Grounds for Inadmissibility to Canada

Being found inadmissible can stop a person from entering Canada, lead to the refusal of a visa or permanent residence application, or place someone already in Canada into removal proceedings. The important point is that inadmissibility is not a single legal issue. Canadian immigration law recognizes several different grounds, and each has its own legal test and possible remedies.

For foreign nationals and permanent residents, understanding the precise allegation is the first step in determining whether the finding can be challenged or whether there is another way to overcome inadmissibility.

What Does Inadmissibility Mean Under Canadian Immigration Law?

Inadmissibility means that a person is legally prevented from entering or remaining in Canada because they fall within one of the grounds set out in the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA). A finding may be made during an immigration application, at the Canadian border, or through enforcement proceedings involving immigration authorities.

A person can therefore be denied entry even if they hold a visa or Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA). A visa or eTA allows a person to travel to Canada, but a Canadian immigration officer or border services officer must still determine whether the person is admissible when required.

For people already in Canada, being deemed inadmissible can affect temporary status, permanent residence, or permanent resident status and, in some cases, result in a removal order.

What Are the Grounds for Inadmissibility?

The principal grounds for inadmissibility to Canada are established in sections 34 to 42 of IRPA. They include security, human or international rights violations, sanctions, serious criminality and criminality, organized criminality, medical inadmissibility, financial reasons, misrepresentation, non-compliance with IRPA and inadmissibility based on a family member.

The consequences can vary significantly depending on the particular inadmissibility grounds involved.

Security Grounds

A permanent resident or foreign national may be inadmissible on national security grounds for activities including espionage, terrorism, certain acts of subversion, being a danger to the security of Canada, specified acts of violence, or membership in certain organizations connected to those activities.

Security inadmissibility cases can be particularly complex because the legislation permits findings based on facts for which there are reasonable grounds to believe certain conduct occurred, is occurring or may occur.

Human or International Rights Violations

IRPA also provides for inadmissibility based on human or international rights violations. This can include certain conduct involving war crimes or crimes against humanity and circumstances involving prescribed senior officials of governments associated with terrorism, genocide, war crimes or systematic or gross human rights violations.

These cases often involve a detailed examination of the person's actual role, conduct, position and involvement in a foreign country.

There is also a separate inadmissibility ground relating to certain sanctions imposed against foreign nationals.

Criminal Inadmissibility

Criminal inadmissibility is one of the most common concerns for people seeking entry to Canada. A prior criminal record, including certain foreign convictions, can make someone criminally inadmissible even where the conviction occurred many years ago.

For foreign nationals, criminality can arise from a conviction in Canada for an indictable offence, certain multiple offences, a foreign conviction that corresponds to an indictable offence under Canadian law, or certain past criminal activity outside Canada even without a conviction. Serious criminality applies to both permanent residents and foreign nationals and includes specified offences carrying a maximum sentence of at least ten years, as well as certain Canadian convictions where more than six months of imprisonment was imposed.

Canadian immigration law also treats a hybrid offence, meaning one that can be prosecuted either summarily or by indictment, as an indictable offence for this analysis.

This makes the assessment of foreign convictions more complicated than simply looking at the name of the crime. An immigration lawyer may need to compare the foreign offence with the equivalent Canadian offence, review the sentence imposed, and determine whether rehabilitation provisions apply.

Organized Criminality

A person can be inadmissible for organized criminality if there are reasonable grounds to connect them with an organization involved in a pattern of organized criminal activity, or where they have engaged in certain transnational crimes.

The legislation specifically refers to activities such as people smuggling, trafficking in persons and money laundering or laundering the proceeds of crime.

This ground does not require the same type of criminal conviction that may arise in an ordinary criminal inadmissibility case.

Medical Inadmissibility

A foreign national may be medically inadmissible if their medical condition is likely to be a danger to public health, a danger to public safety, or could reasonably be expected to create an excessive demand on Canadian health or social services.

The assessment may involve an immigration medical exam, specialist reports and information about treatment requirements and anticipated services.

Importantly, exceptions apply to the excessive demand ground for certain applicants, including specified family-class applicants, Convention refugees and protected persons.

