The Refugee Protection Division (RPD) is an administrative tribunal branch of the Immigration and Refugee Bard of Canada. It is aimed at representing the people in Canada with protected person status and for those who claim for this status under extraordinary circumstances as defined under the refugee law. Any person desirous of living as a refugee in another country and not wanting to return to his/her native country for the fear of persecution, life threat or social condemnation is called a convention refugee. These people can be under threat for reasons like race, ethnicity, national identity, political allegiance, or religion, or for being a part of a group such as a particular gender or political group. Mostly they are either under threat of life, or at a high risk of being tortured or condemned in their country/ or the country of previous residence. Convention refugees must be able to prove that there is a high risk for them to be persecuted in their own country. It includes threat to life, risk of being tortured or being humiliated. As a convention refugee, Canada will permit these claimants to have a safe life in Canada.

In an attempt for ensuring the safety of refugee claimants and convention refugee claimants, Canadian law has initiated some changes in the Act to make it faster, less harassing, more inclusive and sturdier so that people are provided a country of safety and security as early as possible. The refugee Act was amended on 15^th December 2012 to help refugees settle in Canada and ensure that those not approved can be sent back in time. This removed unnecessary long delay before the decision on such cases could be made.  In order to make the filing process quicker for refugees claiming protection, there have been some pertinent changes in the system. Canada has compiled a list of Designated Countries of Origin (DOC) which are primarily countries that promise safe existence to their citizens and do not generally produce refugees. Claimants from such countries will have their protection applications processed within 30-45 days, and 60 days for those from other countries. Claimants from DOC will have a faster application processing experience.

If an application is denied, a new Refugee Appeal Division has been established at the Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) that will respond to a claimant’s appeal within next 15 days. A claimant will be promised a just hearing to prove his/her claim. All decisions on appeals made the by claimant will be decided within 90 days. If a claimant is denied immigration/residency, he/she will receive removal orders asking him/her to leave the country within the next one year. Formal hearings that were earlier controlled by appointed members will now be conducted by public servant decision makers to make the process unbiased and just. A refugee claimant can also seek protection on humanitarian and compassionate grounds provided he/she is able to prove that he/she will face extraordinary threat in his/her country of origin. In place of an earlier required form of Personal information, the system now demands a Basis of Claim form (BOC) which once filled will also be an oath from the claimant of truth and honesty. If such a claim us found untrue later, there will be serious consequences for the claimant.

Humanitarian and Compassionate Application

Humanitarian and Compassionate Application is a special provision under Section 25 to represent those who seek permanent residency for reasons beyond their control. This is permissible in some exceptional cases and it can be quite challenging to get these applications approved. Most of the times, it is extremely hard to establish an individual’s extraordinary circumstances to be able to benefit from this provision. It s highly suggested to seek experienced legal help when applying under this provision because this is one of the most challenging and complicated provision to understand for any person uninitiated into Canadian legalities. Your situation might be extraordinary for you, but Canadian government might have a different view to it. Proper and timely consultation can save you from the hassles of defining your problem in a way so as to qualify for this program.

An Humanitarian and Compassionate (H&C) application is a provision under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) that represents those people who are declared ineligible for permanent residency for some exceptional reason. Such people can apply for permanent residency on humanitarian and compassionate grounds. Whoever applies through Humanitarian and Compassionate applications must prove the reasons for applying for this extraordinary provision. It means that the applicant must prove why leaving Canada can prove risky and threatening for them. Therefore, the application must be strong and well-argued. The reasons for seeking humanitarian aid must be provided with sufficient proof.

Applications submitted by an individual are reviewed thoroughly by the examining officer who will determine if your request is appropriate. There is some level of inquiry into your circumstances to assess your background, financial status, and police record to determine if you are inadmissible in Canada. It is also reviewed if the status of permanent residency of Canada can really ensure protection to the applicant. The examining official will also review if your request for special provision should be processed under H&C. Since this application demands a thorough understanding of an applicant’s reasons to demand residency under this provision, these applications can take longer in comparison to applications that are processed under other programs. There is a thorough inquiry along with document verification and a background check. If in case an applicant’s request is rejected, he/she can further put a request to federal government to review the case.  The approval for application processing under Humanitarian and Compassionate grounds is dependent on the following factors –

1. To qualify for this provision, an applicant must prove that he/she is financially robust. The review board will inquire about the applicant’s financial status, job stability or business success, and give impetus only to those who have proven to contribute significantly to Canada’s economy.
2. An applicant is also assessed based on his/her assimilation into Canadian society. An applicant with healthy life skills and social skills proves to be an asset to Canadian community and will be preferably retained by the Canadian government than someone who is ill-adapted to Canadian culture.
3. An applicant must also justify the plea for permanent residency on humanitarian and compassionate basis. Such provisions are used in some highly exceptional cases and do not accommodate everyone. While applying under this provision, you must be able to provide ample proof why you must be considered. You will have to prove why leaving Canada will bring you immense hardships or prove threatening. Only then they can be exempted from fulfilling a few requisites otherwise mandatory for permanent residency visa.