A national crackdown on immigration—typified by mass deportations, enforcement raids and the detention of international students—has been a major U.S. storyline since President Donald Trump returned to office. Mr. Trump’s antipathy toward migrants may dominate the headlines, but the United States is not the only country taking action to restrict immigration.
The Canadian government is currently led by the Liberal Party, comparable to U.S. Democrats. But under Prime Minister Mark Carney, who took office in March, immigration policy is trending in the same direction as it has been in Canada’s southern neighbor.
On June 3, Minister of Public Safety Gary Anandasangaree proposed the Strong Borders Act, or Bill C-2. The bill’s introductory backgrounder states that it will “keep Canadians safe by ensuring law enforcement has the right tools to keep our borders secure, combat transnational organized crime, stop the flow of illegal fentanyl, and crack down on money laundering.”
The bill proposes to “enhance the integrity and fairness of our immigration system while protecting Canadians’ privacy and Charter rights.”
The legislation increases restrictions on asylum claims by prohibiting migrants who have been in Canada for more than a year from applying for asylum (currently, there is no limit on when migrants can file for asylum). For migrants who came to Canada after an intermediate stop in the United States, the time limit to apply for asylum is now 14 days.
Migrants whose asylum claims exceed these limitations can apply for a pre-removal risk assessment to ensure that they would not be in danger in their post-deportation country. Under this legislation, the federal government could also cancel, suspend or change an immigrant’s documentation and halt the processing of new or existing applications in the case of a threat to public health, national security or other harm to the public.
The bill also expands Canadian authorities’ ability to inspect goods being exported from the country as well as Canada Post’s ability to open mail. In an effort to combat drug trafficking, the bill also restricts any financial transaction or deposit of more than 10,000 Canadian dollars, about $7,300. Mr. Trump has claimed that fentanyl is entering the United States from Canada, prompting him to raise tariffs on Canadian goods.
In a press conference in Ottawa on June 3, Mr. Anandasangaree said, “There are a number of items in the bill that have been irritants for the U.S., so we are addressing some of those issues. But it’s not exclusively about the United States.”
The bill is facing backlash from politicians and immigrant rights groups in Canada.
Syed Hussan, a spokesperson for the Migrant Rights Network, said in a press release: “Prime Minister Carney campaigned on being different from Donald Trump, yet his very first bill is a shameful capitulation to racism and xenophobia, which abandons Canada’s legal and moral obligations to refugees and migrants. We’re witnessing the deliberate expansion of a mass deportation machine designed to tear apart families and communities.
“With over 3,000 study and work permits already expiring daily because of [former Prime Minister Justin] Trudeau’s immigration cuts, this bill will only worsen a humanitarian catastrophe,” he said, describing the act as immoral and illegal.
In an interview with CTV News, former Canadian Border Services Agency officer Kelly Sundberg criticized the bill’s purported motivations. “I think all it does is try to appease the Trump administration,” Mr. Sundberg said. “Does this legislation improve our border security, improve our immigration integrity and improve the public safety of Canadians? No, it does not. It doesn’t even come close.” It does, however, “send out some messaging to the Americans” and to the Canadian public that “something” is being done on immigration policy.
America reached out to the prime minister’s office and has so far received no response, but the act is consistent with Mr. Carney’s campaign platform on immigration policy. Ahead of the federal election last April, Mr. Carney and other members of the Liberal Party promised to stabilize immigration levels, saying that the Liberal government under Mr. Trudeau had permitted an “unsustainable” rise in immigration.
In May, Mr. Carney sent a mandate letter—a message from the prime minister to the cabinet outlining his priorities and goals—stating that bringing down the rate of immigration into Canada while also attracting “top global talent” should be a priority for his cabinet officials.
“Like many countries, Canada, which has traditionally been a welcoming nation, is facing a political backlash on immigration, as immigrants are being scapegoated for a slower economy and housing shortages,” J. Kevin Appleby, a senior fellow for policy and communications at the New York City-based Center for Migration Studies, wrote in an email.
“Carney is responding to the backlash but also to the Trump effect, which is placing more pressure on Canada to tighten its border. Hopefully any final legislation will reflect that Canada, like other nations, needs the contributions of immigrants to thrive economically and culturally.”
Mr. Carney’s intention to diminish the flow of immigrants into Canada does not reflect a sudden shift in Liberal Party policy. Under former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Ottawa also set limits on education and work permits with the goal of returning to pre-pandemic levels of permanent residents.
As national immigration policy grows less welcoming, Canadian bishops have urged Catholics to keep the rights and dignity of immigrants in mind. In a statement released ahead of April’s federal election, the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops implored Catholics to “advocate for the most vulnerable in our society: those living in poverty, victims of human trafficking, individuals suffering from mental illness and addiction, the homeless, and immigrants–each deserving of both social and legal support.”
The conference has spoken out before on the treatment of immigrants and asylum seekers. In October 2016, then-president of the conference, the Most Rev. Douglas Crosby, O.M.I., wrote to the then-immigration minister John McCallum, urging him to expedite the processing of Syrian refugee applications. In January 2006, on the World Day for Migrants and Refugees, the C.C.C.B. published a pastoral letter on immigration.
In the letter, the bishops reiterated the church’s belief that the fundamental dignity of the human person and consistent ethic of life mandate that nations should not restrict refugees’ ability to exercise their right to asylum. At the same time, the bishops acknowledged that states, in assessments of the common good, may impose limits on immigration.
The conference declined to comment at this time on the Strong Borders Act, but Norbert Piché, the national director of the Jesuit Refugee Service Canada, condemned it. “As people of faith, we are called to welcome the stranger. This proposed bill does nothing of the sort. It seeks to prevent people from seeking asylum,” Mr. Piché wrote in an email to America, highlighting the act’s impact on the asylum process.
“This would mean that somebody who visited Canada in 2025, went back to their country, would then not be eligible to seek asylum in 2030 if problems arose in their country at that time.”
Mr. Piché continued: “God calls on all of us, especially our leaders, to not harden our hearts. But throughout the Western world, that is what is happening. The late Pope Francis and now Pope Leo XlV have stated unequivocally the importance of the preferential option for the poor, walking with the migrant and the refugee. Let us heed their call.”
