Temporary public policy for the resettlement of additional Afghan nationals with a significant and/or enduring relationship to Canada

Background

The Government of Afghanistan collapsed in August 2021. After the withdrawal of international forces, the Taliban took power and remains unrecognized by the international community as the government of Afghanistan. This volatile situation has created significant security, humanitarian and persecution risks to the population in the country.

Afghan nationals with a significant and/or enduring relationship with the Government of Canada face an increased risk of being targeted for attacks and assassination campaigns due to the perception by the Taliban and insurgents that they have supported “western interests”.

Public policy considerations

The Temporary Public Policy for the Resettlement of Additional Afghan Nationals with a Significant and/or Enduring Relationship to Canada recognizes the high vulnerability and elevated risk faced by individuals associated with the Government of Canada, as well as their family members, as specified below. This new temporary public policy will facilitate the immigration of individuals with a significant and/or enduring relationship with the Government of Canada and their family members and de facto dependents to Canada as members of the Convention Refugee Abroad Class of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (“the Regulations”).

I hereby establish that, in light of the foregoing, there are sufficient public policy considerations to justify granting exemptions, pursuant to section 25.2 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (“the Act”), to the requirements of the provisions of the Act and Regulations listed below for Afghan nationals who are or were associated with the Government of Canada, and their family members, and de facto dependents, who apply for a permanent resident visa as members of the Convention Refugee Abroad Class and meet the conditions set out below, as well as all admissibility requirements as set out in the Act.   

Part 1: Conditions (eligibility requirements) applicable to Afghan nationals with a significant and/or enduring relationship with the Government of Canada:

Delegated officers may grant an exemption from the requirements of the Regulations identified below when the following conditions are met

1. The Afghan national is included on a list (“the List”) submitted to the Department of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) by Global Affairs Canada (GAC) or the Department of National Defence (DND). The Afghan nationals included on the List are referred to IRCC by GAC or DND on the basis of an assessment performed by GAC or DND, which confirms their significant and/or enduring relationship with the Government of Canada;
2. The Afghan national referred by GAC or DND or their family eligible under Part 2 below was in Afghanistan on or after July 22, 2021; and
3. The Afghan national received an Invitation to Apply from IRCC with respect to this Public Policy.

Requirements of the provisions of the Act and Regulations for which an exemption may be granted:

• paragraph 96(a) of the Act – the requirement to be outside the country of their nationality to be a member of the Convention Refugee Abroad Class;
• paragraph 139(1)(g) of the Regulations– the requirement to be able to become successfully established in Canada;
• subsection 140.3(1) of the Regulations – the requirement to submit a referral from a referral organization with their permanent resident application;
• subsection 140.3(4) of the Regulations – the requirement to submit their permanent resident application to the immigration office that serves the foreign national’s place of residence;
• paragraphs 151(b) and (c) of the Regulations – the requirement to meet the conditions of these paragraphs to be issued a temporary travel document; and,
• section 307 of the Regulations – the requirement to pay the application processing fee for examining circumstances under subsection 25.2(1) of the Act.

Part 2: Condition (eligibility requirements) applicable to the family members or de facto dependents of the principal applicant:

Delegated officers may grant an exemption from the requirements of the Act and Regulations identified below to a family member or de facto dependents of the principal applicant if:

1. The foreign national meets the definition of a “family member” in subsection 1(3) of the Regulations and is a “family member” of a principal applicant who meets the conditions set out in Part 1 of this public policy; or
2. The foreign national meets the definition of a “de facto dependent” (Annex A) and is a “de facto dependent” of a principal applicant who meets the conditions set out in Part 1 of this public policy and who is not inadmissible; or
3. Family members and de facto dependents of principal applicants with applications that were accepted for processing under a previous Temporary Public Policy for the Resettlement of Afghan Nationals with a Significant and/or Enduring Relationship to Canada and which are pending at the time of signature of this Public Policy and who were brought to IRCC’s attention  after the principal applicant’s application was accepted for processing; or
4. The foreign national ordinarily resides in the same household as the principal applicant who meets the first two conditions set out in Part 1 of this public policy and is a father, mother, brother, brother-in-law, sister, sister-in-law, grandfather, grandmother, grandchild, uncle, aunt, nephew, niece, cousin of the principal applicant or legal guardian of child who resides in the household and submitted an application that was accepted for processing by IRCC under a previous Temporary Public Policy for the Resettlement of Afghan Nationals with a Significant and/or Enduring Relationship to Canada, and is pending at the time of the signature of this Public Policy.

Requirements of the provisions of the Act and Regulations for which an exemption may be granted:  

• paragraph 96(a) of the Act – the requirement to be outside the country of their nationality to be a member of the Convention Refugee Abroad Class;
• paragraph 139(1)(g) of the Regulations– the requirement to be able to become successfully established in Canada;
• subsection 140.3(1) of the Regulations – the requirement to submit a referral from a referral organization with their permanent resident application;
• subsection 140.3(4) of the Regulations – the requirement to submit their permanent resident application to the immigration office that serves the foreign national’s place of residence;
• paragraphs 151(b) and (c) of the Regulations – the requirement to meet the conditions of these paragraphs to be issued a temporary travel document; and,
• section 307 of the Regulations – the requirement to pay the application processing fee for examining circumstances under subsection 25.2(1) of the Act.

Other statutory eligibility and admissibility requirements:

Foreign nationals eligible under this public policy including all eligible family members or de facto dependents are subject to all other applicable eligibility and admissibility requirements not addressed by this temporary public policy, including the requirement not to be inadmissible on criminal, security and health grounds.

Applicants intending to reside in Quebec are subject to the Province of Quebec’s selection criteria further to subsection 70(3) of the Regulations, and cannot be granted permanent residence unless Quebec determines that they meet such criteria.

Coming into effect and expiration

This public policy takes effect on the date of my signature and may be revoked at any time. This Public Policy ends on March 31, 2023, or once applications for 5,000 individuals (principal applicants, their family members, and de facto dependents) have been accepted into processing by IRCC, whichever comes first, with the view to fulfill the commitment of 18,000 admissions.

Applications accepted for processing by IRCC under a previous Temporary Public Policy for the Resettlement of Afghan Nationals with a Significant and/or Enduring Relationship to Canada and pending at the time of the signature of this Public Policy will be processed under this Public Policy.

Annex A

De facto dependents (who may or may not be blood relatives) do not meet the definition of family members. The officer must be satisfied that these persons are dependent on the family unit in which membership is claimed and cannot apply as a family member. The dependency may be emotional or economic and will often be a combination of these factors. Such persons would normally, but not exclusively, reside with the principal applicant (PA) as members of the same household.