Medical inadmissibility is therefore not simply a question of whether someone has a medical condition. The actual condition, expected treatment, risk and immigration category all matter.

Financial Reasons

A foreign national can be inadmissible for financial reasons where they are or will be unable or unwilling to support themselves or someone dependent upon them and they have not satisfied an officer that adequate arrangements for support, other than social assistance, have been made.

The assessment is fact-specific. A Canadian immigration officer may consider the person's circumstances and evidence showing how they will support themselves while in Canada.

Misrepresentation

Misrepresentation can arise where a permanent resident or foreign national directly or indirectly misrepresents or withholds a material fact relating to a relevant immigration matter where that information induces or could induce an error in the administration of IRPA.

This can involve false documents or statements, but it can also involve failing to disclose important information.

A common mistake is assuming that a person must have deliberately lied before they can be found inadmissible. The legal analysis is more complicated and focuses heavily on whether material facts were misrepresented or withheld.

A misrepresentation finding generally carries a five-year period of inadmissibility, and a foreign national cannot apply for permanent resident status during that period.

Non-Compliance with the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act

A person may also be inadmissible for failing to comply with the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.

For foreign nationals, this can arise from an act or omission that directly or indirectly contravenes IRPA. Permanent residents can also be found inadmissible for failing to comply with specific obligations under the Act, including the permanent resident residency obligation.

The Canadian system does not generally use U.S. concepts such as “unlawful presence” or being “unlawfully present” as a standalone statutory ground. Instead, the issue must be assessed under the particular requirements of Canadian immigration law.

Family Member Inadmissibility

In some circumstances, the inadmissibility of family members can also affect an applicant.

Section 42 of IRPA provides that certain foreign nationals may be inadmissible where an accompanying family member, or in prescribed circumstances a non-accompanying family member, is inadmissible. There are important limitations and special rules for temporary residents, so a family member's inadmissibility does not automatically make every applicant inadmissible in every situation.

What Happens If You Are Found Inadmissible?

The consequences depend on where you are in the immigration process and which ground applies. A person seeking entry at the Canadian border may be denied entry. A visa, eTA, work permit, study permit or permanent residence application may be refused. Someone already in Canada may face an inadmissibility report, an admissibility hearing or removal proceedings.

For permanent residents, certain findings can ultimately result in the loss of permanent resident status and removal from Canada.

Depending on the circumstances, there may also be immigration appeals or an opportunity to challenge a decision through judicial review in the Federal Court.

Can You Overcome Inadmissibility?

Yes, some forms of inadmissibility can be overcome, but the available remedy depends entirely on the reason a person is inadmissible.

For criminal inadmissibility, possible options can include:

• being deemed rehabilitated where the statutory requirements are satisfied;

• applying for criminal rehabilitation;

• obtaining an applicable Canadian record suspension; or

• applying for a Temporary Resident Permit (TRP) where there is a compelling reason to enter or remain in Canada.

Individual criminal rehabilitation generally requires that at least five years have passed since completion of the relevant sentence or commission of the act giving rise to inadmissibility. Deemed rehabilitation has different requirements and is not available for every offence.

Other grounds of inadmissibility require different approaches. A medical finding may be challenged with updated medical evidence or analysis of projected services, while a misrepresentation finding may require demonstrating that the legal requirements for inadmissibility have not been established.

There is no single application that removes every form of inadmissibility.

How a Canadian Immigration Lawyer Can Help

A Canadian immigration lawyer can first identify exactly why Canadian immigration authorities believe you are inadmissible. From there, the lawyer can assess the legislation, review criminal records or foreign convictions, respond to procedural fairness concerns, prepare evidence and determine whether an application, hearing, appeal or court challenge is appropriate.

This is particularly important where the issue involves serious criminality, security concerns, misrepresentation, medical inadmissibility or possible removal from Canada. Small factual distinctions can change both the legal test and the remedies available.

If you have been found inadmissible, have a criminal record and are planning to enter Canada, or have received correspondence from an immigration officer raising admissibility concerns, read more about how AKM Law assists with inadmissibility to Canada.

Early advice can help determine whether you are actually inadmissible and, if so, what steps are available to address the problem before it affects your ability to travel to, remain in, or obtain immigration status in Canada.