Notice of Proposed Changes to the Private Sponsorship of Refugees (PSR) Program. June 8, 2012 — As part of Canada’s Refugee Resettlement Program, private sponsors. Canada is proposing changes to the Private Sponsorship of Refugees (PSR) Program that would help to reduce backlogs and improve processing times, Citizenship. Canada has proposed changes to the Private Sponsorship of Refugees Program. Cu rrently, people may sponsor refugees from abroad. These people who sponsor refugees can. On June 9, 2012, the Government of Canada published regulatory changes in the Gazette regarding the Private Sponsorship of Refugees Program (“PRSP“). Introduction. Since its beginnings in 1979, Canada’s Private Sponsorship of Refugees Program has provided protection and a new home to more than 200,000 refugees. Unique in the world, Canada’s Private Sponsorship of Refugees Program has allowed Canadians to offer protection and a new home to more than 275,000 refugees since. On december 9, 2011, a proposal on changes to improve the private sponsorship of refugees (psr) program has been announced by canadian citizenship, immigration and.
Proposed Changes To Private Sponsorship Refugees Program, Canada Immigration Rules, Immigration. 1 Response to PROPOSED PILOT OF A PRIVATE/COMMUNITY REFUGEE SPONSORSHIP PROGRAM Discussion Paper 27 July 2012 The Refugee Council of Australia (RCOA) is the.
Important changes in Canada’s Private Sponsorship of Refugees Program. Introduction. Since its beginnings in 1. Canada’s Private Sponsorship of Refugees Program has provided protection and a new home to more than 2. Countless Canadians have also benefitted from the program, through the opportunities it offers for personal relationships with people who have survived persecution in various corners of the globe. Through the years, private sponsors have come to value certain principles that traditionally underlie the program: Additionality – private sponsorship is additional to government assisted refugees.
Notice of Proposed Changes to the Private Sponsorship of Refugees (PSR) Program.
Each year the government makes its commitment, on behalf of Canadians, to resettle a certain number of refugees. Anything that Canadians do through private sponsorship is on top of that commitment. This means that it allows Canadians to offer protection and a permanent home to extra refugees, who would not otherwise have the opportunity. Naming – private sponsors can identify the refugees that they wish to sponsor, assuming they meet all the criteria in Canadian law. This principle allows Canadians to respond to refugees of particular concern to them, whether individuals known to them, or from a specific region they are involved with or groups with whom they wish to be in solidarity. It also allows Canadians to respond to refugees they feel are being forgotten by others. The private sponsorship program is undergoing significant changes, which may in the long term have profound impacts on its future shape. While the upcoming changes to the in- Canada refugee determination system are receiving considerable public attention, the changes on the resettlement side are far less well- known.
Even those involved in private sponsorship have had little opportunity to weigh up their implications. Nevertheless, the combined effect of various developments seems to challenge the principles of additionality and naming, raising concerns for those who feel that these principles are valuable for refugees and for Canada. Recent developments. Cap on private sponsorship applications at Nairobi mission in 2. Since 2. 01. 1 there has been a cap on the number of applications Sponsorship Agreement Holders can submit on behalf of refugees processed at the Nairobi mission.
The cap, introduced to address the backlog that had accumulated over many years at Nairobi, severely limits sponsors’ ability to respond to refugees in that region of world (the Nairobi mission serves 1. East and Central Africa).
Overall cap on private sponsorship applications starting in 2. Beginning in 2. 01. Sponsorship Agreement Holders have faced a global cap on the number of applications for named refugees they can submit.
In addition, there are specific, very restrictive caps on Nairobi (reduced further since 2. Pretoria, Islamabad and Cairo. This further limits the ability of sponsors to respond to refugees they believe are in need, particularly refugees in certain world regions. Group of 5 limits imposed by regulation October 2. Changes to the regulations made in October 2. Sponsorship Agreement Holders from sponsoring refugees who are not recognized as refugees by the UNHCR or a State.[1] Some of the most vulnerable and marginalized refugees don’t have these papers.
Elimination of Source Country Class. The Source Country Class was eliminated in October 2.
