Immigration and Refugee Protection Act
Sections and provisions with full text and the judgments that cite each one.
Section 1 — Short title
This Act may be cited as the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act .
Section 2 — Definitions
The definitions in this subsection apply in this Act. Board means the Immigration and Refugee Board, which consists of the Refugee Protection Division, Refugee Appeal Division, Immigration Division…
Section 3 — Objectives — immigration
The objectives of this Act with respect to immigration are to permit Canada to pursue the maximum social, cultural and economic benefits of immigration; to enrich and strengthen the social and…
Section 4 — Minister of Citizenship and Immigration
Except as otherwise provided in this section, the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration is responsible for the administration of this Act. The Governor in Council may, by order, designate a…
Section 5 — Regulations
Except as otherwise provided, the Governor in Council may make any regulation that is referred to in this Act or that prescribes any matter whose prescription is referred to in this Act. Regulations…
Section 6 — Designation of officers
The Minister may designate any persons or class of persons as officers to carry out any purpose of any provision of this Act, and shall specify the powers and duties of the officers so designated.…
Section 7 — International agreements
The Minister, with the approval of the Governor in Council, may enter into an agreement with the government of a foreign state or with an international organization for the purposes of this Act.
Section 8 — Federal-provincial agreements
The Minister, with the approval of the Governor in Council, may enter into an agreement with the government of any province for the purposes of this Act. The Minister must publish, once a year, a…
Section 9 — Sole provincial responsibility — permanent residents
Where a province has, under a federal-provincial agreement, sole responsibility for the selection of a foreign national who intends to reside in that province as a permanent resident, the following…
Section 10 — Consultations with the provinces
The Minister may consult with the governments of the provinces on immigration and refugee protection policies and programs, in order to facilitate cooperation and to take into consideration the…
Section 10.01 — Biometric information
A person who makes a claim, application or request under this Act must follow the procedures set out in the regulations for the collection and verification of biometric information, including…
Section 10.02 — Regulations
The regulations may provide for any matter relating to the application of section 10.01 and may include provisions respecting restrictions on the persons to whom that section applies and on the…
Section 10.1 — Application for permanent residence — invitation to apply
A foreign national who seeks to enter or remain in Canada as a member of a class that is referred to in an instruction given under paragraph 10.3(1)(a) may make an application for permanent residence…
Section 10.2 — Expression of interest — processing
In processing an expression of interest, the Minister is to determine whether the foreign national is eligible to be invited to make an application by applying the criteria set out in instructions…
Section 10.3 — Instructions
The Minister may give instructions governing any matter relating to the application of this Division, including instructions respecting the classes in respect of which subsection 10.1(1) applies; the…
Section 10.4 — Disclosure of information
For the purpose of facilitating the selection of a foreign national as a member of the economic class or as a temporary resident, the Minister may disclose to an entity that is referred to in an…
Section 10.5 — Consultation process
For the purpose of establishing categories of eligible foreign nationals under subparagraph 10.3(1)(h.1)(iii), the Minister must engage in a public consultation process with stakeholders, including…
Section 11 — Application before entering Canada
A foreign national must, before entering Canada, apply to an officer for a visa or for any other document required by the regulations. The visa or document may be issued if, following an examination,…
Section 11.1
[Repealed, 2015, c. 36, s. 170]
Section 11.2 — Visa or other document not to be issued
An officer may not issue a visa or other document in respect of an application for permanent residence to a foreign national who was issued an invitation under Division 0.1 to make that application…
Section 11.3 — Termination — processing of application
An officer may terminate the processing of an application for a visa or other document in the prescribed circumstances.
Section 12 — Family reunification
A foreign national may be selected as a member of the family class on the basis of their relationship as the spouse, common-law partner, child, parent or other prescribed family member of a Canadian…
Section 13 — Sponsorship of foreign nationals
A Canadian citizen or permanent resident, or a group of Canadian citizens or permanent residents, a corporation incorporated under a law of Canada or of a province or an unincorporated organization…
Section 13.1 — Undertaking binding
An undertaking given under this Act in respect of a foreign national — including a sponsorship undertaking — is binding on the person who gives it.
