Private refugee sponsorship pause an ‘unfortunate reality,’ immigration minister says

Immigration Minister Marc Miller says that the recent pause in most private refugee sponsorships is because there is an “oversupply” of applications and they don’t want to give people fleeing war zones false hope.

The government announced a pause on privately sponsored refugee applications from community organizations and groups of five or more individuals on Nov. 29. The pause took effect immediately and runs until Dec. 31, 2025.

Immigration officials say there are more than 90,000 private refugee applications that currently need to be processed. Over the next three years, the government plans to admit 66,000 privately sponsored refugees.

Some refugee aid organizations say they were caught off guard by the pause and pushed for an increase in the number of refugees admitted to clear the application backlog more efficiently.

Over the past year, the government has been reducing the number of newcomers to be admitted to Canada including students, temporary workers and permanent residents.

Miller says many aid organizations were bracing for changes since the government’s broader immigration plan was announced in October, and that the refugee sponsorship pause is an “unfortunate reality” of the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada not being able to keep up with the high volume of applications.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 3, 2024.