ARCHIVED – Notice – Changes to Pre–Removal Risk Assessment for South Sudan

September 4, 2014—Individuals from South Sudan may be eligible for a pre-removal risk assessment (PRRA) if they received a final decision from the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB) or a final PRRA decision on or between August 27, 2013, and August 26, 2014. Prior to removing them from Canada, the Canada Border Services Agency will advise individuals from South Sudan if they are now eligible to apply for a PRRA.

Individuals from South Sudan are exempted from the bar on accessing a PRRA as conditions in that country have worsened. As a result, individuals could face a situation of risk that may warrant an additional assessment. It is important to note that the ability to apply for a PRRA does not guarantee the outcome of the risk assessment. Officers at Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) will continue to decide cases individually, based on the information provided by the applicant.

It is the applicant’s responsibility to inform CIC of any changes to their application.

Note that individuals from South Sudan who receive a final IRB or PRRA decision after August 26, 2014, are not entitled to a PRRA for 12 months.

The majority of people who seek a PRRA are failed refugee claimants. These individuals would have had their asylum claim first heard before the Refugee Protection Division (RPD) at the independent IRB. Most claimants have the opportunity to appeal a negative RPD decision at the IRB’s Refugee Appeal Division. All claimants can ask the Federal Court to review a negative decision.

In considering what countries to exempt from the bar on accessing a PRRA, CIC considers any event that has recently arisen in a country that could place all or some of its individuals in a situation of risk similar to those defined in the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (sections 96—definition of a Convention Refugee and 97—definition of a person in need of protection). For example, these changes could include a change in government, laws or policies that indicate government sanction of persecution against certain groups or a lack of state protection.

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