CIMM – AFGH Library of Parliament Questions – February 8, 2023

Question 1

As of 14 April 2022, Canada had welcomed 11,165 Afghans – through the special immigration program for those who assisted Canada and the humanitarian program– since August 2021.

Response

Special Immigration Measures (SIMs) were launched in July, 2021 for locally-engaged staff at the Canadian Embassy in Afghanistan, and for Afghans, and their families, who had a significant and/or enduring relationship with the Government of Canada.  As of May 4, 2022, 14,905 Afghans have applied under the special immigration program based on an enduring relationship to Canada.

The Government of Canada was evacuating people before the fall of Kabul. During the evacuation efforts after the fall of Kabul, Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) supported Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) and Global Affairs Canada (GAC) in a joint operation (AEGIS) by providing strategic airlift capabilities to assist in evacuations alongside IRCC-chartered flights. Before the closure of the Canadian air bridge on August 26, 2021, Canada safely evacuated more than 3,700 persons from the Kabul airport in a matter of weeks.

Individuals who apply to the Program are referred to IRCC by GAC or Department of National Defence (DND). IRCC sends invitations to apply after receiving the referral from DND or GAC. Only the applicants that have been invited to apply have active applications. To ensure equitable treatment, IRCC processes complete applications on a ‘first in, first out’ basis. As of May 4, 2022, 10,310 applications have been approved and 4,520 are at various stages of advanced processing.

The key challenge Canada is facing is that many at-risk Afghans remain in Afghanistan and are unable to leave. The resettlement of Afghan nationals to safety in Canada continues to be challenged, as movement out of Afghanistan both by air and by land continues to be very difficult and often dangerous. As of May 4, 2022, 8,604 are still in processing or landing inventory, with 50% or 4,302, including interpreters and guards, currently in Afghanistan.

Question 2

Witnesses who assisted Afghans in filling out the required immigration forms at the height of the crisis have described the process as being overly cumbersome, particularly in light of the circumstances that applicants were facing on the ground. In particular, witnesses have criticized the type and volume of forms required by IRCC, as well as the automatic emails – or, in some instances, non-responses – those applicants have received.

Response

Canada is navigating client processing in a country with no military or diplomatic presence, and the current government is a designated terrorist organization under Canadian law. The lack of a physical presence in Afghanistan has presented challenges in how Canada collects and verifies the information of applicants still in the country. In response to the situation,  IRCC has implemented creative solutions to facilitate processing and achieve its goal of welcoming at least 40,000 Afghans to Canada, including:

IRCC Staffing for the Afghanistan Crisis

IRCC has mobilized existing staff and adjusted departmental staffing plans where needed across our global network to implement three special programs for Afghanistan clients. When required, IRCC has also hired additional staff to work on program development, functions related to application intake, and application processing. IRCC’s Centralized Network has hired some new staff members to perform intake functions on the Extended Family Member sponsorship program, however, these resources were added as part of a broader staffing plan for the network to handle increased intake overall and also perform intake functions on other lines of business. IRCC’s International Network has approximately 210 additional employees, both overseas and in Canada working on Afghan Special Immigration Measures. Since September 2021, incrementally, an additional 100 new staff were added to complement the approximately 10 IRCC employees who were mobilized on short term assignments, working throughout the International Network both abroad and in Canada. Additional resources have also been deployed to missions in the Middle East, including  Ankara, Abu Dhabi and Islamabad to support processing as well as organizing travel to Canada.

The department also hired 55 FTEs to focus on settlement supports for Afghan nationals who arrived in Canada.

To better communicate with clients and stakeholders, the Client Experience Branch shifted existing resources to respond to the dedicated service channel created to assist people impacted by the situation in Afghanistan. The Client Support Centre within the branch also reached out to other government call centres and seconded 161 employees from ESDC, CRA and PSPC between September 2021 and April 2022 to support on the dedicated service channel, as well as shifted resources on the regular service channels. Further, seven employees were hired to focus on public communications related to Afghanistan programming.

Lastly, 67 FTEs were hired as part of the Afghanistan Task team, now Afghanistan Sector, to advance strategic advice, planning and horizontal coordination across the Department, and to provide stakeholder support.

