People who need refugee protection rarely arrive with a tidy plan. Some landed at Pearson with a visitor visa and hoped things would improve at home. Others came to study in Brampton, then learned that returning had become dangerous. A claim often begins with a person sitting at a kitchen table, frightened and unsure who to trust, typing a question into their phone.
If that is your situation, the first thing to understand is that time matters more than it used to. Canada’s rules now make some claims ineligible for a refugee hearing because of when they were made. If you are thinking about claiming, try to get legal advice this week and don’t let it wait until next month.
The rest of this article explains the process in general terms. It is not legal advice about your claim, and every claim turns on its own facts. Rules and procedures in this area change, so check the current instructions from IRCC and the Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB).
What a Claim Has to Show
A refugee claim is decided under two parts of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. Under section 96, a Convention refugee has a well-founded fear of persecution because of race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group. Under section 97, a person in need of protection faces a danger of torture, a risk to their life, or a risk of cruel and unusual treatment or punishment if returned.
Those definitions have limits that surprise people. Poverty, unemployment, and general hardship at home, however serious, usually do not meet the test on their own. A personal dispute may not meet it unless it fits one of the protected grounds or creates the kind of personal risk section 97 covers. The decision-maker will also ask whether your own government could protect you, and whether you could live safely somewhere else in your country.
Claiming is also not a shortcut to staying in Canada. Lying in a claim can lead to serious consequences, including a ban from returning.
Timing Rules That Can Block a Hearing
Not every claim gets sent to the IRB. An officer first decides whether it is eligible to be referred. Section 101 of the Act lists the reasons a claim can be found ineligible, and two of them were added by the Strengthening Canada’s Immigration System and Borders Act, which received Royal Assent on March 26, 2026. According to IRCC, these rules apply to claims made on or after June 3, 2025.
The one-year rule. A claim is ineligible if the person entered Canada after June 24, 2020 and claimed more than one year after that entry. If you have come and gone more than once, the year runs from your first entry after that date. So a person who first came to Canada in 2021 and went home for a visit in 2024 cannot restart the clock by returning.
The 14-day rule. A person who crosses the Canada-U.S. land border between official ports of entry and claims after the 14-day period set out in the regulations is also ineligible. People who claim within those 14 days may be returned to the U.S. under the Safe Third Country Agreement unless an exception applies. That leaves the land border situation narrow and technical, and it calls for legal advice on the specific facts.
Other long-standing reasons for ineligibility include having a previous claim rejected, withdrawn, or abandoned, having refugee protection elsewhere, having made a claim in certain partner countries, and being found inadmissible on certain serious grounds.
If Your Claim Is Found Ineligible
Being ineligible for a hearing does not mean you can be sent home with no look at your risk. IRCC states that people affected by the one-year and 14-day rules can still apply for a pre-removal risk assessment (PRRA), which is a risk review done by an officer.
This is a very different process, though. A PRRA is mostly done on paper, a hearing is not guaranteed, and you do not get the same appeal route. The written evidence you file may be your main chance to be heard, so it needs the same care as a full refugee claim. A removal order that was conditional also comes into force much faster after an ineligibility finding, usually within days. If you receive that decision, do not wait to get help.
Starting the Claim
Most people already in Canada start online through the IRCC Portal. You complete the forms, give your history, upload documents, and include a Basis of Claim form, known as the BOC. IRCC then reviews the file and contacts you for biometrics and an interview, where an officer will decide eligibility.
If you claim at the border or airport, an officer deals with you there, and you generally have 15 days after your claim is referred to file your BOC with the IRB. Inland claimants have to give the BOC to the officer no later than the day eligibility is decided. Because these details are operational and subject to change, follow the written instructions you receive and keep them.
What you should collect from the start:
- Your passports, including expired ones, and any other identity documents
- Visas, permits, and entry stamps showing when you came to Canada
- Police reports, medical records, threats, photographs, or court papers from home
- Membership cards or letters connected to a political party, faith group, union, or community organization
- A list of family members with full names and birth dates, including those still abroad
Do not throw away or hide documents because they seem unhelpful, and do not buy documents from anyone. A fake document can destroy your credibility.
