CIMM – Post-Arrival Supports – Gaza and Sudan Public Policies – March 20, 2024

Post-Arrival Supports – Gaza and Sudan Public Policies

On January 9, 2024, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) launched a special temporary resident pathway for extended family members of Canadian citizens and permanent residents currently residing in Gaza. This measure aims to provide a temporary safe haven for Palestinians directly affected by the crisis in Gaza who have Canadian citizen or permanent resident family members in Canada willing to support them (referred to as anchors).
On February 27, 2024, a new public policy creating a humanitarian pathway to permanent residence for people affected by the conflict in Sudan was launched. It will allow the admission of approximately 5,000 Sudanese and non-Sudanese foreign nationals who are family members of a Canadian citizen or permanent resident. The principal applicant must have been residing in Sudan on April 15, 2023, and must have no reasonable prospect, within a reasonable period, of a durable solution in a country other than Canada or Sudan. They must have an eligible Canadian citizen or permanent resident anchor who signs a statutory declaration of their intention to provide them with support for one year.

Approved clients under the temporary resident pathway for extended family affected by the crisis in Gaza will have access to free services, such as language training and support connecting with the labour market and local community, funded under IRCC’s Settlement Program until March 31, 2027.
Approved clients arriving in Canada under this temporary resident pathway, as well as those arriving in Canada following assisted departure from Gaza, will also have access to short-term health-care coverage under the Interim Federal Health Program for three months from the date they enter Canada to help address any urgent medical needs upon arrival.

Approved clients under the permanent resident pathway for foreign nationals from Sudan will have access to free services funded available through IRCC’s Settlement Program, like all permanent residents.

Individuals arriving under the permanent resident pathway from Sudan are eligible for public health insurance in their province or territory, and as such, do not have access to the Interim Federal Health Program.
Anchors are asked to support their family members arriving under this pathway in covering the cost of any healthcare while waiting for provincial or territorial insurance to be issued.

The Interim Federal Health Program covers the cost of basic health services (e.g., doctor and hospital services), supplemental health services (e.g., urgent dental, vision care, mental health counselling, disability supports) and prescription drugs.
This coverage will help people affected by the crisis in Gaza access Canada’s healthcare system to seek immediate medical attention, and will help mitigate any public health concerns given the current healthcare situation in Gaza.
Once Interim Federal Health Program coverage expires, anchor relatives are asked to provide financial support for any healthcare costs, if not covered by public health insurance.

Through the Settlement Program, in addition to offering core services such as language training and information and orientation services, federally-funded settlement service organizations also offer newcomers a number of non-clinical mental health and well-being supports. Some organizations deliver short-term counselling as well as community-based health information that promotes mental health awareness and access to health care services, in addition to referrals to community health services.
In addition, the federal Settlement Program offers Case Management as a client-centered, comprehensive approach to service delivery for newcomers facing persistent and multiple barriers to integration, which includes a tailored settlement plan, supported by coordinated referrals to settlement and community services.
IRCC also funds organizations such as the Canadian Mental Health Association and the Centre for Addictions and Mental Health to help institutions such as hospitals and community health centres better address newcomers’ mental health needs.

The cost of funding settlement services for up to 1,000 temporary residents from Gaza until March 2027 is estimated at $14.6M over the three years. Income supports will not be provided to this population by the Government of Canada; the extended family member (anchor) in Canada must attest to their intention to provide a number of supports to meet the immediate and essential needs of clients when they arrive in Canada, for a period of one year.
The estimated cost of funding settlement services for permanent residents arriving from Sudan is approximately $51.6M over 15 years. As these arrivals are part of the permanent resident levels plan, this funding is part of the overall levels funding that the Settlement Program will already receive. Income supports will not be provided to this population by the Government of Canada; clients arriving through the humanitarian pathway to permanent residence for people affected by the conflict in Sudan require an eligible Canadian citizen or permanent resident (anchor) who signs a statutory declaration of their intention to provide them with support for one year.

2024-07-18