COW – Immigration Responses to Recent Crises—Sudan – June 9, 2025

Key Facts

• Since the conflict erupted in Sudan on April 15, 2023, the Government of Canada has worked to continuously adapt its approach to supporting those affected by the conflict.
• At the onset of the crisis, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) immediately prioritized temporary and permanent residence applications from its inventory. Since April 2023, over 10,000 people impacted by the crisis in Sudan have been approved to come to Canada, including over 7,500 refugees, the majority of whom have already arrived in Canada.
• To facilitate immigration applications for immediate family members of Canadian citizens and Canadian permanent residents who fled Sudan, IRCC issued these immediate family members fee-exempt travel documents to facilitate onward travel to Canada.
• In addition, in February 2024, IRCC launched a new family-based pathway to facilitate permanent residence for Sudanese and non-Sudanese nationals impacted by the crisis; this pathway is intended to facilitate approximately 10,000 admissions. The application intake cap has been reached and processing and arrivals are ongoing.
• In February 2025, IRCC committed to resettle 4,000 Sudanese citizens as Government Assisted Refugees by the end of 2026 and took steps to enable an additional 700 Sudanese refugees to be resettled through the Private Sponsorship of Refugees program.

Key Messages

• Canada remains deeply concerned with the situation in Sudan. Since the conflict broke out in April 2023, the Government of Canada has taken swift action to support those affected.
• IRCC continues to prioritize applications from Sudanese and other impacted nationals. We expect arrivals to continue in the coming weeks and months. This includes individuals who are still in Sudan and those who have fled the country to surrounding regions.

If pressed on supports for clients:

• Clients arriving from Sudan as government-assisted refugees can access resettlement supports including income support through IRCC’s Resettlement Assistance Program.
• Under the family-based permanent resident pathway, approved clients have access to federally-funded services available through IRCC’s Settlement Program, similar to all permanent residents, and the Interim Federal Health Program for three months.

If pressed on biometric collection for applicants currently residing in Sudan:

• IRCC is aware of challenges related to biometric collection in Sudan and the Department continues to engage with its international partners to advance the necessary preparation. Although the operational timeline remains dependent on a number of factors, such as the situation on the ground and the ability for partners to provide this service safely, IRCC remains hopeful that biometric collection for applicants in Sudan will commence soon.