Mexicans to require visas again, minister says

Reimposed amid increase in asylum claims

• The Liberal government is reimposing visa requirements on Mexican nationals amid a surge in asylum claims, most of which were ultimately being rejected.

Immigration Minister Marc Miller said the government felt it had no choice after an enormous surge in the number of Mexican nationals making asylum claims. The change was to come into force on Thursday evening.

“We count Mexican citizens as friends and family, a key workforce that helps Canadians, and students and visitors that help boost our economy and enrich our culture,” said Miller, at a press conference on Thursday morning. “Most asylum claims from Mexico are either rejected by the Immigration Refugee Board of Canada, or withdrawn or abandoned by the applicant and so, change was needed.”

According to government figures, there were 23,995 asylum claims from Mexican nationals last year, by far the highest rate for any country and accounting for 17 per cent of all claims. Approximately 60 per cent of those claims were rejected or abandoned.

In 2016, when the Liberals first lifted the visa requirement, there were just 260 claims from Mexico. The Harper government first put the visa requirement in place in 2009 and refused to lift it during their time in office.

The Mexican government at the time required visas for Canadians travelling to Mexico in response to Canada's imposition.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said the Liberals should have left the visa requirement in place.

“The visa never should have been lifted by Trudeau. He's the one that caused the chaos in our immigration system, he and he alone is to blame for it. We called for him to reverse his mistake a month ago.”

The Liberals have been under pressure from both Quebec's government and the U.S. government to require visas. Quebec's Premier François Legault called on the government to make the change as many of the asylum claimants have ended up in his province, while American officials have asked for the change because some asylum claimants in Canada enter the U.S. by illegally crossing the border.

Miller said the change was not about pressure from any one politician, and the government has carefully calibrated its response.

“There's a number of considerations that go into the decision. It isn't one person clamouring that makes the difference,” he said. “We've been examining these measures for months. We have seen exponential growth in asylum claims, particularly from Mexican nationals, in the last year. This is something that cabinet has been seized upon for some months.”

Miller said visa centres have been expanded in Mexico to deal with expected demand and anyone who holds a valid U.S. visa or has held a Canadian one in the last 10 years will be able to travel with the simpler electronic travel authority.

He said the Mexican government was fully informed about the change, because it is not something that can happen without considerable planning.

“We've had discussions at various levels throughout the last month. This is not something that is deployed in secret.”

The changes won't alter requirements for people coming on temporary work permits or student visas. Miller said he doesn't expect to see a major impact to the temporary worker program.

Marc Miller