Any person from any country who can prove that they are a "Convention refugee" or a "person in need of protection" will receive refugee protection in Canada.

Refugees are persons who fear for their lives or safety in their home country, where the authorities of their home country are unable or unwilling to provide them with effective protection. Canada has a long-standing humanitarian tradition of providing surrogate protection to refugees. Refugee status may be applied for by people entering Canada, for example at an airport, or by people who are already in Canada. Successful refugee applicants may apply for permanent residence in Canada.

Every claim to refugee protection that is made in Canada is decided by the Refugee Protection Division of the Immigration and Refugee Board ("the Board") in an in-person hearing. In most cases a person who is accepted by the Board as a protected person can apply to be a permanent resident of Canada. A person who is rejected by the Board can apply to the Federal Court to overturn a negative decision of the Board.

A refugee claimant may present their case on one or more of three bases for refugee protection: (1) that they face a risk of persecution in their home country for reasons of their race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion, (2) that they face a risk of torture in their home country, (3) that they face a risk to their life or of cruel and unusual treatment or punishment in their home country.

People who are citizens or have the right to live in more than one country must prove they have a refugee claim against all the countries of which they are citizens or in which they have the right to live.

The most important factor in a successful refugee claim is thorough preparation, starting with preparation of the Personal Information Form or "PIF", which is a document setting out all the information about your claim. The completed PIF must be submitted to the Board within 28 days from the day on which you are given the blank PIF. Proper preparation of the PIF is essential and preferably should be done with the assistance of an immigration Consultant who is competent in refugee law.

Other types of hearing/petitions us at ImmiGlobe can help you with include:

·          Admissibility Hearings for people inadmissible to Canada for medical reasons, or criminality in their background

·          Detention Review Hearings if the immigration officials are of the opinion the person may pose a danger to the public

• Pre-Removal Risk Assessment for persons under removal order, where they believe that they may be at risk to their lives or safety if returned to their home country.

·          Humanitarian & Compassionate Applications is intended for persons who cannot return to their home country to apply for immigration through the standard categories because to do so would cause them unusual, undeserved or disproportionate hardship.

·          Temporary Resident Permits for persons who are inadmissible to Canada but need to enter Canada temporarily for some compelling reason may apply for a Temporary Resident Permit

·          Rehabilitation Applications for foreign nationals who have criminal convictions are generally inadmissible to Canada. However, where at least 5 years have passed from the time the criminal sentence was completed, an application for criminal rehabilitation can be made

Please Contact us for an assessment of your eligibility and other information.