After you apply

After we get your application, we review it and we will consider:

• the risk of persecution (as defined in the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees)
• the danger of torture (see Article 1 of the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment)
• the risk to your life or the risk that you may be subjected to cruel and unusual treatment or punishment

If you are inadmissible on serious grounds, such as for serious criminality, we won’t consider the risk of persecution. Instead, we will consider only the danger of torture, risk to life and risk of cruel and unusual treatment or punishment.

We may schedule a hearing if:

• we need to address an issue of credibility that is key to deciding on your application
• the only reason you’re not eligible to have your claim referred to the IRB is because you made an asylum claim in a country with which Canada has an information-sharing arrangement

If you leave Canada while you wait for a decision on your application, your application will be declared abandoned, and as a result, it will be rejected.

While you wait for a decision

Work while you wait

You may be eligible to work in Canada while you wait for a decision on your PRRA application.

If this is your first PRRA application

If you have a valid work permit, you can work until a decision is made on your application, or the date on which your permit expires, whichever happens first.

If you do not have a valid work permit, and you submit your PRRA application on time, you can apply for a work permit until a decision is made on your PRRA application.

If you submit your PRRA application late you can’t work in Canada. It is illegal to work in Canada without a work permit issued by IRCC.

If this is not your first PRRA application

You can’t work in Canada. It is illegal to work in Canada without a work permit issued by IRCC.

Get healthcare coverage

You may be eligible to receive coverage for certain medical costs under the Interim Federal Health Program (IFHP) if:

• you made a refugee claim in Canada that was found ineligible to be referred to the IRB and you have been told that you are eligible to apply for a pre-removal risk assessment (PRRA) or,
• you receive a positive decision on your PRRA and receive a stay of removal or protected person status.

As a protected person in Canada, your IFHP coverage will continue for 90 days or until you qualify for provincial or territorial health insurance.

Your IFHP coverage can be cancelled without notice if your immigration status changes.