Bill C-12 and the Changing Landscape of Asylum Access in Canada

On March 26, 2026, Bill C-12, the Strengthening Canada’s Immigration System and Borders Act, received Royal Assent. Framed as a response to system pressures and “asylum shopping,” the law marks one of the most significant shifts in Canada’s refugee regime since 2002. Its core effect is simple but profound: it narrows who gets access to a full refugee hearing, and how.

Three changes deserve particular attention.

A One-Year Deadline for Refugee Claims

Canada has replaced a flexible standard requiring claims to be made “without delay” with a strict one-year filing deadline. Claims submitted after that period are generally barred from referral to the Refugee Protection Division (RPD), with only limited exceptions.

This shift matters. The earlier approach allowed decision-makers to consider real-world barriers such as trauma, lack of legal advice, or confusion about the system. A fixed deadline, by contrast, treats all delays the same. For many claimants, especially the most vulnerable, that may mean exclusion before their case is ever heard.

From a legal perspective, this raises familiar concerns. Canadian courts have long held that where removal may expose someone to serious harm, procedural fairness is not optional; it is a constitutional requirement. A rigid time bar risks prioritizing efficiency over the individualized justice that refugee protection demands.

The issue is compounded by the law’s retroactive reach. The deadline applies to claims made after June 2025 but can capture individuals who entered Canada years earlier. Even where Parliament clearly intends such reach, retroactivity that affects access to protection is likely to invite Charter scrutiny.

Conditional Exclusion Based on Entry

Bill C-12 also reshapes access to the refugee system based on how and when a person enters Canada. Some individuals who cross irregularly, particularly from the United States, and delay making a claim may be deemed ineligible for a full RPD hearing.

Instead, they are directed to the Pre‑Removal Risk Assessment (PRRA), an administrative process with more limited safeguards. Unlike the RPD, the PRRA is typically paper based, offers no automatic oral hearing, and lacks a built in right of appeal.

This is not a total denial of protection, but it is a downgrade in process. And in refugee law, process matters. International principles, including those reflected in the Refugee Convention, caution against penalizing individuals for irregular entry when they are fleeing danger. Conditioning access to a full hearing on strict compliance with entry rules risks undermining that protection in practice.

More importantly, substituting a limited administrative review for an independent hearing may increase the risk of wrongful return. When the stakes include persecution or torture, the margin for procedural shortcuts is thin.

Expanded Executive Power

Finally, Bill C-12 expands the executive’s authority to cancel immigration documents, including visas and permits, on a group basis.

While oversight mechanisms exist, the shift toward class based decision making marks a departure from the traditional emphasis on individualized assessment in Canadian administrative law. Courts have consistently underscored that the more serious the consequences for individuals, the stronger the duty of procedural fairness.

Group based cancellations risk falling short of that standard. Decisions affecting entire categories of people, without considering personal circumstances such as family ties, reliance, or risk upon return, may be difficult to justify if challenged.

A System Reoriented

Taken together, these reforms signal a clear reorientation of Canada’s asylum system. Access to protection is increasingly filtered through strict timelines, admissibility rules, and administrative pathways. Efficiency and control are foregrounded, while individualized assessment is constrained. Whether this balance will withstand judicial scrutiny remains to be seen. What is clear, however, is that Bill C-12 transforms not just how refugee claims are decided, but who gets the chance to be heard in the first place.

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Baya Amouri is a Postdoctoral Visiting Fellow as part of the Max Weber Programme for Postdoctoral Studies at the European University Institute (Italy) and is affiliated with the EUI Migration Policy Centre (Italy) and the Centre for Refugee Studies, York University (Canada)