Question Period Note: Afghanistan

Canada has now welcomed more than 54,000 Afghans under the Afghan Resettlement Initiative

• Canada has met its goal to welcome at least 40,000 refugees and vulnerable Afghans since August 2021, one of the largest commitments in the world.
• We are proud that more than 54,000 Afghans are now building their new lives in Canada and making important contributions to their communities.
• The significant efforts of provincial and territorial partners, municipalities, resettlement service providers and thousands of Canadians have made this achievement possible.
• Special immigration measures for Afghans under Canada’s Afghan Resettlement Initiative are now largely closed to new applicants.
• We recognize however that many applications from Afghans remain in process, and many of these individuals are facing a challenging humanitarian situation. We are continuing to process existing applications under these programs on a priority basis.

If pressed
• It is thanks to continued collaboration with key partners, including countries in the region, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the International Organization for Migration, non-governmental organizations, and like-minded countries that so many Afghans have been able to find safety in Canada.

Human Rights Watch report
We sympathize with individuals in this extremely difficult situation and we are doing everything we can, and using all available avenues to help Afghans inside and outside of Afghanistan.
We recognize that many people who may have had a relationship to Canada still remain in Afghanistan and/or countries in the region. IRCC continues to process eligible applications received under the various special measures for Afghan nationals on a priority basis, recognizing the unique circumstances in Afghanistan.
Canada was among the first countries to launch a special humanitarian resettlement program for vulnerable Afghans, including woman leaders, human rights defenders, persecuted and religious minorities, 2SLGBTQI+ individuals, and journalists.

International engagement:

• Working with like-minded countries, partners in the region, and non-government organizations, the Government continues efforts to support Afghan clients in leaving Afghanistan safely and facilitating travel for those in third countries.

Situation in Pakistan
• The Government of Canada, including the Canadian High Commission in Islamabad, is actively engaging with the Government of Pakistan on the resettlement of Afghans.
• The Government of Canada has expressed its concern to the Government of Pakistan regarding its Repatriation Plan, and the Canadian High Commission in Islamabad continues to monitor the situation closely.
• IRCC is in touch with applicants. Clients facing detention who need to demonstrate to the Government of Pakistan that they have an ongoing application can use any of the communications that they have received from IRCC related to their application.

Temporary accommodations in Pakistan:
• Most of the Afghanistan Resettlement Initiative (ARI) clients currently in Pakistan are in the final stages of processing.
• On an exceptional basis, the Government of Canada provided temporary accommodations for ARI clients in Pakistan in order to better support the large numbers of eligible IRCC clients who travelled to Pakistan so their file could be finalized, before travelling to Canada. Temporary accommodations were needed due to the time it took to process the large volume of applications, as well as operational challenges in Pakistan (approval from the Government of Pakistan for individuals entering and exiting, as well as arranging charter flights).
• Since July 30, 2024, temporary accommodations for ARI clients in Pakistan are no longer offered.
• IRCC will continue to show flexibility for emergency and vulnerable cases.

Government of Canada future plans and ARI:

• We continue to process applications already submitted under these programs and measures on a priority basis.
• We also continue to help vulnerable Afghans through our regular immigration programs such as economic, family reunification and refugee resettlement programs. IRCC continues to monitor the situation and remains flexible in our approach.

Program Pathways

• Over half of our commitment has been dedicated to those who assisted Canada, and their families.

• The remainder of the spaces have focused on resettling vulnerable Afghans from priority groups, such as women leaders and religious and ethnic minorities, under a humanitarian program.

Afghans in Pakistan and temporary accommodations:

• With the support of partners in the region, Afghan nationals are travelling to third countries, where IRCC has been able complete biometrics, security and medical screening, and finalize applications. Despite challenges facilitating movement out of Afghanistan, thousands of Afghans have transited through Pakistan.
• The Department put in place time-limited, exceptional supports for Afghans including IRCC-funded temporary accommodations in Pakistan. As most of the Afghanistan Resettlement Initiative clients in Pakistan are at the final stages of processing, the ARI is being transitioned to better align with regular resettlement programming, and as a result, these exceptional supports are also ending.

Criminal Code 83.03 Authorization Regime

• On June 19, 2024, Public Safety Canada publicly launched the Criminal Code 83.03 Authorization Regime, which can be used to shield those granted an authorization (and their implementing partners) from criminal liability resulting from providing unavoidable benefits to terrorist groups when carrying out eligible activities.

• One of the categories of activities eligible for authorization under the legislation is immigration services. This includes activities related to immigration processing, pre-departure support, delivery of passports or travel documents and logistics required to provide safe passage out of a region controlled by a terrorist group. These activities will facilitate activities required to process applications, facilitate the safe passage of clients from a region controlled by a terrorist group such as Afghanistan to third countries for processing, and facilitate onward client movement to Canada.

Facilitation Letters

• To facilitate the evacuation of vulnerable Afghans in August 2021, the Government of Canada sent letters directly to Afghan nationals who were eligible to come to Canada to help them clear checkpoints on the way to and at the airport in Kabul.

• IRCC facilitation letters were only issued from official Government of Canada email addresses and were sent directly to clients. IRCC did not authorize any third party to issue facilitation letters on its behalf.

• When IRCC became aware of the potential use of inauthentic facilitation letters, the Department undertook an internal review and determined that no IRCC employee issued or authorized a third party to issue these inauthentic letters. In accordance with the Department’s protocols and authorities, IRCC made a referral to the appropriate law enforcement partners.

• IRCC’s internal review confirms that timely program integrity verifications were conducted and the department took the appropriate actions to safeguard the integrity of the immigration system and to refer issues beyond its authorities to appropriate law enforcement partners.

Program Commitment Caps:
• Program intake caps and/or expiry dates are a standard practice in public policies.
• Canada continues to make progress in its efforts to resettle vulnerable Afghans and we will continue to show flexibility in our approach to the situation in Afghanistan.
• A crisis of this magnitude means that there will always be more demand for resettlement to Canada than we are able to provide.
• Most of the special programs and measures under the Afghan Resettlement Initiative have received enough applications to fill all available spaces or have otherwise expired. We continue to process applications already submitted under these programs and measures on a priority basis.

Supporting Safe Passage for Clients in Afghanistan:
• A number of our remaining Afghan clients under the special programs are in Afghanistan and face multiple challenges as they seek to leave. While the majority of IRCC clients in Afghanistan have completed the first stages of processing, many others face great risks when attempting to leave Afghanistan or are simply unable to make the journey to a third country unassisted, to complete the final stages of processing.

Litigation:
• We cannot comment on specific cases that are before the courts.
• When responding to international crises, Canada tailors each response to meet the unique needs of those who require our support.

Application Processing:
• IRCC continues to process applications for Afghan nationals on a priority basis, and we have adopted facilitative approaches to expedite processes given the unique circumstances in Afghanistan and the fact that many Afghan clients remaining in Afghanistan have limited or no documentation.
• IRCC continues to work with multiple partners to explore potential options for biometrics collection in Afghanistan.
• IRCC remains in close contact with Afghan clients.