Section 13.2 — Undertaking required
If required to do so by the regulations, a foreign national who makes an application for a visa or for permanent or temporary resident status must obtain the undertaking specified in the regulations.…
Section 14 — Regulations
The regulations may provide for any matter relating to the application of this Division, and may define, for the purposes of this Act, the terms used in this Division. The regulations may prescribe,…
Section 14.1 — Economic immigration
For the purpose of supporting the attainment of economic goals established by the Government of Canada, the Minister may give instructions establishing a class of permanent residents as part of the…
Section 15 — Examination by officer
An officer is authorized to proceed with an examination if a person makes an application to the officer in accordance with this Act or if an application is made under subsection 11(1.01). In the case…
Section 15.1 — Health insurance policy
A health insurance policy purchased from an insurance company outside Canada that is approved by the Minister satisfies any requirement in an instruction given under subsection 15(4) that a foreign…
Section 16 — Obligation — answer truthfully
A person who makes an application must answer truthfully all questions put to them for the purpose of the examination and must produce a visa and all relevant evidence and documents that the officer…
Section 17 — Regulations
The regulations may provide for any matter relating to the application of this Division, and may include provisions respecting the conduct of examinations.
Section 18 — Examination by officer
Subject to the regulations, every person seeking to enter Canada must appear for an examination to determine whether that person has a right to enter Canada or is or may become authorized to enter…
Section 19 — Right of entry of citizens and Indians
Every Canadian citizen within the meaning of the Citizenship Act and every person registered as an Indian under the Indian Act has the right to enter and remain in Canada in accordance with this Act,…
Section 20 — Obligation on entry
Every foreign national, other than a foreign national referred to in section 19, who seeks to enter or remain in Canada must establish, to become a permanent resident, that they hold the visa or…
Section 20.01 — Document — cancellation, suspension or variation
An officer may, in the prescribed circumstances, cancel, suspend or vary a visa or other document. For greater certainty, subsection (1) does not affect any other lawful authority to cancel, suspend…
Section 20.1 — Designation — human smuggling or other irregular arrival
The Minister may, by order, having regard to the public interest, designate as an irregular arrival the arrival in Canada of a group of persons if he or she is of the opinion that examinations of the…
Section 20.2 — Application for permanent residence — restriction
A designated foreign national may not apply to become a permanent resident if they have made a claim for refugee protection but have not made an application for protection, until five years after the…
Section 21 — Permanent resident
A foreign national becomes a permanent resident if an officer is satisfied that the foreign national has applied for that status, has met the obligations set out in paragraph 20(1)(a) and subsection…
Section 22 — Temporary resident
A foreign national becomes a temporary resident if an officer is satisfied that the foreign national has applied for that status, has met the obligations set out in paragraph 20(1)(b), is not…
Section 22.1 — Declaration
The Minister may, on the Minister’s own initiative, declare that a foreign national, other than a foreign national referred to in section 19, may not become a temporary resident if the Minister is of…
Section 23 — Entry to complete examination or hearing
An officer may authorize a person to enter Canada for the purpose of further examination or an admissibility hearing under this Part.
Section 24 — Temporary resident permit
A foreign national who, in the opinion of an officer, is inadmissible or does not meet the requirements of this Act becomes a temporary resident if an officer is of the opinion that it is justified…
Section 25 — Humanitarian and compassionate considerations — request of foreign national
Subject to subsection (1.2), the Minister must, on request of a foreign national in Canada who applies for permanent resident status and who is inadmissible — other than under section 34, 35, 35.1 or…
Section 25.1 — Humanitarian and compassionate considerations — Minister’s own initiative
The Minister may, on the Minister’s own initiative, examine the circumstances concerning a foreign national who is inadmissible — other than under section 34, 35, 35.1 or 37 — or who does not meet…
Section 25.2 — Public policy considerations
The Minister may, in examining the circumstances concerning a foreign national who is inadmissible or who does not meet the requirements of this Act, grant that person permanent resident status or an…
Section 26 — Regulations
The regulations may provide for any matter relating to the application of sections 18 to 25.2, and may include provisions respecting entering, remaining in and re-entering Canada; permanent resident…
Section 27 — Right of permanent residents
A permanent resident of Canada has the right to enter and remain in Canada, subject to the provisions of this Act. A permanent resident must comply with any conditions imposed under the regulations…
Section 28 — Residency obligation
A permanent resident must comply with a residency obligation with respect to every five-year period. The following provisions govern the residency obligation under subsection (1): a permanent…
Section 29 — Right of temporary residents
A temporary resident is, subject to the other provisions of this Act, authorized to enter and remain in Canada on a temporary basis as a visitor or as a holder of a temporary resident permit. A…
Section 30 — Work and study in Canada
A foreign national may not work or study in Canada unless authorized to do so under this Act. An officer may, on application, authorize a foreign national to work or study in Canada if the foreign…