Asylum statistics, trends and data

Canada’s asylum system exists to protect people who are fleeing persecution or a risk to their life or safety in their home country. In recent years, Canada has seen a steady rise in the number of asylum claims received. This increase is driven by multiple factors, including:

Our obligation

Under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, Canada has an obligation to assess the eligibility of asylum claims made by individuals who arrive in the country seeking refugee protection (asylum).

  1. Claims are first assessed for eligibility to be referred to the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB). All eligible claims are determined by the IRB based on the evidence and arguments presented, and in line with Canadian laws.
  2. Asylum claimants must prove that they have a well-founded fear of persecution or face a risk of serious harm—such as torture, cruel and unusual treatment, or punishment—in the country where they are a citizen or where they have nationality. If they are stateless, this applies to the country where they usually live.
  3. Those whose claims are accepted become protected persons and may apply for permanent residence under the protected persons in Canada category. Those whose claims are denied may be subject to removal from Canada.

Learn more about how Canada’s refugee protection system works.

Strengthening the integrity of Canada’s asylum system

We’ve introduced important reforms to strengthen migration integrity and modernize the asylum system. These measures are designed to make the asylum process faster so that claims are processed more effectively while Canada’s commitment to protecting those in need continues to be upheld.

Measures to address the overall number of temporary residents in Canada and to improve the integrity of our temporary programs have also supported the integrity of the asylum system by helping reduce the number of claims entering the system.

What we’ve done

We’ve taken concrete steps to minimize unnecessary border volumes, increase information sharing, and reduce non-genuine visitors and crossings between ports of entry.

Implemented a partial visa requirement for Mexican nationals

Asylum claims made by Mexican citizens at airports across the country immediately fell by 97% between February 2024 and March 2024.

Introduced the Additional Protocol to the Safe Third Country Agreement

The number of asylum claims from people crossing between ports of entry has since dropped from an average of 165 people a day in March 2023 to 13 people a day.

Heightened scrutiny of temporary resident visa (TRV) applications

We saw a 59% drop in asylum claims from TRV holders in October 2025 compared to the same time last year.

 33% fewer

people submitted an asylum claim between January 1 and October 31, 2025, compared to the same period in 2024.

Total number of claimants by month of submitted claim

The summary below provides an overview of claimants by month. Detailed breakdowns and historical data are available on the Open Government Portal. The data is updated monthly. It is considered preliminary and may be subject to change.

About the data

The number of asylum claims changes from month to month for a variety of reasons, so it’s difficult to predict future trends. We often see an increase in land border claims in late spring and early summer when the school year ends and travel increases.

This data may include people whose asylum claim has since been sent to the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB), people who have become protected persons (as defined by the IRB), or people who have since become a permanent resident in the year in which their claim was made.

Please note that in the tables, all values between 0 and 5 are shown as “--”. In the graphs, all values between 0 and 5 will be visualized as zero. This is done to prevent individuals from being identified when data is compiled and compared to other publicly available statistics. All other values are rounded to the closest multiple of 5 for the same reason; as a result of rounding, the data may not sum to the totals indicated.

Total claimants

Asylum claimants by province and territory of submitted claim

This graph shows the monthly number of people who submitted an asylum claim, both inside Canada and at the border since October 2022.

Select a province or territory to focus on those numbers.

