Border Management

Public Safety monitors, analyzes, and supports the Minister of Public Safety on various border-related files and provides coordinated and integrated policy advice in relation to Enhanced Civilian Review, the Preclearance Program, irregular migration, the Immigration Levels Plan, and the Canada-U.S. Cross Border Crime Forum, among many others. This work is coordinated by Public Safety through collaboration with the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) and the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS). These portfolio partners play key roles in border management by leading and delivering a wide range of border and immigration files from an operational, program and policy perspective.

The bi-national Preclearance Program extends accountability beyond the portfolio and includes active participation from Justice Canada, Transport Canada, and Global Affairs Canada. 

Relevant Mandate Letter Commitments

Further Information

Enhanced Civilian Review (Bill-C20)

Bill C-20, introduced on May 19, 2022, aims to establish the Public Complaints and Review Commission (PCRC) through the enactment of a new standalone statute, the Public Complaints and Review Commission Act. By establishing the PCRC,  which will serve as an enhanced civilian review body for both the RCMP and CBSA,  Bill C-20 will respond to stakeholder concerns around the lack of independent oversight for the CBSA, as well as the lack of sufficient oversight over federal law enforcement agencies. Members of the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security (SECU) are generally supportive of Bill C-20 but have voiced a need for further amendments. A clause-by-clause study by SECU is anticipated in fall 2023.

Preclearance

Preclearance is a binational program that expedites the flow of travellers and goods across the Canada-U.S. border and enhances border security. Presently, over 400 U.S. Preclearance Officers exercise specific legislated authorities at Canada’s eight major airports and at the Alaska Marine Highway Ferry Terminal in Prince Rupert, British Columbia, to process over 16 million U.S. bound passengers.

The travel and tourism industry, and regional/provincial governments, are key stakeholders in Preclearance. They view the program as an economic driver and, more recently, a key element in recovery plans after the COVID-19 pandemic. As such, expansion of Preclearance to new facilities in Canada and the U.S. is a key government policy objective.

Preclearance policy objectives, as well as statutory authorities and responsibilities are divided in terms of U.S. Preclearance operations in Canada, and Canadian Preclearance operations in the U.S. The Department coordinates all facets of the program in Canada, ensures proper governance of the Preclearance framework (treaty and legislation), supports key decisions, and monitors CBSA efforts with respect to establishing Canada Preclearance operations in the U.S.

Irregular Migration

The responsibility of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) is shared with the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship (IRCC). CBSA and the RCMP play a critical role in carrying out these responsibilities by upholding border integrity to deter and intercept irregular arrivals.

The Department closely collaborates with the CBSA and the RCMP to develop strategic policy advice with the aim of upholding the integrity of Canada’s immigration system. Irregular migrants crossing at the Canada-U.S. border undermine the core principle of the Safe Third Country Agreement (SCTA), namely that asylum seekers seek refuge in either Canada or the US, whichever they encounter first; unless they qualify for an exemption.

With the implementation of the a new SCTA protocol in March 2023, [REDACTED]. The Department, along with CBSA and RCMP, continues to monitor volumes in an effort to identify trends, alternative irregular migration routes, and emerging points of entry and modes of transportation.

Immigration Levels Plan

The Immigration Levels Plan, which is led by IRCC,  establishes immigration admission targets across a broad range of Permanent Resident (PR) categories, including economic, family class, and refugee resettlement streams (up to ~400,000 persons in total per annum). These programs are operationally supported by CBSA, RCMP, and CSIS, who perform key activities along the immigration continuum. CBSA operational activities include POE processing (e.g., PR landings), security screening activities, and any resulting downstream inland enforcement and intelligence/investigative work. CSIS provides security advice to IRCC and the CBSA regarding applications made under the IRPA and the Citizenship Act. The RCMP provides identity management services as part of IRCC’s applicant screening process, including fingerprint identification and criminal record checks.

The Department coordinates policy advice on behalf of the portfolio to ensure that risks and resource implications are carefully considered and incorporated throughout the Levels planning process.

Canada-U.S. Cross-Border Crime Forum

The Cross-Border Crime Forum (CBCF) is a recurring joint Ministerial forum that the Minister of Public Safety co-chairs with the Minister of Justice, the U.S. Attorney General, and the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security. The Department serves as the secretariat in conjunction with Justice Canada.

Following a shared commitment outlined in President Biden and Prime Minister Trudeau’s February 2021 Roadmap for a Renewed U.S.-Canada Partnership, the CBCF was reinvigorated for the first time since 2012. The latest CBCF was held on April 28, 2023, in Ottawa, where items of discussion included: criminal justice reform/access to justice; reducing firearms violence; fentanyl/opioids; human smuggling; sex offender travel; and anti-money laundering/virtual currency. Ministers also took stock of other priority issues, including transnational repression and foreign interference, and the crises in Ukraine and Haiti.

Exemption Orders 

The Minister of Public Safety is sometimes asked to assist in facilitating U.S. operations that may require entry into Canada, including in the form of Land, Marine, and Multi-modal Exemption Orders (EOs). For example, a Ministerial recommendation has been provided to the Governor in Council seeking that exemptions to the Firearms Act be made which would allow U.S. law enforcement officials to transit through Canada with their duty firearms in order to reach specific geographically inhibited areas. There are existing Land and the Marine EOs that will expire on March 31, 2025, while the Multi-modal EO will expire on August 4, 2028.

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