Canada’s immigration department has started informing around 30,000 refugee applicants that they may not qualify for asylum hearings under a new law that makes the rules stricter and according to a report Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has sent “procedural fairness letters” to many applicants and these letters are not deportation orders but they ask people to provide more information before a final decision is made.
IRCC clarified that such letters are a normal part of the process and give applicants a fair chance to explain their case and the action follows changes under Bill C-12 where under this law people cannot apply for refugee protection if they filed their claim more than one year after entering Canada and the rule also applies to those who entered Canada after June 24, 2020 and applied on or after June 3, 2025.
As per the report applicants have been given 21 days to submit extra documents or proof to support their case and later this information will help officials decide if the case can be sent to the Refugee Protection Division for a full hearing and if a case is not accepted the applicant can still apply for a Pre-Removal Risk Assessment (PRRA) where officials check if the person faces danger if sent back.
However some people have already received another type of letter saying their application is not eligible and these letters ask them to leave Canada and confirm their departure with the Canada Border Services Agency and if they do not comply they may face a deportation order. This is the first time the scale of the law’s impact has become clear.
This development comes at a time when a large number of Punjabis continue to move to Canada every year and according to official data from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), India has been the top source country for immigrants and international students in Canada in recent years where in 2023 alone over 139,000 Indian citizens became permanent residents of Canad and a significant share of these migrants are from Punjab although province-wise numbers are not officially published.
Experts say that any tightening of immigration or asylum rules in Canada could have an impact on Indian applicants including those from Punjab as the community forms a major part of new arrivals.
In a separate development Sikh immigrants in Canada recently held protests demanding an extension of their work permits and many of these individuals had entered Canada on temporary visas or post-graduation work permits which are now set to expire in 2026 and protesters are asking the government to extend their stay citing job and settlement concerns.