Canada seeks mass visa-cancellation powers over fraud by Indians and Bangladeshis

Documents obtained by Canadian broadcaster CBC News show that officials from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) and the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) have formed a working group in collaboration with U.S. partners. The group’s aim is to identify and cancel fraudulent travel visa applications, and to strengthen their authority to do so.
 

Internal government documents specifically identify India and Bangladesh as “particular challenging countries,” citing the need to expand this authority. The list of cases where mass visa cancellations could be applied includes “visa holders from specific countries.”
 

However, publicly, Immigration Minister Lena Diab has cited only pandemics or wars as reasons for seeking this power, without mentioning any specific country.

 

Concerns over the law

The power to cancel visas en masse has been introduced in Parliament under a bill called C-12, which the government hopes to pass quickly.

More than 30 civil society organizations have expressed concerns about this law. Groups like the Migrant Rights Network have warned that the mass cancellation power could give the government the ability to establish a “tool for mass exclusion.”
 

Immigration lawyers have also questioned whether the government is seeking this power primarily to reduce application backlogs.

However, IRCC told CBC last month that the new proposal was not made with any “specific group or situation” in mind.
 

‘Strong measures’ in immigration control

The Immigration department stated that it has taken “strong measures” to reduce unnecessary crowding at the border and curb fraudulent tourists and illegal crossings.

The department claimed that increased scrutiny on Temporary Resident Visa (TRV) applications from countries with the “highest rates of misuse” has led to a 97% drop in illegal entries into Canada via the U.S. border since June last year.
 

The statement also noted that visa cancellations due to fraud have increased by 25% compared to the same period last year.

However, CBC News’ question about why India and Bangladesh were specifically mentioned in internal documents received no direct response from the authorities.