On 24th April, the Immigration Minister of Canada, Sean Fraser, announced new immigration policies to support Sudanese nationals presently residing in Canada. The reason for the new guidelines is that they cannot return home due to the unstable situation in their country.

The following are the measures: 

  • Sudanese Canadians can extend their temporary streams to work and study in Canada. These elongations will come at no additional cost.  
  • IRCC, i.e., Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada, will also prioritize the processing of applications of temporary as well as permanent inhabitants. This includes visiting visa applications for Canadian citizens and Permanent Residents’ qualified family members. 
  • Citizens & permanent residents of Canada in Sudan who choose to go will also not be required to pay for their passports or other travel documents. 

Later Minister Fraser asserted that Canada has a long-standing tradition of protecting vulnerable people worldwide. In addition, he said, ‘We are deeply concerned for the well-being of people in Sudan. We’re keeping a watchful eye out on the situation and are doing what we can to help those who are seeking refuge in Canada. 

According to IRCC, individuals who qualify for expedited processing will still need to meet all other admissibility and eligibility standards set down by law. Furthermore, the department also asserts that the constantly evolving situation limits movement occurring within the country and impacts the ability to process new applications at the current time. 

Now that fighting between two opposing military groups has ended, the government has taken fresh measures in reaction to the instability that has swept the country. Most of the conflict is seen near the capital, Khartoum. 

Sudanese Nationals In Canada 

The data from Census 2021 shows that over 17,485 people in Canada say Sudan is their country of cultural/ ethnic origin. Another 4,690 recent immigrants to Canada report Sudan as their birth country. 

These new measures are similar to those taken to help Turkish and Syrians impacted by the earthquake in February.