Question 3

For a number of weeks, the IRCC website advised that only questions regarding Afghanistan would be answered. This gave the impression that the entire department was dedicated exclusively to resettling Afghans to Canada.

Response

In response to the crisis in Afghanistan, IRCC mobilised resources from across the Department in Canada and abroad to enable coordination on a 24-hour basis.  It also put in place an Afghanistan webpage to share updates, a special online web form for enquiries, and a dedicated telephone line with extended hours for Afghans seeking information and assistance.

IRCC has established a dedicated Afghanistan Sector, responsible for integrated planning and coordination, and multiple other sectors are leading key components of the delivery of the Afghanistan resettlement commitment, notably the Operations Sector and the Settlement and Integration Sector. Additional resources have also been deployed to missions in the Middle East, including  in Ankara, Abu Dhabi and Islamabad, to support processing and the organisation of travel to Canada. To this end, the Department has committed additional funding over the next two years to continue its focus on the Afghan initiative.

Question 4

 Canada does not have offices in Iran, Tajikistan or Turkmenistan, while there is a Canadian consulate in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. The High Commission of Canada in Pakistan is in Islamabad. Visa processing for people in Iran and Turkmenistan is done by Canada’s office in Ankara, Turkey, while visas for people in Afghanistan and Pakistan are processed by Canada’s office in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates, and visas for people in Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan by Canada’s office in Moscow, Russia.

Response

Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) committed to maintaining momentum and meeting our objective of welcoming at least 40,000 Afghans by 2024. The Department established a temporary Visa Application Centre (VAC) at a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) base in Kosovo, to provide specific administrative support services and biometric collection services to Afghan nationals who supported the NATO mission in Afghanistan and are destined to Canada. In Fall 2021, IRCC expanded its biometric collection capacity in Pakistan for Afghan nationals by allowing this collection at its VAC in Pakistan and complementing this effort with biometrics collection at our High Commission. The Department monitored closely the capacity at the VAC and adjusted accordingly. At this time, additional equipment has been deployed to Pakistan to further increase biometric collection capacity. IRCC has sent officers to collect biometrics and conduct interviews in key third countries, including Albania, Greece, Qatar and Tajikistan.

Additional resources have been deployed to missions in the Middle East, including Ankara, Abu Dhabi and Islamabad to support processing as well as organizing travel to Canada. IRCC has been sending a regular rotation of Temporary Duty officers to support file processing and client movements. Additionally, remote processing assistance has been provided from Missions around the globe and from inside Canada, leveraging our global processing network. For Islamabad, teams of temporary duty officers have consistently been travelling to support case processing and the movement of clients since September 2021.  Further, agreement was received from the Government of Pakistan in spring 2022 to add additional accredited officers into Islamabad to support processing.

Question 5

Documentary filmmaker Alison MacLean told this Special Committee that two of the families she is trying to help “have waited two months in Pakistan just for one interview, and that has not occurred.” In her view, IRCC needs more staff.

Response

IRCC has leveraged its Global Network in it’s entirety to help achieve the goal of resettling 40,000 Afghan  refugees, leveraging resources at our Missions abroad as well as here in Canada.  To respond to the specific Afghan processing needs, IRCC has been sending teams of officers to support on the ground processing logistics and interviews, as needed. As case processing may be complex, wait times for next processing steps may require materials or input from other Canadian government organizations, which takes time.  

For Islamabad, teams of temporary duty officers have consistently been travelling in to support case processing and the movement of clients since September 2021.  Further, agreement was received from the Government of Pakistan in spring 2022 to add additional accredited officers into Islamabad to support processing.

Question 6

The special immigration program for Afghans with a significant or enduring relationship to Canada had a definition of “family” that includes de facto dependants.

Response

Significant or Enduring Relationship

Special Immigration Measures (SIMs) were launched in July 2021 for locally-engaged staff at the Canadian Embassy in Afghanistan, and for Afghans, and their families, who had a significant and/or enduring relationship with the Government of Canada.  Global Affairs Canada and the Department of National Defence were responsible for confirming that individuals had  a significant and/or enduring relationship with the Government of Canada before referring these individuals to IRCC.