Asylum claimants by province and territory of submitted claim - Table
Asylum claimants by province and territory of submitted claim
Month Newfoundland and Labrador Prince Edward Island Nova Scotia New Brunswick Quebec Ontario Manitoba Saskatchewan Alberta British Columbia Yukon Northwest Territories Nunavut Province/Territory of claim not stated Total claimants
22-Oct -- 0 15 10 6,040 2,420 35 -- 165 310 0 -- 0 0 9,000
22-Nov 5 0 5 -- 5,905 2,730 35 -- 215 445 0 0 0 0 9,345
22-Dec 0 0 15 15 7,170 2,905 30 10 250 525 0 0 0 -- 10,915
23-Jan -- 0 -- -- 6,945 2,965 35 10 195 555 0 0 0 0 10,705
23-Feb -- -- 20 10 6,435 2,605 15 -- 220 470 0 0 0 0 9,785
23-Mar 0 0 -- -- 6,240 3,045 40 5 245 500 0 0 0 0 10,085
23-Apr -- 0 5 -- 2,965 3,260 20 -- 235 355 0 0 0 0 6,850
23-May 5 -- 10 15 3,605 4,340 25 10 270 505 0 0 -- -- 8,785
23-Jun 5 -- 15 10 4,445 4,950 50 15 420 595 0 0 0 0 10,505
23-Jul -- -- 25 5 4,895 5,510 70 5 495 555 0 0 0 0 11,565
23-Aug -- 0 15 15 4,905 6,000 55 20 695 710 0 0 -- 0 12,410
23-Sep -- 0 15 20 6,450 6,810 65 20 755 755 -- -- -- -- 14,900
23-Oct 10 -- 20 25 6,665 7,740 130 30 880 815 -- 0 0 -- 16,315
23-Nov 10 -- 20 25 5,785 8,135 145 25 885 885 0 0 0 -- 15,910
23-Dec 5 -- 10 20 5,870 7,690 120 30 755 985 0 0 0 -- 15,490
24-Jan -- 5 15 15 5,195 7,505 150 55 770 965 0 -- 0 -- 14,685
24-Feb 5 -- 20 25 6,460 7,790 135 30 635 845 0 0 0 0 15,950
24-Mar -- -- 25 30 5,575 7,975 145 55 800 860 0 0 0 0 15,470
24-Apr -- -- 25 10 5,375 8,195 115 30 705 820 -- 0 0 0 15,290
24-May 5 -- 25 20 5,330 8,660 155 35 830 860 0 -- 0 0 15,920
24-Jun 10 -- 25 15 4,935 7,485 170 50 720 810 0 0 -- 0 14,220
24-Jul 10 0 45 30 4,655 7,770 180 55 830 805 0 0 0 -- 14,385
24-Aug 10 5 25 25 3,690 7,135 195 45 830 900 0 0 -- 0 12,860
24-Sep -- -- 35 55 4,315 7,095 205 65 915 970 -- -- -- -- 13,670
24-Oct 10 10 25 35 3,870 7,610 200 50 945 1,105 -- -- -- 0 13,860
24-Nov -- -- 30 40 3,660 6,425 195 55 865 1,160 -- 0 0 0 12,435
24-Dec 5 -- 20 30 4,175 6,445 215 60 835 1,290 5 0 0 0 13,085
25-Jan 5 -- 25 25 3,045 5,200 180 50 685 1,080 -- 0 0 0 10,295
25-Feb -- 10 35 35 2,875 4,345 145 50 545 910 0 0 -- 0 8,945
25-Mar 10 -- 35 25 3,215 4,385 95 30 480 920 -- -- 0 0 9,210
25-Apr 10 -- 30 35 4,500 4,340 105 50 565 865 -- 0 0 0 10,505
25-May 15 -- 25 25 2,380 4,140 105 55 535 855 0 0 0 -- 8,140
25-Jun 10 5 35 30 3,400 4,615 145 50 635 1,065 -- -- 0 -- 9,990
25-Jul -- -- 45 25 5,700 4,685 160 70 695 975 0 -- 0 0 12,360
25-Aug 15 10 30 60 3,625 4,230 140 65 640 840 -- -- 0 0 9,665
25-Sep 10 5 35 40 2,880 4,805 125 65 720 1,055 -- 0 0 0 9,750
25-Oct 20 5 50 40 2,590 4,535 185 75 710 1,110 0 -- 0 0 9,315
Claimants at a port of entry

Asylum claimants at official ports of entry

When someone submits an asylum claim at an official port of entry, a Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) officer will decide if their claim meets the eligibility requirements to be sent to the IRB.

The Safe Third Country Agreement (STCA)

The Safe Third Country Agreement (STCA) between Canada and the United States (US) is an important tool for both governments to work together on the orderly management of asylum claims along our shared land border. All individuals crossing the Canada-US land border to seek asylum in Canada are subject to the STCA and are returned to the US to pursue an asylum claim there unless they qualify for an exception or exemption to the STCA.

Asylum claimants at official ports of entry by province and territory of submitted claim

This graph shows the number of people who submitted an asylum claim at different ports of entry since October 2022.

The data does not show how many asylum claimants are currently living in a province or territory, only where claims were originally submitted.

Select a province or territory to focus on those numbers.

