Who is eligible for asylum in Canada?

Updated information received from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada for In- Canada Refugees Claimants

In-Canada refugee claimants do not have valid temporary residence status, which is a requirement to apply for either the Atlantic Immigration Pilot Program and Newfoundland and Labrador Provincial Nominee Program.

Even though as a refugee claimant, you may have a work or study permit while awaiting a decision on your claim, this does not give you temporary residence status. The requirement to have temporary residence status at the time of application makes in-Canada refugee claimants ineligible for economic Permanent Residency pathways.

As a refugee claimant, you are eligible for an S61 open work permit or study permit, which would give you the option to work or study while awaiting a decision on your claim. Therefore, you are eligible to work and study in Canada during the processing of your refugee claim.

You can find projected wait times for refugee claims on the .

In-Canada refugee claimants whose claims are approved may apply for Permanent Residence as protected persons. If rejected, the removal order comes into effect and you are expected to leave Canada.

As an In-Canada refugee claimant, you can leave Canada and apply to the Atlantic Immigration Program or the Newfoundland and Labrador Provincial Nominee Program, if you meet program requirements. An Immigration Program Development Officer will determine your eligibility for these programs.

Who is involved in Operation #NotForgotten 

• MOSAIC, a migrant and refugee settlement service based in Vancouver, is the Operation #NotForgotten coordinator. 
• The Refugee Council of Australia is promoting and coordinating tax-deductible donations from Australians and advocating with governments to address any logistical issues to facilitate resettlement. 
• Ads Up Canada Refugee Network is assisting MOSAIC with the recruitment and support of volunteers in Canada to provide settlement support and to run fundraising campaigns in Australia for refugee families, directing donations through the Refugee Council of Australia. 
• UNHCR’s Canberra office offers advice to Operation #NotForgotten’s partners. 

We need your help right now 

As at April 2022, around 1,380 people remain in Australia’s offshore processing arrangements – in Nauru, Papua New Guinea or medically evacuated to Australia. Those evacuated to Australia remain in locked detention, community detention or are living on Final Departure Bridging Visas, with no access to a financial safety net. Both the current Coalition Government and the Labor Opposition continue to insist that refugees from this group will not be allowed to settle permanently in Australia. 

Of this group, up to 250 may have the opportunity to resettle in the United States and a further 162 are on a pathway to Canada through Operation #NotForgotten. This leaves about 1000 refugees and asylum seekers with no current solution. New Zealand’s long-standing offer to resettle 150 refugees a year is still yet to be taken up by the Australian Government. Having already lost eight years of their lives, the refugees caught up in this policy desperately need safety and security. In October 2021 the Australian Government announced it was is ending its arrangement with PNG from 1 January 2022, leaving refugees remaining in PNG fearful about their future. 

We have the opportunity to put forward more sponsorship applications, if we can raise sufficient funds.

The case for supporting Operation #NotForgotten is explained in two short videos:  

• Myo Win, a Rohingya refugee who has spent eight years on Nauru, explains what it means to him to be sponsored to Canada and how much he is looking forward to be reunited with his wife and children who are currently in very difficult circumstances in Myanmar. 
• Bryan Gaensler, the 1999 Young Australian of the Year and now a permanent resident of Canada, shares how his grandmother’s experience as a refugee fleeing Nazi Germany has influenced his decision to become a volunteer with Ads Up Canada. He is part of the team of volunteers welcoming ex Nauru and Manus refugees to Toronto. 

What is involved in sponsorship 

Under Canada’s Private Sponsorship of Refugees program, the Sponsorship Agreement Holder must have fulfilled the following prerequisites before an application can be lodged: 

• The Operation #NotForgotten sponsorship opportunity is only for refugees and eligible asylum seekers who were sent by Australia to PNG’s Manus Island or Nauru between 19 July 2013 and December 2014. 
• The designated level of funds required for income support for a refugee in the first year after arrival in Canada is around AUD21,500 or around AUD36,500 for a family of five. 
• Sponsorship Agreement Holders must have a team of volunteers ready to welcome and support the refugee in the city of settlement for the first 12 months in Canada. 

Given the sponsorship program also reunites families which have been separated by refugee flight, funds and support must be available for a spouse or children under 22 years who are in other countries. 

As Operation #NotForgotten is sponsoring a mixture of single adult refugees and family groups, the current average cost per person is around AUD16,500. The funds raised for sponsorship ensure that newly arrived refugees in Canada have money to live on during their first year. Refugees (like other new arrivals to Canada) have to wait 12 months before being eligible for any income support available from Canada’s provincial governments. 

More information about Operation #NotForgotten can be found on the MOSAIC website. For refugees interested in more details, MOSAIC has produced a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) document about Operation #NotForgotten in English, Bengali, Persian and Tamil. This sponsorship opportunity is only for refugees and eligible asylum seekers who were sent by Australia to Manus Island or Nauru between 19 July 2013 and December 2014. To be eligible, people seeking asylum in this group (those currently without formal refugee status) would need to meet the Canadian Government’s Country of Asylum Class criteria. 

Achievements so far

Fundraising for Operation #NotForgotten began in August 2019, initiated by Laurie Cooper of Canada Caring Society, and the first applications were lodged in December 2019. As at January 2022: 

• Operation #NotForgotten has raised AU$4.75 million, of which AU$4.3 million has been raised in Australia through the Refugee Council of Australia. 
• With the funds raised, MOSAIC has lodged sponsorship applications for 172 refugees and 144 separated family members – 316 resettlement spots.
• The first sponsorship applications were approved by the Canadian Government in October 2021, with the first 10 refugees arriving in Canada in December 2021 and January 2022. 
• MOSAIC and Ads-Up Canada have teams of volunteers across Canada ready to receive the refugees as they arrive.
• In October 2021, our goal was to raise $500,000 before Christmas to get applications lodged for 30 resettlement spots. However, with the funds we raised, MOSAIC managed to lodge applications for 68 resettlement spots – 24 refugees in offshore processing and 44 separated family members.

I want to help, what can I do? 

The Refugee Council of Australia is receiving tax-deductible donations for Operation #NotForgotten from people resident in Australia. You can donate via Credit Card here. 

Donations over $5,000 can be deposited directly into our bank account. Please email [email protected] so we can identify your payment. Account name: Refugee Council of Australia. BSB: 062 033. Account number: 1043 2319

Please also consider sharing our Operation #Not Forgotten infographic with your friends and networks.

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