The Government of Canada received a very large number of requests for this program from those interested in applying for the Special Immigration Measures Program for Afghans who assisted the Government of Canada.

Individuals cannot apply directly for this program – they must be referred to IRCC by GAC or DND.

De Facto Dependents

The SIMs principal applicants were able to bring their de facto family who reside in their household which could include adult children, parents, grandparents, grandchildren, siblings and siblings-in law, plus their dependents.

Question 7

Private sponsorship can only occur if Afghans obtain refugee status in a third country. Many witnesses called on the government to designate Afghans who have fled the Taliban as prima facie refugees.

How would a prima facie designation facilitate the resettlement process for Afghans fleeing the Taliban?

Has IRCC considered this option? Why or why not?

Response

The Department is aware of UNHCR guidelines intended to provide guidance to decisions-markers (i.e., referral partners) carrying out refugee status determination and/or advising governments on the application of a prima facie approach. The decision to adopt a prima facie approach rests on an assessment, by the relevant authority in the country of asylum or, acting under its mandate, by UNHCR. It is standard practice to consult with UNHCR at the activation and ending of a prima facie approach and to strive for regional coherence.

In general, a prima facie approach means the recognition of refugee status, which is determined by a State or by the UNHCR on the basis of readily apparent, objective circumstances in the country of origin. A prima facie approach acknowledges that those fleeing these circumstances are at risk of harm and this approach is most often used in group situations, such as where individual status determination is impractical, impossible or unnecessary in large scale situations, but a determination of refugee status is necessary in order to provide urgent assistance, usually in the form of humanitarian relief.

The Immigration and Refugee Protection Act does not provide for the conferral of refugee protection on the basis of a prima facie approach. In the past, the Department has relied on prima facie designations made by third parties in order to provide guidance to its visa officers, but in these instances an individual determination was still made. In the case of Afghan nationals, no such prima facie designation has been made to date by UNHCR or other partners.

The immigration measures Canada has put in place for certain Afghan nationals are designed to facilitate the resettlement of Afghan nationals by waiving some of the usual requirements for the resettlement of refugee populations. 

With respect to Canada’s humanitarian program for Afghans, IRCC is advancing work to waive the requirement for a Refugee Status Determination for some private sponsorship applications, which will broaden access to the Private Sponsorship of Refugees Program. Additional details will be made public in the coming weeks.

Question 8

Sponsorship Agreement Holders are important partners in the resettlement landscape: they can privately sponsor refugees without the need for a UNHCR referral. However, the number of refugees they can sponsor in a given year is capped. Witnesses recommended that the cap be eliminated for Afghan refugees, in the same way that it was under the 2015 initiative to help Syrian refugees.

Response

IRCC has allocated 3,000 additional spaces to Sponsorship Agreement Holders (SAHs) for Afghan refugees. Not all of these spaces have yet been taken up by SAHs.  These spaces are over and above the existing annual global SAH cap. As well, IRCC is prioritizing the processing of 4,000 Afghan refugees from its existing inventory of privately-sponsored refugees (PSR).

However, IRCC is not considering eliminating caps for SAHs for Afghanistan. Caps exist to align application intake with 1) sponsor capacity to ensure refugees are well supported in Canada and 2) established immigration levels approved by Parliament through the Multi-Year Levels Plan. This is important to prevent unbridled inventory growth, which lengthens wait times for all PSRs.

However, additional PSR spaces for Afghan refugees beyond the 7,000 referenced above will be made available, and at the April 25 Afghanistan Committee appearance, Minister Fraser announced his intention to waive the Refugee Status Documentation requirement for some PSRs, which will further facilitate Groups of Five and Community Sponsors’ ability to sponsor vulnerable Afghans.

Question 9

Some witnesses have suggested that the criteria for the special humanitarian program should be broadened – from women leaders, religious and ethnic minorities, LGBTI persons, and journalists – to include other “at-risk” Afghans.

Response

The humanitarian program does not explicitly cover members of civil society organizations. To the extent that specific members of civil society organizations are identified as being part of a priority group, such as human rights defenders or women leaders, they may be eligible.