Asylum claimants at official ports of entry by province and territory of submitted claim - Table
Asylum claimants at official ports of entry by province and territory of submitted claim
Month Newfoundland and Labrador Prince Edward Island Nova Scotia New Brunswick Quebec Ontario Manitoba Saskatchewan Alberta British Columbia Yukon Northwest Territories Nunavut Total claimants
22-Oct 0 0 10 0 5,380 1,090 20 0 50 95 0 0 0 6,645
22-Nov 0 0 -- 0 5,270 960 25 0 70 125 0 0 0 6,445
22-Dec 0 0 -- 5 6,235 1,050 5 0 75 180 0 0 0 7,550
23-Jan 0 0 -- 0 5,890 875 20 0 20 160 0 0 0 6,970
23-Feb 0 0 -- 10 5,520 825 10 0 45 135 0 0 0 6,540
23-Mar 0 0 -- -- 5,345 1,110 25 -- 95 140 0 0 0 6,715
23-Apr 0 0 -- -- 2,110 1,600 10 -- 75 95 0 0 0 3,890
23-May -- 0 -- -- 2,375 1,845 -- -- 65 130 0 0 0 4,420
23-Jun 0 0 5 -- 3,225 2,130 -- -- 60 130 0 0 0 5,560
23-Jul 0 0 -- 0 3,195 2,075 10 0 65 85 0 0 0 5,430
23-Aug 0 0 -- 10 2,955 1,460 -- -- 75 135 0 0 0 4,640
23-Sep 0 0 -- -- 4,430 2,540 -- 0 150 145 0 0 0 7,275
23-Oct 0 0 -- -- 4,205 2,590 10 -- 150 165 0 0 0 7,125
23-Nov 0 0 -- 5 3,485 2,490 -- -- 85 205 0 0 0 6,280
23-Dec 0 0 -- -- 3,545 2,470 10 -- 115 270 0 0 0 6,415
24-Jan 0 0 -- 0 2,800 2,045 20 -- 65 225 0 0 0 5,155
24-Feb 0 0 -- -- 4,100 2,425 -- 0 65 250 0 0 0 6,845
24-Mar 0 0 -- 0 3,345 2,345 10 -- 115 160 0 0 0 5,975
24-Apr 0 0 5 -- 3,295 2,670 -- -- 90 140 0 0 0 6,210
24-May 0 0 -- -- 3,130 2,780 10 0 115 120 0 0 0 6,165
24-Jun -- 0 5 -- 3,035 2,430 10 0 55 120 0 0 0 5,665
24-Jul 0 0 -- -- 2,585 1,995 -- 5 90 130 0 0 0 4,820
24-Aug 5 0 5 -- 1,600 1,365 15 -- 55 120 0 0 0 3,165
24-Sep 0 0 -- 10 2,155 1,515 10 10 60 110 0 0 0 3,880
24-Oct 0 0 0 -- 1,560 1,565 15 -- 65 95 0 0 0 3,295
24-Nov 0 0 0 -- 1,645 1,185 15 -- 65 105 0 0 0 3,020
24-Dec 0 0 5 5 2,185 1,445 20 -- 60 125 0 0 0 3,850
25-Jan 0 0 -- -- 1,295 875 15 5 35 120 -- 0 0 2,350
25-Feb 0 0 -- 5 1,285 745 20 0 45 85 0 0 0 2,185
25-Mar 0 0 -- 5 1,900 800 10 0 40 105 -- 0 0 2,865
25-Apr 0 0 0 20 3,330 925 10 -- 65 105 0 0 0 4,455
25-May 0 0 -- -- 1,100 730 10 5 40 50 0 0 0 1,935
25-Jun 0 0 5 -- 2,075 835 10 -- 45 65 -- 0 0 3,040
25-Jul -- 0 5 -- 4,010 1,055 25 15 35 80 0 0 0 5,230
25-Aug -- 0 -- 10 2,060 765 10 20 50 95 0 0 0 3,015
25-Sep 0 0 5 -- 1,250 795 10 -- 50 105 0 0 0 2,220
25-Oct -- 0 -- -- 1,050 660 10 0 30 60 0 0 0 1,810

Where people submit claims

This table shows the number of claimants at each type of port of entry.

Period Airports Land ports Marine ports All ports
January to October 2022 13,005 36,495 25 49,525
January to October 2023 32,125 26,415 35 58,570
January to October 2024 38,410 12,745 20 51,175
January to October 2025 9,985 19,120 10 29,115

See breakdown by month

Claimants inside Canada

Asylum claimants inside Canada

When someone submits an asylum claim from inside Canada (online or at an inland office), an IRCC official or a CBSA officer will decide if their claim meets the eligibility requirements to be sent to the IRB.

