Question Period Note: Removals

Enforcing removal of people who do not have the right to stay in Canada.

The CBSA is removing approximately 400 inadmissible persons each week, including those involved in extortion.

In 2025, the CBSA removed highest number of inadmissible persons in history of the Agency, over 23,000 persons were removed including 1,180 persons for serious inadmissibility.

Budget 2025 and the Border Plan puts Canada’s safety at the forefront by hiring 1,000 new CBSA officers to help detect, disrupt, and deter illegal activity and quickly remove foreign nationals who are inadmissible due to criminality.

Information to support Key Messages
The process for determining inadmissibility begins with the issuance of a 44 report that outlines the inadmissibility and referral of the report to an authorized decision-maker. Depending on the inadmissibility ground and status of the individual, a Minister’s Delegate may issue a removal order or the case may be referred to the Immigration Division at the IRB for an admissibility hearing.

The removal of foreign nationals that are found inadmissible as per the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) is an integral part of the CBSA’s security mandate. Individuals may be inadmissible for a variety of reasons including security; criminality; organized crime, international human rights violation, non-compliance with the IRPA, etc..

The CBSA prioritizes removals based on a risk management regime that assigns the highest priority to cases involving security, organized crime, crimes against humanity, and criminality. Failed refugee claimants are given the second-highest priority, followed by all other inadmissible individuals.

All individuals who are subject to enforcement action and ordered to be removed from Canada have access to due process before the law. They may seek redress through various processes at the IRB (appeals), the Federal Court of Canada (judicial review). and if eligible, at Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (pre-removal risk assessment if they feel they may be subject to persecution in their country of origin, and humanitarian and compassionate applications for permanent residence). Please note that there are legislated factors that allow or deny access to some of these processes.

The CBSA’s removal efforts may be hindered and delayed by impediments such as uncooperative foreign nationals who do not provide necessary information or documentation to allow for their removal, or foreign governments that refuse the return of their nationals, or fail to promptly issue timely travel documents. The CBSA works closely with foreign governments, Canadian officials abroad, and other departments to resolve these challenges, and participates in international forums to identify joint strategies and best practices to achieve timely removals of inadmissible persons.

The CBSA manages an inventory of high-risk individuals, including those with serious criminality, whose whereabouts are unknown and Canada-wide immigration warrants have been issued for their arrest.

The 2024 Fall Economic Statement (FES) provided $55.5 million over three years to the CBSA to support front-end immigration and asylum processing activities, and achieve a 25% increase in the number of removals enforced. This includes reducing inventory backlogs, increasing removal capacity and addressing the anticipated increase in associated removals litigation. The funding will primarily be used to secure regional staff and ensure the program has necessary resources to achieve 20,000 removals in FY2025-26 and FY2026-27.

In response to the significant increase in individuals making asylum claims in Canada, the CBSA aligned its resources to enforce removal orders in a more efficient and timely manner. A Removals Action Plan has also been implemented to further enhance program delivery and address outstanding issues, including prioritizing cases to overcome impediments to removal, leveraging existing resources more efficiently, and engaging priority countries to expedite removal processes.

Canada Border Services Agency conducts investigations to locate individuals wanted for removal including those who are inadmissible on criminal grounds pursuant to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA). This includes criminal offences that may range in severity from non-violent crimes such as theft or fraud under $5,000 to more serious offences, such as assault causing bodily harm.

Foreign nationals facing removal may include those who are still serving a criminal sentence or have pending criminal charges. Until the criminal matters are resolved, they cannot be removed. CBSA may issue a warrant for arrest, to ensure that CBSA is notified following the completion of their criminal custody.

The wanted inventory is updated daily, as individuals are located and consequently removed, while new cases are added as the CBSA works through its removals inventory. However, the inventory reflects a cumulative total cases over many years.

It is important to note that Canada’s immigration system does not allow for the proactive arrest and detention of every person subject to immigration enforcement. The IRPA permits arrest and detention of inadmissible individuals who pose a danger to the public and/or who are unlikely to appear for an immigration process, including removal. Often, persons subject to immigration enforcement are cooperative until they have exhausted all appeal mechanisms and then fail to report. As well, in many cases, foreign nationals leave Canada without confirming their departure. They remain in the wanted inventory until sufficient information is obtained through a case by case examination of exit data and information gathered from other sources.

Over the last two fiscal years (2024-25 / 2025-26), CBSA’s wanted for removal inventory has increased by approximately 4,000 individuals. During that same period, the Agency removed over 40,000 people from Canada.

If Pressed
Q1 - On Immigration Warrants
If an inadmissible foreign national does not report for removal, CBSA initiates an investigation and issues a warrant that is shared with Canadian law enforcement agencies. Law enforcement partners notify CBSA if they encounter an individual subject to an immigration warrant.

Over 550 CBSA personnel are dedicated to immigration investigations and removals. CBSA also has a tip line – the Border Watch Line – for the public to report the whereabouts of those who are in violation of immigration law.