What the end of a U.S. COVID-19 border restriction could mean for Canada

The United States lifted its pandemic border control policy late Thursday — a move that could have implications for Canada’s approach to migrants and asylum seekers.

The Trump administration invoked Title 42 shortly after the COVID-19 pandemic began in March 2020. The policy, which is part of the Public Health Service Act of 1944, allows America’s border authorities to quickly turn away migrants, including asylum seekers, at ports of entry. Entry. (POE) to prevent the spread of disease.

“There is a serious danger of the introduction of COVID-19 to ground POEs and border patrol stations at or near the United States border with Canada or Mexico, and into the interior of the country as a whole,” Dr. Robert R. Redfield, then director of the Centers for Disease Control, said in order of 2020.

The Biden administration tried to end Title 42 in 2022 but the court ruling stands. The order officially expires at 11:59 pm ET Thursday.

According to United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) statistics, the United States Border Patrol deported more than one million migrants between October 2021 and September 2022 under Title 42. It deported 85,672 migrants in March of this year, the most recent month for which statistics are available.

A CBP spokesperson did not respond to questions when CBC News asked how many of the deported migrants came from Canada.

The White House has introduced new border enforcement measures that will ensure swift removal of migrants who try to enter the United States illegally.

Migrants and asylum seekers in northern and central Mexico must now use an application to fill out forms before arriving in the United States. The Biden administration also said it would devote more resources to anti-trafficking efforts in response to the expiration of Title 42.

Luisa Veronis, a geography professor at the University of Ottawa, said smugglers often spread misinformation about border policy changes in an effort to increase their business. He said the United States and Canada could respond by providing more information about what the final changes would mean.

“I think this is another point where Canada and the U.S. can take control … making information accessible, digestible. I think that would be the way to at least make people aware of what’s going on,” Veronis said.

The Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada is evaluating 45,444 refugee claims in 2022, according to board statistics. The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) and Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) reported that 91,870 asylum seekers arrived in Canada last year.

Although Veronis is critical of the United States government’s approach to asylum seekers, he said the US is using the expiration of pandemic restrictions as an opportunity to take a new approach to the problem. He said Canada could learn from these efforts to address the influx of asylum seekers.

“The U.S. is trying to create a practical way for people to claim asylum by making an application,” Veronis said.

“So maybe this is a good time to find a legal path… We need to come up with a smart solution.”

America’s new border policy is tougher: refugee lawyers

Aviva Basman, president of the Canadian Association of Refugee Lawyers (CARL), said the Biden administration’s new approach to the border is even tougher than Title 42.

“What changed after Title 42 was worse. The new rules are more restrictive, more broad, and will prohibit asylum seekers from seeking protection in the United States,” he said.

“This will limit accessibility to the border. There are many reported problems with this application and its use.”

The expiration of Title 42 comes just months after Canada and the United States renegotiated the Safe Third Nations Agreement. New, expanded version of the agreement closing the loophole that allows migrants to make asylum claims in Canada if they come from the United States between official POEs.

Earlier this year, a family of four Indians and a family of Romanian descent died near the Canada-United States border. Police in Canada say he tried to enter the United States from Canada through the Akwesasne Mohawk Territory.

Basman said CARL fears that more asylum seekers, including those heading to the United States via Canada, may find more dangerous ways to cross the border.

“People will feel forced to take more desperate, dangerous routes to access asylum,” he said.

As part of a deal that renegotiates the Safe Third Country Agreement, Canada agreed to take in 15,000 migrants from the Western Hemisphere.

Basman said he expects Canada to respond to changes in United States border policy by opening up more to asylum seekers.

“I think it’s really just important to think about this from the perspective of Canada’s obligations, and what it means for Canada’s reputation as a country that offers protection to refugees who come,” he said.

“What we want now is that Canada will increase access to asylum procedures by implementing different categories of exemptions that take some of the gaps in the US asylum system.”