What's in Canada's Immigration Bill—and Why It's Facing Backlash
'The Bill will strengthen our laws and 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 states.
Introduced on June 3 by Canada's Minister of Public Safety, Gary Anandasangaree, the 127-page measure proposes a shift in how the government interacts with the U.S.-Canada border.
The bill comes after President Donald Trump voiced concerns about what he referred to as cross-border fentanyl traffic and irregular migration, when he imposed tariffs on Canada during his Feb. 1 Executive Order titled 'Imposing Duties to Address the Flow of Illicit Drugs Across Our Northern Border.' Trump argued that 'Canada has played a central role' in the 'challenges' against 'illicit drugs' entering the country, alleging there is 'a growing presence of Mexican cartels operating fentanyl and nitazene synthesis labs in Canada' and that Canada must 'do more to arrest, seize, detain, or otherwise intercept DTOs, other drug and human traffickers, criminals at large, and drugs.'
Here's what you need to know about Canada's Strong Borders Act.
What is in Canada's immigration bill?
Canada's new immigration bill seeks to impact various areas—from asylum rules to search and seizure, to giving police more power to control and monitor the U.S. border.
The new bill would allow Canada Post's inspection authority to open mail and would also remove barriers to allow law enforcement to open mail during an investigation—attempting to curb fentanyl movement by what authorities say is performed by organized crime groups. It would expand the power of the Canadian Coast Guard to 'conduct security patrols and collect, analyze and share information and intelligence for security purposes,' by amending the Oceans Act, creating a new role for the department. It also would expand the ability for Canadian intelligence agencies to share information with U.S. intelligence.
Related to organized crime, the bill proposes additional restrictions on transactions over $10,000 and cash deposits by any one individual into another's account.
The process of gaining access to asylum would also change, as the bill looks to bar asylum seekers who have been in the country for over a year, retroactively applying to anyone who arrived after June 24, 2020.
It would further allow the government the ability to pause the acceptance of new applications and 'cancel, suspend, or change immigration documents' immediately.
Why is the bill facing backlash?
The proposal has been met with strong opposition from immigration and human rights advocates in Canada, who argue it could restrict civil liberties and violate international refugee obligations.
Jenny Wai Ching Kwan, a Canadian politician who serves at the member of Parliament for Vancouver East, issued a warning about the measure, stating that it should be 'alarming' to Canadians.
'Looking at [the bill], particularly with respect to the immigration provisions, it is very concerning to me that the government will now be breaching, I think, people's civil liberties, I think violating people's due process and taking away people's basic rights right now,' Kwan told reporters. 'What we're looking at is the government giving broad, sweeping authority within the government to cancel applications, to withdraw applications, to suspend applications, even those that are already in the inventory that is under process.'
She also shared concerns about citizens' privacy, and the lack of apparent appeals processes in relation to the new sweeping immigration law.
Canadian migrant justice group Migrant Rights Network also 'condemns' the bill, stating that it would 'drastically restrict refugee protections and allow for mass deportations and immigration exclusion.' They argue that the 'unchecked power' enabled through this bill could allow for migrant groups to have their immigration status revoked 'en masse.'
'Prime Minister [Mark] 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,' said Migrant Rights Network spokesperson Syed Hussan in a statement. '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. This bill is immoral, it is illegal, and it will be stopped.'
Speaking with reporters on Friday, Canadian Council of Refugees co-executive director Gauri Sreenivasan stated that the bill mirrors U.S. immigration policy and could 'force many people who have no choice because they are under threat in their country or in the U.S. to live underground without status.'
Kelly Sundberg, a former officer with the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), also spoke out against the bill, admitting they're 'not optimistic' about it.