Vulnerability assessments are conducted by IRCC’s trusted referral partners. We are working with a diverse set of referral partners to identify government-assisted refugees, including the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR), ProtectDefenders.eu, and Front Line Defenders. We are also leveraging our private sponsorship program, including working with Canada’s network of sponsorship agreement holders.

There are no plans to expand the priority groups at this time. As with our standard refugee programs, the humanitarian stream works through a referrals system and individuals do not apply directly. Instead, individuals are referred by designated partners, who are trained and experienced at assessing vulnerability and operating in situations of mass displacement and humanitarian hardship.

The priority groups were determined based on high vulnerability and evidence of being targeted by the Taliban. While the humanitarian program focuses on the priority groups – women leaders, human rights defenders, persecuted religious or ethnic minorities, LGBTI individuals, and journalists – IRCC is also working with referral partners, such as UNHCR, who can refer other “at-risk” Afghans.

Question 10

Biometrics, photographs and fingerprints, serve to identify individuals and confirm their security background. Witnesses suggested that biometrics could be collected either in Afghanistan by a hired private company, using secure technology, or by having discussions with third countries to allow individuals to transit there for these procedures to take place. Others said biometric collection could be done upon arrival in Canada.

Response

There are multiple challenges associated with hiring a private company to enroll biometrics on behalf of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) and the Government of Canada (GoC) in Afghanistan.   

A central challenge relates securing the safety and security, of any individuals contracted by the GoC, as well as IRCC clients.

From a legal perspective, the GoC has a duty of care obligation for all personnel employed or contracted by the GoC. This liability cannot be delegated to a service provider; it would remain a GoC liability should any danger or harm come to individuals contracted to provide biometric enrollment services on behalf of the GoC. This duty of care obligation would also apply to IRCC clients. In the current circumstances, directing clients to a designated location in Afghanistan to enroll their biometrics could put those clients at risk as they would likely be targeted for violence. Also, the de facto government of Afghanistan is a listed terrorist entity under Canadian law. Establishing and funding biometric enrollment services in Afghanistan needs to be done in compliance with Canadian legislation related to the funding of terrorist organizations.

Biometrics information is sensitive and needs to be treated with the utmost care, and in accordance with Canadian privacy legislation.  A private company would need to be thoroughly vetted and be able to meet Canada’s privacy requirements. 

IRCC has approached our existing international biometrics service providers who collect biometrics on behalf of IRCC at our Visa Application Centres (VACs).  However, they remain unable to operate in Afghanistan due to the security situation.  IRCC has also held discussions with trusted international organisations and like-minded country partners about the possibility of collecting biometrics on behalf of Canada.  At the moment, none of them are able to collect biometrics in Afghanistan.

Another challenge relates to  maintaining the security of the biometric equipment and technology. Although Canada uses encrypted technology in our biometrics solution, there are concerns related to the  technology falling into the wrong hands, opening the risk to data manipulation, or to biometrics being collected from non-bona fide clients posing as legitimate clients (i.e., identity fraud and misrepresentation). Using a contracted service provider to enroll biometrics using their own biometric equipment would not mitigate these challenges and risks.   

IRCC has taken a simultaneous multi-pronged approach to enhancing biometric collection capacity in third countries in order to ensure sufficient capacity is available and aligned with demand. The first prong saw us work with our 3rd party service provider to increase capacity and expedited access in existing VACs.  At the same time, we worked with the contractor to establish temporary collection sites as needed.  In addition, IRCC officers were dispatched to third countries [or to regions] in order to enroll biometrics for individuals or groups who were not able to access VAC services or to further expand biometrics collection capacity.

The GoC, including IRCC, continues to engage with neighbouring countries, as well as like-minded countries, on safe passage from Afghanistan. 

IRCC carefully assesses and balances security, operational, and humanitarian considerations when making decisions on exempting certain visa requirements, including the collection of biometrics which can happen in rare, exceptional circumstances. It is critical that biometric screening be undertaken prior to the arrival of individuals in Canada. This is an important risk mitigation step to ensure we can confirm the identity of individuals seeking to enter Canada, and to help ensure that those few bad actors who pose a threat to our immigration system or to Canadians remain overseas.   Collecting biometrics upon entry to Canada would not mitigate these risks, especially as Canada would be unable to return such individuals to Afghanistan given current circumstances.

