Canada Reduces Asylum Fraud, Will U.S. Follow?

In two recent blogs, I wrote about the increased fraud levels in the United States asylum policy. In the first, I reported that asylum claims have nearly quadrupled during the last five years. Most claims cite a “credible fear” of persecution and come from Central American nationals in El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala.

In the second, I outlined how Mexico, with assistance from the U.S., has elevated the asylum fraud “credible fear” claim into an art form. Border patrol agents report that in their many decades of service, they rarely if ever heard Mexicans demand asylum. Suddenly, it’s commonplace.

While asylum fraud in the U.S. is soaring, Canada has managed to dramatically reduce its asylee population, while still enabling legitimate petitions to be processed.

Canada’s new asylum program, enacted on December 15, 2012, has resulted in a 70 percent weekly decline in applications compared to similar periods during the last six years. To deter unfounded applications, Canada has compiled a Designated Countries of Origin (DCO) list made up of nations that do not normally produce refugees, but do respect human rights and offer state protection. Included on the list are Australia, the United States and several Western European nations.

DCO policy goal is to deter refugee system abuse by people who come from countries generally considered safe. Refugee claimants from DCOs will have their claims processed faster, thus ensuring that the at-risk among them will qualify for protection quickly, while those with fraudulent claims will be expelled through expedited processing.

Hearings on DCO claims are held within 30 to 45 days after referral to the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB) as opposed to the 60-day time frame for other refugee claimants. Failed DCO claimants will not have access to the Refugee Appeal Division and, most important, will not be able to apply for a Canadian work permit or to receive taxpayer-funded health care unless it is deemed necessary to protect public health.

By denying work permits and some welfare benefits, applications from many countries on the DCO have plunged dramatically. Claims from Hungary, for example, on the DCO list and Canada’s top source country in 2011 and 2012, have dropped 98 percent compared to the average between 2009 and 2012.

Said Canada’s Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney:

The massive decline in claims coming from countries not normally known to produce refugees means that genuine refugees in need will receive Canada’s protection more quickly. At the same time, unfounded claimants are being removed from the country faster, resulting in significant savings to Canadian taxpayers.

Canadian provinces and territories are expected to save an additional $420 million over five years in social assistance as well as reduced education and health-care costs. Total asylum system reform exceeds $5 billion.

Canada has sent a clear message that fraud will no longer be tolerated. The U.S. should do the same.