E-Paper
Canada: Higher visa scrutiny led to 33% drop in asylum claims since 2024
Canada's asylum claims halved by late 2025 due to stricter visa scrutiny, with a 55% drop from temporary visa holders, particularly affecting Indian nationals.
Increased scrutiny of visas issued to temporary residents has contributed towards halving the number of asylum claims made in Canada towards the end of 2025, according to the Canadian government.
According to an update from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada or IRCC, between January and November last year, there was a 33% decrease in the number of asylum claims submitted when compared to the same period in 2024.
That trend may be growing stronger, as IRCC said, “Increased scrutiny of temporary resident visa (TRV) applications led to a 55% drop in asylum claims from TRV holders in November 2025 compared to the same month the previous year.”
TRVs include the visas issued to tourists, international students and temporary workers.
Between the same 11-month period in 2025, Canada saw approximately 52% (334,845) fewer arrivals of new students and temporary workers compared to the same period the previous year, IRCC noted. The breakdown given was 60% or 157,380 fewer new students and 47% or 177,465 fewer new temporary workers.
According to data from the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada or IRB, Indians comprise the largest cohort with refugee claims, with 43,830 cases pending and 7197 finalised by the end of September last year. In comparison, Mexican citizens have 24,526 cases pending before the Board, with 5828 finalised.
Of the total 13,912 claims by Indian nationals referred to the Board, an almost equal number were accepted and rejected, 1,568 versus 1600.
Mississauga-based immigration consultant Kanwar Sierah told the Hindustan Times earlier that a large number of claimants came to Canada on visitor visas and were sold “package deals” which include a refugee claim. Many of those were based on their purported support for Khalistan. “I don’t see persecution on the basis of Khalistan,” he said.
Sierah said while there were a “few genuine” cases of refugee claimants from India, over the last couple of years, they had been “literally flooding the system when it comes to fake asylum claims.”
According to IRCC data, 2015, Indians filed 380 claims out of a total of 16,050, but by 2023, they accounted for 11,260 claims out of 143,335. In 2024, those numbers jumped, to 32,285 out of 171,850.
