How the coronavirus is affecting refugees

Posted April 13, 2020

In Citizenship, COVID-19 Updates, Immigration, Refugees

From Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada

Last updated: April 8, 2020

Refugee sponsors and refugees overseas waiting to be resettled

Along with our resettlement partners, the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), we’ve temporarily paused our refugee resettlement programs impacted by the travel restrictions. We’ll resume resettling refugees as conditions permit.

If you’ve sponsored refugees

The Resettlement Operations Centre—Ottawa will contact you if the refugees you’re preparing to receive won’t be travelling. There will be no additional arrivals or new flight bookings until further notice. Individual notices on flight cancellations will be sent to you by email.

Refugee claimants

Temporary agreement between Canada and the U.S.

Individuals entering Canada from the U.S., to make an asylum claim, will be sent back to the U.S.
Individuals entering the U.S. from Canada, to make an asylum claim, will be sent back to Canada.

This includes anyone coming to a port of entry or entering between official ports of entry.

Until further notice, Canada will no longer

interview refugee claimants in person
process refugee protection claimant document renewals in person

If you are subject to a removal order, you may not make a refugee claim

Rescheduling refugee claimant interviews

If you had an interview scheduled, we’ll contact you to let you know when your new interview will be.

Use the Web form if you need to update your contact information.

Immigration loans

IRCC is suspending its immigrant loan collection activities for a period of 6 months, until September 2020. Clients who have questions about their loan, want to suspend pre-authorized payments, or who want to make alternative arrangements for payments during this period, can contact IRCC at 1-800-667-7301.