The government commented that where appropriate discretionary provisions of the Act (humanitarian and compassionate considerations) could be used instead to resettle individuals.[3] These were the provisions used to bring to Canada some Afghan interpreters whose lives were put at risk because of their support for the Canadian mission.[4] For sponsors, however, discretionary measures are too unpredictable: unless the government has announced special measures, sponsors don’t know what sort of case might be considered deserving. Rise of Minister- led initiatives. While sponsors face the above- mentioned restrictions in responding to refugees they consider priorities, the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration has recently started to identify particular refugee populations as priorities for resettlement. In some cases, the Minister has used the public policy provisions of the Act to identify groups. Refugees identified by the Minister are given priority in terms of the limited available numbers and processing times. Examples of ministerial priorities are the three groups given $1. March 2. 01. 1[5] (at the same time that sponsors were required to reduce their applications to Nairobi), Tibetans in India,[6] and most recently persecuted Christians from Egypt.
The 2. 01. 3 target numbers for the first time reflect the public policy categories.[7] No one has questioned the groups identified, who are all certainly deserving, but the identification of the groups is done without consultation, and raises concerns about the politicization of a humanitarian and human rights program. Cuts to Interim Federal Health Program.
In June 2. 01. 2, the government introduced drastic cuts to the Interim Federal Health (IFH) Program, affecting privately sponsored refugees.[8] These changes made private sponsors liable for extra health costs, such as prosthetics, medications and dental care. Since private sponsors can’t know in advance what health calamities might afflict the refugees they sponsor during the period for which they are responsible (usually the first year after arrival in Canada), sponsors worry that they might find themselves with bills of thousands of dollars. Some privately sponsored refugees – refugees identified by the government, rather than by sponsors – continue however to be eligible for full IFH coverage.
Future directions in Resettlement. Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) is exploring a reorientation of the resettlement program towards a concentration on a limited number of refugee populations around the world. CIC describes this as follows: Increased population- specific efforts within the resettlement program, rather than the current global approach, will allow the Department and sponsors to better prepare population- specific approaches for settlement. It will also ensure that overseas processing resources can be allocated in the best manner to ensure fast processing times and reduction of application inventories.[9]While these plans primarily relate to government- assisted refugees, there are concerns that privately sponsored refugees will also be affected. Government resources at visa offices are likely to be concentrated in areas identified as priority by the government, limiting sponsors’ ability to respond to refugees in other regions. Blended Visa- office- referred (VOR) program starting in 2.
Starting in 2. 01. The refugees will be selected by the government (which is why they are called “visa- office- referred”). Many sponsors are attracted to this opportunity because (a) there is fast processing for visa- office referred cases, unlike named cases which routinely take years to process, (b) they are looking for refugees to sponsor, since the overall and mission- specific caps on named sponsorships leave many groups with no other opportunity to sponsor, (c) refugees resettled through this blended program are fully covered by IFH, so sponsors don’t have to worry about unanticipated medical costs. Nevertheless, some sponsors are hesitant because the program does not respect the principle of additionality. It is understood that part of the government’s motivation for this program lies in its desire to save money, in the context of deficit- reduction, while meeting the government’s commitment to increase the number of refugees resettled by 2,5. Originally, the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration had announced that this increase would be met by bringing in 5. Now, the government is instead asking the private sponsors to take on part or all of the expenses for the 5.
Starting at 2. 00- 3. The CIC Departmental Performance Report says: CIC plans increase the number of PSRs [Privately Sponsored Refugees] to be resettled in a year by 1,0. Over the coming year, the Department will work with sponsors to identify populations of interest that may be referred by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees as PSRs in 2. Sponsors are thus concerned that their efforts through the blended program are subsidizing government contributions, rather than adding to the overall number of refugees that can find a home in Canada. There are also concerns about the availability of sponsors to take on the blended sponsorships, particularly in subsequent years when the annual target is 1,0. Canadians have a range of reasons for getting involved in sponsorship, but often a sense of personal connection with a particular region or individual is key (which is why named sponsorships are so important).
It is not so clear how broad the motivation is to resettle refugees based on government priorities, particularly if there is a perception that sponsors are being asked to fill in the gap created by government cutbacks. However, if private sponsors are unable to meet the targets set by government for blended sponsorships, it has been suggested that the places will go unfilled. Private sponsors are thus put in the unenviable position of needing to work hard to ensure that refugees don’t end up deprived of the opportunity for safety and a new life in Canada. Far from adding to the government’s numbers of refugees resettled, private sponsors seem to be responsible for ensuring that the government’s numbers are not reduced!
Overall concerns. We are moving towards a more government- led resettlement program, with less opportunity for private sponsors, as representatives of civil society, to respond to refugees that they believe deserve attention.
Canada’s response to refugees is becoming less global and more targeted. There are certainly advantages to focussing on particular populations (such as efficiency of processing and advantages in settling groups).