'I think all [the bill] does is try to appease the Trump Administration. But I'd like to see legislation that's designed to keep Canadians safe,' Sundberg said during an interview with CTV News. 'So 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.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Forbes
a few seconds ago
- Forbes
Unauthorized Immigrant Population Reached Record 14 Million In 2023, Expected To Drop In 2025
The population of unauthorized immigrants in the United States hit a record high of in 2023 after two years of unprecedented growth, new Pew Research Center data showed Thursday, with immigrants from Mexico representing their smallest-ever share of the population that year and Florida gaining more unauthorized immigrants than any other state. A Mexican migration official checks the papers of asylum seekers in Tijuana, Mexico, on June 5, 2024. AFP via Getty Images The Pew data showed that the population of unauthorized immigrants—which includes people who overstayed their legal status or violated the terms of their residency—hit a record 14 million in 2023 and likely continued to grow in 2024, though only incomplete data is available for that year. Pew estimates growth slowed considerably in the last half of 2024 after the Biden administration stopped or paused several immigration programs—like accepting asylum applications at the border—and that the population has likely started to decline in 2025 due to changes made under President Donald Trump. The number of unauthorized immigrants grew sharply from 2021 to 2023—from 10.5 million to 14 million—and most were born in countries other than Mexico. The unauthorized immigrant population from other countries spiked from 6.4 million in 2021 to 9.7 million in 2023, while Mexican immigrants grew from just 4.1 million to 4.3 million in the same time. Mexicans represented a majority of unauthorized immigrants in the U.S. through 2016 but their share in 2023 (30%) was by far the smallest on record and, after Mexico, the countries with the largest unauthorized immigrant populations in the U.S. in 2023 were Guatemala (850,000), El Salvador (850,000), Honduras (775,000) and India (680,000). The dispersal of unauthorized immigrants has also started to shift slightly—California, Texas, Florida, New York and New Jersey remain the states with the largest populations, in that order, but the gap between California and Texas has shrunk from 1.2 million in 2007 to about 200,000 today. Get Forbes Breaking News Text Alerts : We're launching text message alerts so you'll always know the biggest stories shaping the day's headlines. Text 'Alerts' to (201) 335-0739 or sign up here . 7.5 million. That's how many U.S. households included unauthorized immigrants in 2023, a record high, with almost 70% of households considered 'mixed status,' meaning that they also contained U.S.-born residents or lawful immigrants. About 4.6 million children under 18 born in the U.S. lived with an unauthorized immigrant parent in 2023, 600,000 more than in 2021. Trump campaigned on a platform that promised tighter immigration policies and the largest mass deportation operation in American history. Since his election, his administration has terminated the legal protections for roughly 60,000 people from Nicaragua, Honduras and Nepal, deployed thousands of service members to apprehend people illegally crossing the border and implemented new restrictions on asylum seekers, among other policy changes. The Immigrations and Customs Enforcement office has amped up raids and deportations and, by the first week of August, deportations had reached nearly 1,500 people per day, the New York Times reported. The president has said he wants to deport 1 million people per year, and the national daily arrest rate of immigrants has doubled in 38 states in 2025 compared to 2024, according to the Times. Two weeks ago, Trump said he'd ordered the Department of Commerce to change how it conducts the decennial census by not counting "People who are in our Country illegally.' The census has always counted both citizens and non-citizens, whether they are in the country legally or not. Trump's attempt to change how immigrants were counted during his first term, but was swiftly met with court action, including from the the American Civil Liberties Union and several immigrants' rights groups. The Supreme Court ultimately ruled against him. What To Watch For How Trump's policies impact the immigrant population. Pew says the unauthorized immigrant population has likely declined this year, maybe by as much as 1 million people, but estimates it "almost surely remains higher than in July 2023." Further Reading Forbes Trump Says Census Will No Longer Count Undocumented Immigrants By Mary Whitfill Roeloffs Forbes 62% Of Americans Disapprove Of Trump's Immigration Policies, New Survey Shows By Mary Whitfill Roeloffs Forbes Immigration Data Show Steep Decline In Arriving International Students By Stuart Anderson
CNN
a few seconds ago
- CNN
NY appeals court voids nearly $500m penalty against Trump
