If you are physically in Canada or at a Canadian port of entry, you can seek asylum in Canada by asking for refugee protection, but the claim will only be heard if you fit one of two legal categories and are not blocked by an ineligibility rule. Claims are decided by the Refugee Protection Division of the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, an independent tribunal, under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. Recent changes in 2025 and 2026 have tightened who gets a hearing at all, so timing now matters as much as the merits of your fear.
Who Qualifies
Canadian law protects two groups. You only need to fit one.
A Convention refugee is someone outside their home country with a well-founded fear of persecution based on race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group. The fear must be grounded in circumstances a reasonable person would consider dangerous, and you must be unable or unwilling to seek your home country’s protection because of it.1Government of Canada. Immigration and Refugee Protection Act – Section 96
A person in need of protection is someone already in Canada whose removal would personally expose them to torture, a risk to their life, or cruel and unusual treatment or punishment. The risk must exist throughout the country rather than one region, target you specifically rather than the general population, and cannot stem from inadequate healthcare at home.2Government of Canada. Immigration and Refugee Protection Act – Section 97
What Can Block Your Claim Before It’s Heard
Even a genuine fear will not get you a hearing if your claim is ineligible. You cannot file if you already have refugee protection in Canada, if the Board previously rejected your claim, if a prior claim was found ineligible, withdrawn, or abandoned, or if you filed a claim in another country that shares information with Canada. You also cannot file if another country has already recognized you as a Convention refugee and you can return there, or if you are inadmissible for security reasons, human rights violations, serious criminality, or organized crime.3Government of Canada. Immigration and Refugee Protection Act – Section 101
The New Timing Rules
Bill C-12, the Strengthening Canada’s Immigration System and Borders Act, received royal assent on March 26, 2026, and added two rules that apply to any claim made on or after June 3, 2025.
The one-year rule: if more than one year has passed since you first entered Canada after June 24, 2020, your claim will not be referred to the Board. It applies regardless of your immigration status, and it applies even if you left Canada and came back.
The 14-day rule: if you crossed the Canada–U.S. land border between official ports of entry and did not claim within 14 days of entering, your claim will not be referred.4Canada.ca. New Immigration and Asylum Measures From Bill C-12 Have Become Law
These rules are unforgiving. If you are thinking about claiming, do not delay.
Arriving From the United States
Under the Canada–U.S. Safe Third Country Agreement, Canada can turn away refugee claimants who arrive from the U.S. on the basis that the U.S. is itself a safe country for seeking protection. Since March 2023, the agreement covers the entire border, including unofficial crossing points, and anyone caught crossing irregularly within 14 days can be returned to the U.S.5Government of Canada. Canada-U.S. Safe Third Country Agreement
Four narrow exceptions can let you claim anyway: you have a qualifying family member in Canada; you are an unaccompanied minor with no parent or guardian in Canada or the U.S.; you hold a valid Canadian visa, work permit, study permit, or travel document (or you are visa-exempt for Canada but need one for the U.S.); or you face charges or a conviction carrying the death penalty in the U.S. or a third country.5Government of Canada. Canada-U.S. Safe Third Country Agreement
How To File
There are two routes, depending on where you are.
At a port of entry. If you are arriving at an airport, land border, or seaport, tell a Canada Border Services Agency officer that you want to seek refugee protection. The officer will interview you, verify your identity, and collect biometrics. If your claim is found eligible, it is referred to the Refugee Protection Division.6Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada. Step 1 – Make Your Claim
From inside Canada. Submit your claim online through the IRCC Portal and then attend an in-person appointment at an Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada office.7Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Start a Claim Online Remember the one-year rule: a claim made more than a year after your first entry into Canada will not be referred.
Once your claim is referred, you will receive a confirmation letter and instructions for the next step.
The Basis of Claim Form
The Basis of Claim form is the single most important document in your case. It asks for your personal details, nationality, family and travel history, and, most critically, a detailed written narrative explaining exactly why you fear returning home, with specific events, dates, locations, and people.8Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada. Basis of Claim Form
You have 45 calendar days after your claim is referred to the Refugee Protection Division to submit it.9Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada. Step 2 – Send Your Basis of Claim Form Miss that deadline and your claim can be declared abandoned. You lose the hearing entirely.
