Question Period Note: LGBTI REFUGEES

Canada’s Resettlement of LGBTI refugees

PROPOSED RESPONSE:
• Many LGBTI refugees face significant persecution in their country of origin.
• Each year Canada resettles some of the most vulnerable refugees, including individuals who have been persecuted on the basis of their sexual orientation, gender expression, and/or gender identity.
• The Rainbow Refugee Assistance Partnership supports Canadians in privately sponsoring LGBTI refugees who are fleeing violence and persecution.
• This 5-year initiative provides start-up costs and 3 months of income support for up to 50 LGBTI privately-sponsored refugees each year
• As of May 2022, over 170 refugees have arrived through this initiative with the Rainbow Refugee Society.
• This initiative is in addition to the existing refugee programs, which provide protection to LGBTI and other vulnerable people from around the world.

BACKGROUND:
• Individuals in a number of countries around the world experience serious human rights abuses and other forms of persecution due to their actual or perceived sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression.
• Individuals fleeing persecution for reasons related to their sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression can qualify as refugees under the 1951 Convention, specifically as members of a particular social group.
• IRCC does not systematically track information on refugees’ sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression, or specific reasons for their persecution, just as it does not collect data on their ethnicity or religion. Statistics are therefore unavailable.
• IRCC relies primarily on the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) as well as other recognized referral organizations to identify and refer the most vulnerable of refugees for resettlement, including lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (LGBTI) persons. The UNHCR prioritizes those most vulnerable and at risk, without making distinctions on the basis of nationality, race, gender, religious belief, class or political opinion.
• IRCC also relies on private sponsorship groups to refer refugees who need to be resettled. This includes people who are persecuted due to their sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression.
• Canadian migration officers assess vulnerability and protection needs when determining who is in need of resettlement. Those in need of legal and/or physical protection, such as individuals from the LGBTI community, are one of the vulnerable groups that Canada resettles.
• For Government-supported refugees, the assessment of whether a refugee is a member of a vulnerable group is based in part on information provided by the refugee when they are initially registered with the UNHCR. In the case of private sponsorship, the assessment is based on the information provided by the sponsorship group and the refugee.
• Unfortunately, many LGBTI refugees are reluctant to apply for protection for fear of facing additional persecution. In addition, when they do register, they may be unwilling to disclose the nature of their persecution due to ongoing fears for their safety that may be present in their country of asylum.
• Refugee sponsorship organizations, as well as LGBTI organizations across the country, are encouraged to privately sponsor refugees from abroad who face violence and persecution, including due to their sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression.
• In March 2011, IRCC entered into an agreement with the Vancouver-based Rainbow Refugee Society to resettle LGBTI refugees. IRCC initially committed $100,000 in funding for cases sponsored by Sponsorship Agreement Holders in cooperation with the Rainbow Refugee Society. This funding was intended to support start-up expenses for Blended Visa-Office Referred and Privately Sponsored Refugees as well as 3 months of income support for each refugee case that is privately sponsored.
• In an effort to further support Canada’s resettlement of LGBTI refugees, the initiative has been extended several times. The renewals have included an increase to the initial allocated funds set aside for this project, bringing the total available funds for the cost-sharing agreement with Rainbow Refugee Society to $450,000 (2011 to 2020).
• The cost sharing agreement was renewed on April 1st 2018 for an additional 2 years with $100,000 in additional funding being made available to support LGBTI refugees sponsored under the Rainbow Refugee Assistance Pilot.
• As of May 24, 2022, 172 refugees have arrived through this initiative with the Rainbow Refugee Society. The Rainbow Refugee Society has worked with 43 sponsorship groups and 8 Sponsorship Agreement Holders in these efforts. These totals include all agreements between IRCC and the Rainbow Refugee Society since March 2011.
• On June 1, 2019 IRCC announced the Rainbow Refugee Assistance Partnership, which will support more Canadians in privately sponsoring LGBTI refugees who are fleeing violence and persecution.
• Starting in 2020, the initiative builds on the success of the Rainbow Refugee Assistance Pilot, by increasing the number of privately sponsored refugees from 15 to 50 refugees per year. This unique partnership is in addition to the existing refugee programs, which continue to provide protection to LGBTI and other vulnerable people from around the world.
• The partnership, established in cooperation with the Rainbow Refugee Society, will encourage more Canadians to support LGBTI refugees and will help strengthen collaboration between LGBTI organizations and the refugee settlement community in Canada.
• The total cost for the initiative is expected to be approximately $800,000 over 5 years.
• In 2021, the partnership was expanded once more in response to the Afghanistan crisis, providing for an additional 150 spaces for Afghan LGBTI refugees between 2022 and 2024.
• Furthermore, the Department has continued its engagement and strengthened its relationship with the LGBTI community, holding meetings and working closely with key partners in the community to identify gaps and barriers that LGBTI refugees experience in the resettlement process.
• The Department also worked with the LGBTI community to identify and implement concrete actions to address identified gaps. For example, in November 2020, IRCC’s Sex and Gender Identifier Policy was updated to allow refugee claimants to change the sex or gender identifier on their Refugee Protection Claimant Document (RPCD). The RPCD is issued to in-Canada refugee claimants once their refugee claim is referred to the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB). The RPCD confirms identity and is used when applying for certain provincial benefits.
• LGBTI stakeholders have reacted positively to the Department’s engagement to date. Following initial meetings with the Department, stakeholders mobilized to form the Rainbow Coalition for Refuge, with a focus on LGBTI refugees. The five Coalition members are: Rainbow Refugee Society, Rainbow Railroad, Capital Rainbow Refuge, Rainbow Refugee and Metropolitan Community Church of Toronto.
• As part of capacity building funding for the Private Sponsorship of Refugees Program, Canada is supporting the National Network for Enhancing LGBTQI Refugee Sponsorship project from 2021-2023. This project aims to improve the settlement experiences of LGBTQI refugee newcomers in Canada. The project brings together five organizations who are leaders in LGBTQI refugee sponsorship, including Rainbow Refugee Society, who will coordinate the development, delivery, and evaluation of needed training, resources, tools, and information.
• The Department has funded a project with five service provider organizations, who in partnership with local LGBTQI groups, developed an information and orientation curriculum aimed at providing targeted and client focused services for self-identified LGBTQI refugees in Halifax, Winnipeg, Calgary, and Vancouver.

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