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

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”. The Government of Canada has committed to resettling 18,000 Afghans with a significant and/or enduring relationship to Canada.

Public Policy Considerations:

In order to facilitate the resettlement of Afghan nationals with a significant and/or enduring relationship with the Government of Canada and their family, a temporary public policy was established on July 22, 2021, followed by four public policies issued subsequently:

1. Temporary public policy for the resettlement of Afghan nationals in Afghanistan (July 22, 2021);
2. Temporary public policy for the resettlement of Afghan nationals with a significant and/or enduring relationship to Canada (signed August 9, 2021);
3. Temporary public policy for the resettlement of Afghan nationals with a significant and/or enduring relationship to Canada (signed November 10, 2021);
4. Temporary public policy for the resettlement of additional Afghan nationals with a significant and/or enduring relationship to Canada (signed June 8, 2022); and
5. Temporary public policy for the resettlement of additional Afghan nationals with a significant and/or enduring relationship to Canada – Update and clarification (signed March 29, 2023).

This public policy updates the implementation timeframe and enables the continuation of processing to meet the Government’s commitment of resettling 18,000 Afghans with a significant and/or enduring relationship to Canada.

Recognizing the ongoing high vulnerability and elevated risk faced by individuals associated with the Government of Canada, as well as their family members, as specified below, facilitation is still required for 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”).

Given the objective of the public policy is to keep family units together, I wish to clarify that family members, de facto family members, and household members who may be granted exemptions pursuant to this public policy may only be granted exemptions when: 1) the application for exemptions under this public policy and for permanent residence of the Afghan national referred by Global Affairs Canada (GAC) or the Department of National Defence (DND) (primary referral) to whom they are associated is approved; and, 2) the family member, de facto family member, or household member’s application under the relevant public policy was accepted into processing at the same time as the Primary Referral or while the Primary Referral’s application under the public policy is pending. These clarifications are consistent with the intention of previous temporary public policies for the resettlement of Afghan nationals with a significant and/or enduring relationship to Canada.

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, de facto dependents, and household members 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 foreign national, also referred to as the “Primary Referral”, is included on a list (“the List”) submitted to the Department of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) by GAC or 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 Primary Referral referred by GAC or DND or their family member, de facto dependent, or household member eligible under Part 2 below was in Afghanistan on or after July 22, 2021; and
3. The Primary Referral received an Invitation to Apply from IRCC with respect to this public policy or submitted an application which was accepted for processing under a previous temporary public policy for the resettlement of Afghan nationals with a significant and/or enduring relationship to Canada.

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, de facto dependents, or household members of the Primary Referral

Delegated officers may grant an exemption from the requirements of the Act and Regulations identified below to a family member, de facto dependent, or household member of the Primary Referral 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 Primary Referral whose application for exemptions under this public policy and for permanent residence has been approved. The “family member” must apply at the same time as the Primary Referral or while the Primary Referral’s application under the public policy is pending; or
2. The foreign national meets the definition of a “de facto dependent” (Annex A) and is a “de facto dependent” of a Primary Referral whose application for exemptions under this public policy and for permanent residence has been approved. The “de facto dependent” must apply at the same time as the Primary Referral or while the Primary Referral’s application under the public policy is pending; or
3. The foreign national ordinarily resides in the same household as the Primary Referral, and is a father, mother, brother, brother-in-law, sister, sister-in-law, grandfather, grandmother, grandchild, uncle, aunt, nephew, niece, cousin of the Primary Referral or legal guardian of a child who resides in the household. The household member must have applied at the same time as the Primary Referral or while the Primary Referral’s application is pending, and both the household member and the Primary Referral’s applications must have been accepted into processing under one of the previous temporary public policies for the resettlement of Afghan nationals with a significant and/or enduring relationship to Canada listed below:
   1. Temporary public policy for the resettlement of Afghan nationals in Afghanistan (signed July 22, 2021)
   2. Temporary public policy for the resettlement of Afghan nationals with a significant and/or enduring relationship to Canada (signed August 9, 2021)
   3. Temporary public policy for the resettlement of Afghan nationals with a significant and/or enduring relationship to Canada (signed November 10, 2021)

   The Primary Referral’s application for exemptions under the previous Temporary Public Policy for the resettlement of Afghan nationals with a significant and/or enduring relationship to Canada and for permanent residence has been approved.

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 or household members 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 replaces the Temporary public policy for the resettlement of additional Afghan nationals with a significant and/or enduring relationship to Canada – Update and clarification dated March 29, 2023, and takes effect on October 1st, 2023. This public policy may be revoked at any time. This public policy ends on December 31, 2023, or once the total number of applications accepted into processing by IRCC under all temporary public policies for the resettlement of Afghan nationals with a significant and/or enduring relationship to Canada reaches 20,600 individuals (principal applicants, their family members, de facto dependents and household members), whichever comes first, with the view to fulfill the commitment of 18,000 admissions.

Transitional Cases

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 on October 1^st, 2023 will be processed under this public policy and will be assessed in accordance with the conditions outlined in 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 primary referral as members of the same household.