Your narrative becomes the foundation of the hearing. The Board member will test your oral testimony against what you wrote, and inconsistencies between the two are one of the most common reasons claims fail on credibility. Be thorough and accurate the first time. If there is one point in the process to get legal help, this is it.
Supporting Evidence
Your narrative needs backup. Gather identity documents like a passport, national ID, or birth certificate. Bring evidence of persecution: police or arrest records, court documents, threatening letters or messages. Include medical records showing injuries from violence or torture, country condition evidence such as human rights reports and news articles, and witness statements from people who can corroborate your account. Any document not in English or French needs a certified translation, and you should keep copies of everything.
While You Wait
You can work, study, and access support services while your claim is pending.10Government of Canada. While You Wait for a Decision on Your Claim You also get healthcare through the Interim Federal Health Program, which covers hospital services, doctor visits, prescription medications, ambulance services, and lab and diagnostic tests, along with limited dental and vision care.11Government of Canada. Temporary Health Care Coverage – What Is Covered Coverage continues until you get provincial or territorial health insurance or leave Canada.12Government of Canada. Get Health Care Coverage
Wait times vary, and the Board has faced a significant backlog. Expect many months before your hearing is scheduled.
The Hearing
Your hearing takes place before a single member of the Refugee Protection Division. It is not a courtroom trial with opposing lawyers, but it is formal. You testify about your fear and answer the member’s questions. You can be represented by a lawyer, and if you are not fluent in English or French, an interpreter will be provided.
The member weighs four things:
- Identity. Whether you provided acceptable identity documents and, if not, whether you have a reasonable explanation.13Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada. Assessment of Credibility in Claims for Refugee Protection
- Credibility. Whether your testimony is consistent with your Basis of Claim form and supporting evidence, and whether the details are plausible.
- State protection. Whether your home country’s government is willing and able to protect you. If it is, your claim can fail even when the threat is real.
- Internal flight alternative. Whether you could safely relocate to another part of your home country instead of seeking protection abroad.
Credibility is where most claims are won or lost. Small inconsistencies between your written narrative and your testimony, vague answers on key details, or unexplained gaps can sink an otherwise valid claim.
If Your Claim Is Accepted
You become a protected person. Any removal order against you will not be enforced, and you get a direct pathway to permanent residence. You can apply immediately using form IMM 5205, and you may include your spouse, partner, and dependent children who are still outside Canada.14Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Applying for Permanent Residence From Within Canada – Protected Persons and Convention Refugees As of April 30, 2026, the fee for protected persons is $660.15Government of Canada. Permanent Residence Fees Increasing on April 30, 2026 You will also give biometrics at a designated Service Canada location before processing begins.
One warning that surprises new protected persons: avoid any voluntary re-engagement with your home country’s government, including renewing that country’s passport or traveling back. Doing so can trigger cessation proceedings that strip both your protection and your permanent residence.16Government of Canada. Immigration and Refugee Protection Act – Section 108
If Your Claim Is Rejected
A rejected claim triggers a departure order. You must leave within 30 days after the order becomes enforceable, and you must confirm your departure with the Canada Border Services Agency. If you don’t, the departure order converts automatically to a deportation order, which carries harsher consequences for any future attempt to enter Canada.17Canada Border Services Agency. Enforcing Removals From Canada
You have options, but the deadlines are tight.
Refugee Appeal Division. Most claimants can appeal to the RAD, which reviews the original decision for errors of law, fact, or both, usually on the written record without a new hearing. You cannot appeal if your claim was found to have no credible basis or was deemed manifestly unfounded, if it was declared withdrawn or abandoned, or if you are a designated foreign national.18Government of Canada. Immigration and Refugee Protection Act – Section 110
Federal Court judicial review. If the RAD upholds the rejection, or you have no right to a RAD appeal, you can apply to the Federal Court of Canada for judicial review. You must first request leave, and you have only 15 days from being notified of the decision to file. The court does not rehear the facts; it reviews for legal error or unreasonableness.19Federal Court of Canada. How To File an Application for Judicial Review – Immigration
Pre-Removal Risk Assessment. Once appeals are exhausted and removal begins, a CBSA officer determines whether you are eligible for a PRRA. You cannot apply on your own. The assessment looks at whether you would face persecution, torture, or cruel treatment if returned.20Government of Canada. Pre-Removal Risk Assessment – Who Can Apply