Canada.

Resettlement From Outside Canada

You cannot apply directly to the government of Canada as a refugee. You must be referred by the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR), a designated referral organization, or a private sponsorship group.

To be referred, you must fall into one of these two refugee classes:

1. Conventional Refugee Abroad Class — People who are outside their home country and cannot return due to a fear of persecution based on race, religion, political opinion, nationality or membership in a particular social group (gender, sexual orientation etc.). Conventional refugees can be sponsored by the Government of Canada; a group of people or an organization or a mix of both. You can also be a conventional refugee if you have the funds needed to support yourself and your family after you arrive in Canada.

2. Country of Asylum Class — You may fall under this class if you are outside your home country or the country where you normally live, and have been seriously affected by civil war or armed conflict, or have been denied basic human rights on an ongoing basis. The country of asylum class refugees can be privately sponsored.

Once you are referred by the UNHCR, a referral organization, or a private sponsorship group, you will need to apply under one of the two categories. You will also need to pass the medical exam and the security and criminal check.

Claiming Refugee Protection in Canada

Canada offers refugee protection to some people who are already in Canada and fear persecution or would be in danger if they go back to their home country. 

All valid and eligible refugee claims are referred to the Immigration Refugee Board of Canada (IRB). The IRB as an independent board makes all decisions on refugee and immigration matters.

Refugees can be categorized as:

1. Conventional refugee — People who are not able to return to their home country because of fear of persecution based on race, religion, political opinion, nationality, or membership in a particular social group (gender, sexual orientation etc.)

2. A person in need of protection — People in Canada who cannot return to their home country safely. This is because if they return, they would be subject to a danger of torture, risk to their life, or a risk of cruel and unusual treatment or punishment.

Humanitarian and Compassionate PR Application

The H&C PR application is a pathway available for people who have made Canada their home and established close ties to their community but lack legal status and are not eligible to apply for permanent residency through other channels.

 An application for permanent residency based on H&C grounds requires applicants to demonstrate to the courts that they have compelling reasons for remaining in Canada based on their establishment, separation from family members in Canada, best interest of their child and hardship they would suffer in their home country, also taking into account the country’s current conditions.

For more information, call us or write to us.