Until such time that full in-country processing is feasible, we have an innovative and robust solution in place, using a multi-stage approach to security screening in Afghanistan, which ensures that the necessary initial client security screening can be completed prior to departure from Afghanistan, and fully completed prior to arrival in Canada (two-phase security screening approach is described in response to question 2 above). In addition, we are actively exploring solutions with like-minded countries and partners to undertake biometric enrollment in Afghanistan, as soon as conditions allow.

Question 11

In December 2021, a new program was launched to allow Afghans who had served with the Canadian forces and come to Canada under the 2009 and 2012 policies to sponsor their extended family.

Response

This temporary public policy creates a permanent residence pathway for extended families of former Afghan interpreters who came to Canada under the 2009 and 2012 public policies.

As of May 24, 2022, over 4,185 applications (in persons) have passed the completeness check and are being processed. Of these, over 1,310 applications (in persons) have now passed the eligibility phase, 44 applications (in persons) have received final approval, and approximately 40 individuals have arrived in Canada.  It is expected that up to 5,000 Afghans may come to Canada under this program.

Question 12

12. The Special Committee has heard from former interpreters who have yet to be reunited with their families. They shared their fears regarding their family members in Afghanistan who are being pursued by the Taliban. Families waiting in Pakistan also are dealing with challenges as their visas are close to expiring.

Response

An acknowledgement of receipt (AOR), along with unique client identifiers (UCI) are sent once a complete application has been received.

As of May 26, in response to 829 complete applications, IRCC has sent 3,829 UCIs under the temporary public policy which created a permanent residence pathway for extended families of former Afghan interpreters who came to Canada under the 2009 and 2012 public policies.

The Department continues to process applications received under this public policy. AOR letters, along with UCIs, will be sent to those who have submitted a completed application.  

Single Journey Travel Documents

For Afghan nationals in third countries who have been approved for immigration to Canada and are in need of travel documents, the Government of Canada is already issuing Single Journey Travel documents (SJTD).

SJTDs are only issued to foreign nationals who have been approved for entry to Canada, and they are issued for entry to Canada.  They are not able to be used for entry to third countries.

In order for individuals to leave Afghanistan they must be in possession of travel documents that are acceptable to both the Afghan authorities for departure and the receiving state for legal entry.

SJTDs are not normally issued to persons who reside in their own country of nationality, except under exceptional circumstances. Given the lack of in-country presence, it is not currently possible for Canada to issue such documents to persons in Afghanistan.

Canada is pursuing a range of options in collaboration with multiple partners to help enable safe passage for Afghan clients.

Question 13

 The Canadian Bar Association recommends that temporary resident visas be made available to all Afghans, not only those who have family in Canada.

Response

Eligible Afghan citizens may apply for a temporary resident visa (TRV). TRV applications from Afghans with an immediate family member who is a Canadian citizen/permanent resident, or protected persons in Canada are being expedited in order to support family reunification.

Canada’s response to the crisis in Afghanistan focussed on urgently providing a pathway to permanent protection to those Afghans who were at particular risk due to their relationship with the Government of Canada, or due to personal characteristics or activities that would make them vulnerable to persecution by the Taliban regime. 

Permanent resettlement in Canada was considered the best option for these individuals under the circumstances, given their vulnerability and lack of other durable solutions. Permanent protection through resettlement ensures that resettled Afghans are not at risk of refoulement, and allows them to begin building their lives in Canada securely and with full resettlement support.

Question 14

 At the end of August 2021, Canada accepted 5,000 Afghans who had been evacuated by the United States. One witness suggested that IRCC should renew its agreement with the United States and resettle more Afghans who are currently waiting in third countries.

Response

Canada is currently processing 5,000 U.S. referrals, as part of its overall commitment to resettle Afghan nationals.

In terms of the original agreement, we are on track to see all 5,000 arrive in Canada before the end of the summer (and within the agreed five-month period). As of April 25, we have received 4,366 referrals from the U.S. A total of 2,648 have been approved and 1,451 have arrived in Canada. IRCC continues to explore opportunities for collaboration with international partners, including the U.S., to support Canada’s Afghanistan resettlement initiative.

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