By province and territory of submitted claim

People can submit claims for asylum from within any province or territory. This graph shows the number of people who submitted claims since October 2022.

The data doesn’t show how many asylum claimants are currently living in a province or territory, only where their claims were originally submitted.

Select a province or territory to focus on those numbers.

By province and territory of submitted claim - Table
By province and territory of submitted claim
Month Newfoundland and Labrador Prince Edward Island Nova Scotia New Brunswick Quebec Ontario Manitoba Saskatchewan Alberta British Columbia Yukon Northwest Territories Nunavut Province/Territory of claim not stated Total claimants
22-Oct -- 0 5 10 655 1,330 15 -- 115 220 0 -- 0 0 2,355
22-Nov 5 0 5 -- 635 1,770 10 -- 145 320 0 0 0 0 2,900
22-Dec 0 0 15 10 935 1,855 25 10 175 345 0 0 0 -- 3,365
23-Jan -- 0 -- -- 1,055 2,090 10 10 175 390 0 0 0 0 3,740
23-Feb -- -- 20 -- 920 1,780 10 -- 175 340 0 0 0 0 3,245
23-Mar 0 0 -- -- 895 1,940 15 5 150 360 0 0 0 0 3,370
23-Apr -- 0 5 -- 855 1,660 10 -- 160 260 0 0 0 0 2,960
23-May 5 -- 5 15 1,230 2,495 25 10 205 375 0 0 -- 0 4,365
23-Jun 5 -- 10 5 1,220 2,820 45 10 360 460 0 0 0 0 4,945
23-Jul -- -- 25 5 1,700 3,435 60 5 430 470 0 0 0 0 6,135
23-Aug -- 0 10 -- 1,950 4,540 50 15 620 575 0 0 -- 0 7,765
23-Sep -- 0 15 15 2,020 4,275 65 20 605 605 -- -- -- -- 7,625
23-Oct 10 -- 15 20 2,460 5,150 120 25 730 650 -- 0 0 -- 9,185
23-Nov 10 -- 20 15 2,300 5,645 140 20 795 680 0 0 0 -- 9,630
23-Dec 5 -- 10 15 2,330 5,220 110 25 645 715 0 0 0 -- 9,075
24-Jan -- 5 15 15 2,390 5,460 130 55 705 740 0 -- 0 -- 9,530
24-Feb 5 -- 15 20 2,355 5,365 135 30 570 600 0 0 0 0 9,105
24-Mar -- -- 25 30 2,230 5,635 135 50 685 705 0 0 0 0 9,495
24-Apr -- -- 20 10 2,080 5,525 115 30 615 680 -- 0 0 0 9,080
24-May 5 -- 20 15 2,195 5,875 145 35 720 740 0 -- 0 0 9,755
24-Jun 5 -- 15 10 1,900 5,055 155 50 665 685 0 0 -- 0 8,555
24-Jul 10 0 45 30 2,070 5,775 175 45 745 670 0 0 0 -- 9,565
24-Aug -- 5 15 20 2,090 5,775 175 45 780 780 0 0 -- 0 9,695
24-Sep -- -- 30 45 2,155 5,580 195 55 855 865 -- -- -- -- 9,790
24-Oct 10 10 25 35 2,310 6,045 185 45 880 1,010 -- -- -- 0 10,565
24-Nov -- -- 30 40 2,015 5,235 180 55 795 1,055 -- 0 0 0 9,415
24-Dec 5 -- 15 25 1,995 5,000 195 55 775 1,165 5 0 0 0 9,235
25-Jan 5 -- 20 25 1,750 4,325 170 40 650 960 0 0 0 0 7,945
25-Feb -- 10 35 30 1,590 3,600 125 50 500 825 0 0 -- 0 6,760
25-Mar 10 -- 35 20 1,315 3,585 85 30 440 815 0 -- 0 0 6,340
25-Apr 10 -- 30 15 1,170 3,420 90 50 500 760 -- 0 0 0 6,050
25-May 15 -- 20 25 1,285 3,415 100 50 495 805 0 0 0 -- 6,205
25-Jun 10 5 25 30 1,325 3,780 135 45 585 1,000 0 -- 0 -- 6,950
25-Jul -- -- 40 20 1,685 3,630 135 50 660 895 0 -- 0 0 7,125
25-Aug 15 10 25 50 1,565 3,465 130 45 595 750 -- -- 0 0 6,650
25-Sep 10 5 30 40 1,630 4,010 120 60 675 950 -- 0 0 0 7,530
25-Oct 15 5 45 35 1,545 3,875 180 75 680 1,050 0 -- 0 0 7,505

