Canada's acceptance of refugee claims has ballooned over the past 6 years – for some countries more than others

This is part of the story Welcome to CanadaA CBC News series about immigration told through the eyes of people who experienced it.

The number of refugee claimants accepted by Canada has doubled since 2018. CBC research has found that people from some countries have an easier time claiming asylum than others.

The number of refugee claimants granted asylum in Canada is expected to approach 37,000 in 2023, up from 14,000 in 2018.

The recognition rate, which is determined by dividing the number of accepted refugee claims by the total number of claims decided on merit by the Immigration and Refugee Board, also increased from 64 to 82 percent in the first nine months of 2024. percent in 2018.

---

Much of the media coverage surrounding refugees has depicted those coming to Canada from countries such as India, Haiti and Mexico. Half of the claims from these countries were accepted between January 2018 and September 30, 2024.

But the highest number of refugees allowed to stay in Canada came from two countries where more than 95 percent of decisions were positive: Iran and Turkey. This was true regardless of the type of persecution the person was fleeing, a CBC analysis of data from the Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) revealed.

---

There are several factors that determine whether a refugee is allowed to stay in Canada, the IRB said in a statement, including the person's credibility, ability to prove their identity and claim of persecution, the severity and conditions of the threats they face. in your country.

But experts told the CBC there are also two systems for deciding asylum claims: one that produces mostly positive decisions for people from countries Canada considers a source of legitimate asylum seekers, and another for everyone else. Critics say that because there is less scrutiny of claims processed in the first place, the system is vulnerable to abuse.

Processing claims faster

Most refugee claimants present their cases at a hearing, at which a member of the IRB decides whether they are eligible for asylum.

But the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act allows some cases to be decided without a hearing, a process informally called paper review. The process is for individuals from countries with historically high acceptance rates who can prove their identity, have no serious credibility issues and have cleared security checks, according to the IRB.

Asylum claims cannot be denied without a hearing, so paper reviews have only two possible outcomes: a positive decision, or a decision to send the case to a hearing.

It was rare for refugee cases to be approved without a hearing, says Mojdeh Shahriari, a Vancouver refugee and immigration lawyer who is also a former member of the IRB. But with a large backlog of cases awaiting hearings — about 250,000 by Sept. 30, 2024 — the government is looking for ways to process claims faster and without the time and expense of hearings, she said.

Deciding refugee cases this way can be risky, Shahrari says.

“I think it's common knowledge that the refugee protection system in Canada is growing and increasingly being abused.”

'Room for abuse'

Sahariari, who handles many refugee claims from Iran, says the majority are legitimate and that life is “terrible” under the Islamic Republic regime.

Political dissent, or people who convert to a religion other than Islam, face harsh persecution. Since the state persecutes such people, these kinds of claims are in a sense more simplistic.

If the claims are true, Shahriari comments.

“The evidence that the IRB usually finds sufficient is the churches they're attending, pictures, or if they've been baptized, a certificate, things like that.”

But because such evidence can be fabricated, she says, it “unfortunately opens up some room for abuse.”

A CBC analysis found that most of Iran's claims involved religious persecution. Most of those who claimed to be seeking Canada's protection were considered apostates or apostates from Islam. The second largest group were Christians.

Sahariari has seen enough Iranian cases that she suspects are not legitimate that she screens her clients before agreeing to represent them. These may be people who have come to Canada on visitor or student visas and are looking for a better life, she says.

To prevent this, she says, there needs to be increased screening abroad before people are granted visitor or student visas. The IRB also needs to do more hearings, she says.

The Immigration and Refugee Board said in a statement that cases will not be processed without a hearing unless the person has passed security clearance and there are no concerns about the person's identity or credibility.

But Shahriari says a hearing is the only way to establish this.

“If there is no hearing, there is no scrutiny of the person's credibility. The door to abuse is always open.”

Growing inequality

On the other hand, some refugees face extreme scrutiny.

Toronto immigration lawyer Wakkas Bilsin represents many refugee clients from countries like Nigeria, which saw 46 percent of refugee claims accepted between 2018 and September 2024, according to a CBC analysis.

He says cases from countries with historically low acceptance rates, such as Nigeria, are sent to trial. Claimants must prove to an IRB member that the police cannot protect them and that they cannot be protected in another part of their country.

One reason for this, according to Bilsin, is that it is often third parties such as family members or criminal gangs, rather than the government, that threatens people in countries like Nigeria, Mexico or Haiti. For people in countries like Iran, where the government is a source of oppression, it's a given that a person can't be safe anywhere, he said.

But even when the evidence and documents are similar — when the persecutor is a family member, for example — Bilsin says he needs more evidence in Nigerian cases to show that the person may not be safe elsewhere in the country. In immigration parlance, this is called the Internal Flight Option, or IFA.

He says that in those cases, they go the extra mile to provide their clients with submissions and documents that IFA cities are not available.

“When we're dealing with refugee claims from Iran, for example, we don't really worry too much about potential IFAs,” he said. “This is, I would say, the main hurdle we're facing.”

The disparity will only increase, Sahariari says, because claims decided without a hearing will largely succeed.

“They don't get as much scrutiny. And so obviously, the rates are going to stay high. And then again the same country becomes the basis for designation.”