The Basis of Claim Form
The BOC is the most important document most claimants will ever write. It asks you to explain, in your own words, what happened, who harmed or threatened you, why, whether you sought help from police, whether you tried moving elsewhere, and why you left when you did.
Three habits help. First, be chronological and specific. “They came for me many times” is weaker than a list of the events you can remember, with approximate dates and places. Second, be accurate about what you do not know. If you cannot recall a date, say so. Third, read the final version carefully, or have it interpreted back to you in your language before you sign.
Members of the IRB compare your BOC with your forms, your earlier statements to officers, and your testimony. Differences can raise doubts about credibility. Ask for a correction promptly if you discover a mistake, because a change made early looks very different from a story that shifts at the hearing.
A word of caution about help from friends, community members, and unlicensed agents. Two claimants with near-identical stories, written by the same person, can both suffer for it. In Canada, paid immigration representation is limited to authorized people such as lawyers and regulated consultants. You can confirm an Ontario lawyer’s licence on the Law Society of Ontario directory.
Living in Brampton While You Wait
Once a claim has been made, day-to-day survival becomes the immediate concern. Several supports exist, though each has its own rules:
- Health care. The Interim Federal Health Program pays for certain health services for eligible claimants who lack other coverage.
- Work. Claimants can generally ask for an open work permit, which is usually processed after eligibility is decided and medical exam requirements are met.
- Income and housing. Peel Region indicates that claimants with official papers proving they have made a claim can seek Ontario Works, and the region provides information about shelter and settlement support. Staff will generally need to see your claim documents.
- Legal costs. Legal Aid Ontario may fund refugee matters for those who qualify financially, often through a certificate. Contact Legal Aid early, since the merit and financial reviews need time.
Keep your address current with IRCC, the Canada Border Services Agency, and the IRB. If a notice goes to an old address and you miss a date, your claim could be declared abandoned. This is one of the most avoidable ways to lose a claim. People who move between shelters or friends’ homes in Peel should update their address every single time.
Preparing for the Hearing
If your claim is referred, the Refugee Protection Division of the IRB will schedule a hearing, which may be held by video. A member decides your claim, your lawyer can represent you, and interpreters are provided where needed. Some claims can be decided without a hearing under IRB procedures, and you should not assume this will apply to yours.
Evidence has deadlines, so documents usually have to be provided before the hearing, in English or French or with a translation and translator’s declaration. Useful evidence often includes proof of the events you describe, letters from people with direct knowledge, medical or psychological reports where relevant, and reliable information about conditions in your country. The IRB maintains national documentation packages for this reason, and your lawyer will review the one for your country.
Expect questions you find hard or even offensive. Why did you not claim sooner? Why did you return home in 2023? Why did you not seek protection in a country you passed through? Members are testing the evidence, and you should prepare honest answers instead of hoping those topics will not come up. Going back to your home country before a decision is particularly risky, since it can undermine your fear and may affect the claim itself.
If trauma makes it hard to testify, tell your lawyer. The IRB can make procedural accommodations for vulnerable people.
After the Decision
If your claim is accepted, you become a protected person and can apply for permanent residence. That status must be respected: returning to the country you fled, or renewing that country’s passport, can lead to losing your protection and even your permanent residence.
If it is refused, the deadlines are short. Most people can appeal to the Refugee Appeal Division by filing a notice within 15 days of receiving written reasons. The appellant’s record has its own deadline, which the IRB has extended by practice notice to 45 days from receipt of reasons, and the IRB’s current instructions should be checked. Some claimants cannot appeal, such as where the decision says there is no credible basis or the claim is manifestly unfounded. Those people may be able to ask the Federal Court for judicial review.
A failed claim also brings other bars, generally including a 12-month wait before a PRRA or a humanitarian and compassionate application can be considered, subject to limited exceptions.
Where to Start
Write down your entry dates, gather your documents, and speak with a lawyer about your specific timing before filing anything. Our immigration law page describes the work involved, and you can contact the firm if you would like to arrange a consultation. If cost is the barrier, call Legal Aid Ontario first. A frightened person deserves accurate information, and the time to get it is before forms are signed.