Asylum claimants apprehended between ports of entry

This graph shows the number of people apprehended by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) since October 2022 while crossing the border at locations other than official ports of entry and stating their intent to claim asylum. The RCMP then brings them to a Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) location for processing.

The data is updated monthly. It is considered preliminary and may be subject to change.

Select a province or territory to focus on those numbers.

About the data on this page

These numbers may be included in the total count of claimants shown in the “Claimants at a port of entry” or “Claimants inside Canada” graphs on this page, because claimants are counted based on the CBSA location to which the RCMP brings them for processing.

The numbers are unrounded.

Asylum claimants apprehended between ports of entry - Table
Asylum claimants apprehended between ports of entry
Month New Brunswick Quebec Ontario Manitoba Saskatchewan Alberta British Columbia Total - RCMP
22-Oct 0 3,901 0 16 0 0 34 3,951
22-Nov 0 3,731 0 23 0 0 34 3,788
22-Dec 0 4,689 0 3 1 0 52 4,745
23-Jan 0 4,875 0 19 0 0 104 4,994
23-Feb 0 4,517 0 5 0 0 61 4,581
23-Mar 0 4,087 0 15 0 0 73 4,173
23-Apr 0 69 0 9 0 0 26 104
23-May 0 46 0 3 0 0 30 79
23-Jun 0 30 2 1 0 0 27 60
23-Jul 0 42 0 8 0 0 33 83
23-Aug 1 53 0 3 0 0 40 97
23-Sep 0 59 2 2 0 0 25 88
23-Oct 0 36 0 7 3 0 29 75
23-Nov 0 58 0 0 0 0 37 95
23-Dec 0 90 0 5 0 0 131 226
24-Jan 5 79 0 16 0 0 91 191
24-Feb 0 75 0 8 1 0 94 178
24-Mar 3 90 0 8 0 0 48 149
24-Apr 2 55 0 1 0 0 27 85
24-May 6 60 0 16 0 0 23 105
24-Jun 1 28 0 3 0 0 35 67
24-Jul 1 51 2 0 0 1 43 98
24-Aug 0 40 0 13 0 1 25 79
24-Sep 0 37 0 10 0 1 42 90
24-Oct 0 26 0 15 0 0 21 62
24-Nov 0 33 0 13 0 4 29 79
24-Dec 0 74 2 11 0 0 32 119
25-Jan 0 73 0 13 0 0 36 122
25-Feb 0 99 4 14 0 11 40 168
25-Mar 0 63 1 6 0 0 38 108
25-Apr 8 94 2 2 1 0 33 140
25-May 0 54 0 8 1 0 12 75
25-Jun 0 58 0 6 4 0 22 90
25-Jul 0 239 0 17 16 0 20 292
25-Aug 0 238 0 4 14 0 32 288
25-Sep 0 79 0 8 0 0 36 123
25-Oct 0 100 0 0 0 2 13 115

More statistics about asylum claimants

If a claim is determined eligible, it’s sent to the IRB. The IRB is an independent administrative tribunal that assesses each case individually to determine if the claimant qualifies as a Convention refugee or a person in need of Canada’s protection.

Find out what happens to these asylum claims, including by country of origin.

Additional resources

Get detailed data

Download detailed monthly reports on asylum claimants on the Open Government Portal.

Immigration and Refugee Board data

Get access to the IRB’s data on asylum claims, including claim data by country of origin.

Asylum claimants processed by year (archived)

Access the archived pages for data posted on our site between 2016 and 2025.

Additional resources

Students and temporary workers

Information on the total population of students and workers in Canada

Additional resources

IRCC’s application inventory

Information on how many applications are within or exceeding our service standards, as well as how many we’ve processed

Additional resources

Immigration Levels Plan

Each year, the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship tables the Immigration Levels Plan, a forward-looking snapshot of immigration targets for the next three years

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2025-12-16