Parliamentary Committee Notes: Security Screening and Admissibility
Key Messages
All visitors, temporary foreign workers, students, immigrants and refugees are carefully screened before coming into Canada to determine their admissibility. This screening ensures that these persons do not pose a threat to the health, safety or security of Canadians, and may be allowed to enter the country.
When required, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) works closely with Public Safety partners (Canada Border Services Agency, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Canadian Security Intelligence Service) to carry out the screening process with the information available to them at the time of processing. This allows for a fulsome security screening to help identify those who might pose a threat to Canadians and to mitigate the potential security risks associated with those seeking to enter Canada.
Biometric information (fingerprints and photograph) help to build confidence in Canada’s immigration programs, protect the North American perimeter, and serve as the foundation of identity management.
IRCC’s highly trained officers conduct the initial admissibility assessment of permanent and temporary resident applications against departmental databases and risk indicators, to ensure that entry documents to Canada are only issued to those who are not inadmissible on grounds of security, human or international rights violations, or organized criminality.
Visas, electronic travel authorizations (eTAs), and immigration documents are issued when the applicant poses no threat to the health, safety, or security of Canadians. Should information be uncovered indicating that the foreign national poses a threat to Canadians, the document would not be issued.
With the exception of some vulnerable groups and special measures in place to support resettlement initiatives, all permanent resident applicants, must provide a police certificate or criminal record check as part of the screening process. In certain cases, temporary resident applicants may also be asked to provide this documentation.
Both CSIS and CBSA also play an integral role in the security screening program, which is a critical function of Canada’s national security, as they provide security advice on immigration (CBSA and CSIS) and citizenship (CSIS only) applicants.
Supplementary Messages
Security screening
Security Screening is an important part of the overall assessment of whether a person is admissible to Canada. This assessment aims to ensure that anyone who wants to come to Canada:
has not engaged in an act of espionage that is against Canada or that is contrary to Canada’s interests;
has not engaged in or instigated the subversion by force of any government;
has not engaged in an act of subversion against a democratic government, institution or process as they are understood in Canada;
has not engaged in terrorism;
has not engaged in acts of violence that would or might endanger the lives or safety of persons in Canada;
does not pose a danger to the security of Canada;
has not violated human or international rights; and,
has not engaged in organized or transnational criminal activities.
Canada’s standard security screening approach is a robust process that leverages biometrics (fingerprints and photographs) along with biographic information to ensure that risks to national security and public safety are reduced and the integrity of our immigration system is strong.
When an applicant provides their biometrics, IRCC may obtain derogatory information (e.g. history of biometric encounter, exclusion or exemption rules applied) from Migration 5 partners (Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States). This information contributes to the applicant’s admissibility.
All applicants are subject to universal and non-discriminatory considerations during the screening process. IRCC uses a holistic approach by taking into consideration all information on file and the respective threat level.
When required, IRCC relies on key partners to provide their security screening analysis, and to check against international databases for information available at the time of the screening for the purpose of enforcing provisions of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) (e.g. determining admissibility).
The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) is responsible for undertaking investigations and enforcement action against permanent residents and foreign nationals in Canada who are believed to be inadmissible.
Criminal offences
Alleged criminal offences committed on Canadian soil are a matter for law enforcement. Allegations of criminal activity, such as coercion or intimidation should be referred to the RCMP, or local police forces, for investigation.
If a permanent resident or a foreign national is convicted of an indictable offence in Canada, or if a foreign national is convicted of two offences not arising out of a single occurrence, or has been found to have engaged in acts of espionage that are against Canada or that are contrary to Canada’s interests, they will be found to be inadmissible and may be issued a deportation order, have their visa or electronic travel authorization cancelled and be removed from Canada.
Criminality can also apply to a conviction or commission of an offence outside of Canada equivalent to an offence punishable by indictment in Canada.
The Minister of Public Safety is responsible for policy concerning inadmissibility on grounds of security, human or international rights violation, cross-border criminality and organized criminality, as well as for immigration enforcement, including removing foreign nationals. Further questions on these matters should be referred to the Minister of Public Safety or CBSA.
Process for removing foreign nationals and permanent residents found to be inadmissible
CBSA is the enforcement arm of Canada’s immigration programs and is responsible for immigration inland enforcement and removals. IRCC supports CBSA through conducting interviews and verifications, writing A44 reports, and enforcing removal orders for certain grounds of inadmissibility.
A foreign national loses temporary resident status when an IRCC or CBSA officer or the Immigration and Refugee Board has determined they did not comply with IRPA. The electronic travel authorization or visa held by the individual may also be cancelled.
A permanent resident loses status when a removal order comes into force, i.e. becomes active, under A48(1). Once the removal order is enforceable, the foreign national must leave Canada immediately.
Most removals and inadmissibility reports (A44 reports) are led by CBSA. There are various reasons, including appeals and legal proceedings, that may prevent CBSA from enforcing a removal order.