Marc Miller announces further measures to enhance border security

In a press conference today, Canadian Minister of Immigration Marc Miller alongside Minister of Public Safety David McGuinty announced further measures aimed at enhancing border security and integrity.

Minister Miller provided information on the effects of new visitor visa policies, and measures targeting abuse in Canada’s asylum system, and discussed the possibility of forthcoming changes to the international student program.

Discover if You Are Eligible for Canadian Immigration

New regulations and fines for fraudulent actors

As part of new efforts to strengthen Canada’s border Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) will introduce harsher fines and penalties for fraudulent immigration consultants and representatives who aid newcomers in abusing Canada’s asylum program.

Under these new regulations, IRCC and the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants will be able to impose monetary fines of up to $1.5 million dollars, as well as publicly display the names of bad actors on IRCC websites, in a “naming and shaming” campaign.

Extension of information-sharing agreements

In order to better secure the border and stop cases of fraud, Miller also announced that Canada’s information-sharing agreement with the US would be extended.

While the government has processes for sharing relevant data with foreign nations, the scope of these processes will be extended to include permanent residents in both Canada and the US.

“This information is really mission critical to having a safe border,” Miller stated at the joint press conference. “By granting this extension, both countries are better equipped to speed applications and make informed migration decisions, as well as prevent fraud.”

Miller has not shared details on how this process will be implemented, but has stated that there will be safeguards to protect privacy.

Heightened scrutiny on visitor visas

Minister Miller said there has been heightened scrutiny on visitor visa applications in Canada.

“We’ve put in place new measures to detect fraud and, since then, we’ve made and seen a major reduction in the number of asylum claims from people who have been issued temporary resident visas.”

According to Miller, this heightened scrutiny has led to an 89% overall reduction in foreign nationals crossing illegally into the US, since June 2024.

The Minister further stated that visa refusals are up by more than 61% for countries where Canada spotted the highest levels of abuse (Miller did not specify the relative time period for this percentage).

Possible forthcoming changes to the international student program

In response to a question regarding more reforms to Canada’s international student program, Minister Miller stated that he had no forthcoming plans for major changes, though he did not rule out the possibility of more changes entirely: “...they [institutions and actors in the international student space] should not expect large major changes as we look at the impact of the already major changes that we've made over the last year...”

“Is there more work to do? And are there adjustments? I would think certainly there are a few that I will be looking at over the course of the next few months to make sure that the system has even more integrity than it currently has. So I don't exclude it....”

Miller also stated that the immigration department has seen a 91% drop in illegal US crossings by those holding Canadian study permits, since implementing further measures to verify students’ letters of acceptance at a Designated Learning Institution (DLI).

This announcement comes as the IRCC tightens border security measures including having ended the practice of flagpoling in December.

Discover if You Are Eligible for Canadian Immigration