Mexican visa move aimed at slowing asylum claims
OTTAWA — New visa requirements Ottawa is imposing on Mexican nationals are meant to curb the number of asylum claims in Canada as well as stem the flow of people crossing into the United States, Immigration Minister Marc Miller said Thursday.
Although the minister emphasized a close relationship with Canada’s North American ally, the Mexican government responded curtly, saying it “reserves the right to act in reciprocity.”
Quebec Premier François Legault, who reacted favourably to the decision, had been urging Ottawa to reimpose visa requirements as his province reaches what he calls a breaking point.
Miller said at a news conference on Thursday that Mexican nationals accounted for 17 per cent of all asylum claimants in 2023.
“Most asylum claims from Mexico are either rejected by the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada or withdrawn or abandoned by the applicant, and so a change was needed,” he said.
The vast majority of the 25,236 asylum claims received by the Immigration and Refugee Board from Mexico last year have not been decided.
Of the decided cases, 2,894 were accepted — about 40 per cent — and 2,424 were rejected. Another 560 people abandoned their claims and 1,240 withdrew.
The board said more than 28,000 asylum claims from Mexico were still pending as of the end of December, including claims made in previous years.
Miller said another key concern for his government is that some people are travelling to Canada so that they can cross into the United States.
“[The numbers] are nothing compared to what the U.S. is facing with respect to their southern border — in fact, they are probably rounding errors. But they are significant and they’ve increased dramatically in the last year or two,” he said.
In a statement released on its website, Mexico’s Foreign Affairs Ministry said it “regrets this decision and believes that there were other options available before putting this measure in place.”
“Mexico has sent two highlevel missions to Canada in recent weeks to reiterate the importance of protecting people who are victims of fraud, trafficking, smuggling and disinformation,” the statement said, adding that the country could take reciprocal action.
Human Rights Watch says rates of violence in Mexico have reached historic highs in recent years. It’s also one of the deadliest countries in the world for journalists and human-rights defenders, the organization says.
Canada only grants asylum to people it believes cannot safely live in their home country.
Legault said he’s pleased with the decision, but Ottawa must go further to address the growing number of temporary residents and asylum seekers in the province, which he said are putting a strain on health care and housing.
“What do we do with the 528,000 temporary immigrants and 160,000 asylum seekers that we currently have?” he said, adding he will be meeting with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to ask for people to be redistributed to other provinces.
Miller warned against blaming asylum seekers for the housing crisis, saying it’s “unhealthy” to link the two issues.