Vol. 136, No. 20 — September 25, 2002

Registration
SOR/2002-326 5 September, 2002

IMMIGRATION AND REFUGEE PROTECTION ACT

Regulations Amending the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations

P.C. 2002-1480 4 September, 2002

Her Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, pursuant to subsection 5(1) and section 14 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (see footnote a) , hereby makes the annexed Regulations Amending the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations.

REGULATIONS AMENDING THE IMMIGRATION AND REFUGEE PROTECTION REGULATIONS

AMENDMENT

1. Paragraph 190(1)(a) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations

(see footnote 1)  is replaced by the following:

(a) are a citizen of Andorra, Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Barbados, Belgium, Botswana, Brunei Darussalam, Costa Rica, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, France, Federal Republic of Germany, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Malta, Mexico, Monaco, Namibia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Papua New Guinea, Portugal, Republic of Korea, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, San Marino, Singapore, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, Spain, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland or Western Samoa;

COMING INTO FORCE

2. These Regulations come into force on the day on which they are registered.

REGULATORY IMPACT ANALYSIS STATEMENT

(This statement is not part of the Regulations.)

Description

Subsection 11(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act requires every visitor to apply for and obtain a visa before entering Canada, except in such cases as are prescribed. The Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations of 2002 exempt certain persons from the requirement to obtain a temporary resident visa. The principal purpose of the temporary resident visa requirement is to deny inadmissible persons access to Canada. Historically, visa requirements have proven to be an effective component of our immigration control strategy.

This amendment to the Regulations, specifically paragraph 190(1)(a), removes the temporary resident visa exemption for citizens of Saudi Arabia. The uncontrolled flow of Saudi Arabian nationals into Canada poses concerns related to security, criminality and border integrity. Citizens of Saudi Arabia will now require visitor visas to enter Canada.

Saudi Arabia has not demonstrated the necessary will nor that it possesses the infrastructure to deny the use of its passports to terrorists, criminals or other inadmissible persons.

Saudi Arabian nationals were exempted from the Canadian temporary visa requirement in April 1984. Saudi Arabia is one of only two Middle Eastern states (Israel being the other) whose citizens do not require a visa to visit Canada, which puts their passports under particular pressure.

Numerous extremist groups operate in Saudi Arabia. There is evidence of use of Saudi Arabian passports to access Canada by persons of security concern. The passport is vulnerable to fraud as it is not machine-readable and lacks advanced security features. Information is filled in by hand and a man carries his whole family on his passport, creating an opportunity for abuse by adding dependants or altering their data. This type of abuse lends itself to trafficking in women and children. Media reports indicated that about 5,610 Saudi passports have been stolen or lost in the past eight months, 4,900 of them inside the Kingdom. The threat of these documents being used by persons of security concern is high.

Alternatives

Although the Saudi Arabian government, through its diplomatic missions, has been cooperative in assisting Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) officials in the region who have encountered questionable Saudi Arabian documents, there are limitations to what can be done. The government has indicated that they are aware of the problem of passports routinely being sold and that they are trying to prosecute offenders in Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabian authorities have indicated that they are hampered by the fact that these transactions occur in other countries (especially Jordan) where they cannot investigate and because the bearers discharge their legal responsibilities by reporting the losses very promptly.

As the security of Saudi Arabian passports rests entirely within the control of another government, there are no viable alternatives to the removal of the temporary resident visa exemption.

Benefits and Costs

It is generally recognised that removing visa exemptions is an irritant to bilateral political and trade relations.

Canadians are already subject to visa requirements for Saudi Arabia. This already creates inconvenience to Canadian business people and tourists travelling to this country.

Establishing a visa issuing presence in Saudi Arabia will facilitate the processing of applications from legitimate visitors.

Consultation

The Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) and the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade (DFAIT) have been consulted during this review process.

CSIS and the RCMP have indicated that they fully support the removal of the temporary resident visa exemption for Saudi Arabia. CSIS has indicated that Saudi Arabia is a country of particular concern at this time.

DFAIT does not oppose CIC's recommendation to the removal of the temporary resident visa exemption on Saudi Arabia.

Advance public notice of the government's intention would likely magnify the abuse of Saudi Arabian passports during the period in advance of the coming into force of the amendment.

Compliance and Enforcement

No change to existing mechanisms is required. Immigration officers abroad will assess whether or not applicants are genuine visitors who should be issued visas.

Airlines are subject to financial penalties if they allow passengers who require visas to board aircraft without having the necessary documentation. All persons, including those in possession of the temporary resident visas, are subject to an examination by an officer upon arrival at a port of entry. If, after a review of the facts of the case, it is determined that their admission would be contrary to the Act or Regulations, they may be ordered removed.

Persons in possession of the temporary resident visas have the right to appeal to the Immigration and Refugee Board.

Contact

David Hardinge
Director, Control Division
Intelligence Branch
Citizenship and Immigration Canada
Jean Edmonds Towers North
300 Slater Street
Ottawa, Ontario
Telephone: (613) 954-6061
FAX: (613) 954-8571

Footnote a 

S.C. 2001, c. 27

Footnote 1 

SOR/2002-227

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