NY appeals court voids nearly $500m penalty against Trump A New York appeals court has thrown out the roughly half-billion dollar judgment against President Donald Trump in the civil fraud case brought by the state's attorney general. CNN's Elie Honig reports. 01:25 - Source: CNN Vertical Top News 16 videos NY appeals court voids nearly $500m penalty against Trump A New York appeals court has thrown out the roughly half-billion dollar judgment against President Donald Trump in the civil fraud case brought by the state's attorney general. CNN's Elie Honig reports. 01:25 - Source: CNN Erin remains Category 2 hurricane As Erin makes its closest approach to the coast, it remains a Category 2 hurricane. According to the National Hurricane Center at 5 a.m. on Thursday, Erin was just over 200 miles east-southeast from Cape Hatteras, North Carolina and has begun to move away from the coast. 00:38 - Source: CNN Russia launches largest drone and missile attack in more than a month According to Ukrainian authorities, Russia launched its largest drone and missile attack on Ukraine in more than a month. The attack comes just days after US President Donald Trump met with Russian leader Vladimir Putin, followed by a summit with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and European leaders. 00:34 - Source: CNN Parents of girls lost in Texas flooding criticize safety measures On Wednesday, several parents of children who died at Camp Mystic after a catastrophic flood on July 4 sat before a Texas state Senate committee and called for stronger safety standards at youth camps in Texas. 01:15 - Source: CNN Israeli reservists are burning out One reservist tells CNN's Oren Liebermann he won't return after more than 300 days deployed in Gaza. A new study shows about 40% of reservists feel less motivated to serve, and Israel's top general warns of burnout as the military prepares to call up 60,000 more troops for a prolonged Gaza City offensive. 01:53 - Source: CNN Virginia Giuffre's family becomes emotional recalling her fight for justice CNN's Anderson Cooper speaks with Jeffrey Epstein accuser Virginia Giuffre's brother and sister-in-law about their sister's fight for justice. 01:34 - Source: CNN Mexican brothers arrested, one tased by federal agents Two brothers from Mexico were arrested by federal agents on Friday in Norwalk, Connecticut. Video shows two officers aggressively tugging Leonel Chavez's arm while he sits inside a car before saying he is under arrest. A second video filmed by a passerby shows Chavez's brother, Ricardo, running away from an agent before getting tased, prompting him to suddenly collapse on the ground. The DHS told CNN in a statement that ICE agents were operating in Norwalk last week, but they did not specify whether it was ICE officers who arrested the Chavez brothers. 01:58 - Source: CNN Forty-day Target boycott leader seeks changes of 'substance' CNN Senior National Correspondent Ryan Young speaks to Atlanta-area megachurch pastor Rev. Jamal Bryant, who earlier this year led a boycott of Target stores for the forty-day Christian season of Lent. Bryant says the retailer's reversal of DEI policies is a "stark betrayal" of its Black customers, and simply replacing the CEO is not enough. 03:14 - Source: CNN FDA urges public not to eat possibly radioactive shrimp The US Food and Drug Administration urged the public not to eat certain Great Value frozen raw shrimp sold at Walmart due to possible radioactive contamination found in shipments from the same supplier. 00:42 - Source: CNN North Carolina officials: Hurricane Erin's waves could wash homes to sea Hurricane Erin is churning up life-threatening rip currents and dangerous waves along much of the East Coast, sending destructive waves to North Carolina's Outer Banks. CNN's Dianne Gallagher reports. 00:40 - Source: CNN Hurricane Erin seen from space heading near East Coast Impacts from Hurricane Erin, a category two hurricane, are expected to begin in North Carolina on Wednesday. While Erin is not expected to make landfall, beaches across states including New Jersey, New York City, and Virginia have been closed to swimmers as strong waves are forecast. 00:44 - Source: CNN Why a confirmed date for a Putin-Zelensky meeting is so critical While the White House insists President Donald Trump wants to broker peace between Russia and Ukraine as soon as possible, President Vladimir Putin has not committed to a meeting with President Volodymyr Zelensky. CNN Senior White House Correspondent Kristen Holmes breaks down why setting an exact date is critical. 01:12 - Source: CNN Will Epstein files becoming public give us any new details? The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform intends to make public some files it subpoenaed related to the Jeffrey Epstein case, though it will first redact them to shield victims' IDs and other sensitive matters. 01:51 - Source: CNN Arrest of cartel kingpin spurs record levels of violence in Mexican state After the capture of a Sinaloa Cartel boss in El Paso, Texas, social media videos illustrate record levels of violence as Trump eyes military action in the region. 02:17 - Source: CNN Freed hostage says he learned English while in captivity Eliya Cohen was held hostage for 505 days in Gaza, telling CNN's Clarissa Ward in an exclusive interview that he was chained, shared scraps of pita with other hostages and learned English courtesy of a book gifted to him by a fellow hostage who was subsequently executed by Hamas. 02:57 - Source: CNN DOJ's Ed Martin posed for photos outside of Letitia James' house In video obtained by CNN, Ed Martin, President Donald Trump's Justice Department weaponization chief, called for the resignation of New York Attorney General Letitia James and posed for photos outside of her Brooklyn home last week – all as he is conducting investigations into her conduct. CNN correspondent Kara Scannell reports. 02:18 - Source: CNN
Bloomberg
a few seconds ago
- Bloomberg
Democrats Probe Paramount-Skydance Merger Over Trump Dealings
Two House Democrats said they would examine whether Paramount Global and Skydance Media accepted 'illegitimate demands' from President Donald Trump to secure approval of their July merger. Representatives Jamie Raskin of Maryland and Frank Pallone of New Jersey pointed to a financial settlement Paramount reached with the president shortly before the merger was approved and a statement Trump made that Skydance agreed to provide him with millions of dollars worth of free public service announcements.
