CIMM - Security Screening and Admissibility - Nov 25, 2020

Key messages

• All visitors (including temporary foreign workers and students), immigrants and refugees are carefully screened before coming into Canada. This screening ensures that these persons do not pose a threat to the health (unrelated to COVID), safety or security of Canadians.
• IRCC’s highly trained migration officers’ conduct the initial screening of all permanent and temporary resident applications against departmental databases and risk indices.
• Visas and immigration documents are only issued when the migration officer is fully satisfied that each applicant poses no threat to the health, safety, or security of Canadians. Should information be uncovered indicating that the foreign national could pose a threat to Canadians, the visa or immigration document would not be issued.
• All permanent resident applicants need to provide a police certificate or criminal record check as part of the screening process. In certain cases, temporary resident applicants may also be asked to provide this documentation. This allows immigration officers to deny entry on Canadian soil to those who have had previous security, human or international rights violations, or organized criminality.
• IRCC works closely with Public Safety partners (CBSA, the RCMP and CSIS) to carry out the screening process. This allows, as needed, for a fuller security screening to help identify those who might pose a threat to Canadians and to mitigate the potential security risks associated with those seeking to enter Canada. IRCC also works with these partners to check against international databases and for the purpose of enforcing provisions of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (e.g. determining admissibility).
• Investigation of criminal offences conducted on Canadian soil by foreign nationals is a matter for law enforcement. But what I can say is that, if a foreign national is convicted of an indictable offence in Canada, or has been found to have engaged in acts of espionage that are against Canada or that are contrary to Canada’s interests, they will be found to be inadmissible and may be issued a deportation order, have their visa cancelled and be removed from Canada.

Supplementary messages

Security screening

Security screening is an important part of the overall assessment of whether a person is admissible to Canada. This assessment ensures that anyone who wants to come to Canada:

• has not committed serious crimes that would bar their entry to Canada;
• does not pose a risk to Canada’s security;
• is in good health and does not pose a public health risk (a medical examination may be required);
• has not violated human or international rights;
• has a valid passport or travel document; and
• has not violated the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.

These measures are not COVID related, but are part of regular security screening measures.

• All applicants are subject to universal and non-discriminatory considerations during the screening process.

IRCC relies on key partners to provide their security screening analysis to inform the IRCC decision-maker.

Health screening

• IRCC helps to protect public health, public safety, and the integrity of Canada’s healthcare system by requiring permanent residents and certain temporary residents to undergo an immigration medical exam to determine their admissibility to Canada. This health screening process prevents the arrival of certain infectious diseases (e.g., active tuberculosis) that could pose a risk to the health of Canadians.
• While the immigration medical exam plays a key role in preventing the introduction of certain infectious diseases, it is not structured to assess for COVID-19, which has a short duration and is only detected within a limited timeframe (i.e., 14 days).
• Further, the immigration medical exam is completed several months prior to a migrant’s arrival in Canada, and therefore does not provide an up-to-the-minute assessment of their COVID-19 status at the time of departure. Testing for COVID-19 through the immigration medical exam risks applicants contracting the virus after their screening and spreading the infection to others.
• A more effective approach would be to continue with existing public health measures, such as post-arrival quarantine requirements.

Foreign interference

• IRCC works with the security and intelligence community, both in Canada and internationally, to combat foreign interference by preventing individuals involved in related activities such as espionage or subversion from entering or gaining status in Canada. Investigations into such activities fall under the Minister of Public Safety’s portfolio.

Criminal offences committed in Canada

• Alleged criminal offences committed on Canadian soil are a matter for law enforcement. Allegations of criminal activity, such as coercion or intimidation should be referred to the RCMP, or local police forces, for investigation.
• If a foreign national is convicted of an indictable offence in Canada, or has been found to have engaged in acts of espionage that are against Canada or that are contrary to Canada’s interests, they will be found to be inadmissible and may be issued a deportation order, have their visa cancelled and be removed from Canada.
• The Minister of Public Safety has responsibility over the provisions for inadmissibility on national security grounds, including espionage, and for immigration enforcement, including removing foreign nationals. Further questions on these matters should be referred to the Minister of Public Safety or CBSA.

Process of revocation of permits/visas on inadmissibility grounds

• A foreign national loses temporary resident status when an IRCC officer or the Immigration and Refugee Board has determined they did not comply with the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and issues a removal order.
• A foreign national loses temporary resident status when a removal order comes into force.
• A removal order is enforceable under A48(1) after the removal order has come into force and is not stayed. If a removal order is enforceable, the foreign national must leave Canada immediately and the order must be enforced as soon as possible.
• When it comes to permanent residents, both removals and inadmissibility reports (A44 reports) are CBSA leads.
• The CBSA is the enforcement arm of Canada’s immigration programs and is responsible for immigration inland enforcement and removals.