The Government of Canada has confirmed that over 600 asylum seekers have made their way to Windsor-Essex.
Since last June 30, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) had recorded over 3,300 asylum seekers who entered Canada from the United States between the designated ports of entry. From those, 618 made their way to Windsor-Essex and are staying in hotels.
"The Government of Canada is committed to working with its municipal and provincial partners to alleviate the challenges they face in providing temporary accommodation for asylum seekers arriving between ports of entry," read an email sent Friday afternoon to WindsorNewsToday.ca by IRCC. "IRCC is actively working with provinces and municipalities to make sure that new destinations have the capacity to accommodate asylum seekers. IRCC is also working with Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) to secure temporary housing where capacity permits."
The IRCC said the vast majority of these asylum claimants arrived in Canada at Roxham Road, an uncontrolled crossing just west of the town of Champlain, New York, placing a strain on accommodations and other resources in Quebec. This led to the federal government's decision in June to begin transferring asylum seekers elsewhere.
The work to find suitable places for asylum seekers continues, according to IRCC.
"The timing of transfers will depend on ensuring appropriate contracting is in place, operational and logistical coordination, and ensuring processing capacity for the asylum claims in process," read the email from IRCC. "We are committed to working very closely with them in setting up any new locations."
The IRCC did not have information immediately available on which countries these claimants came from. However, in a table obtained by WindsorNewsToday.ca, Mexico had the most asylum seekers between January 2015 and December 2022. Rounding out the top five were Haiti, Turkey, Colombia, and Iran.
To request asylum in Canada, claimants must state their intentions at a designated port of entry before the Canada Services Border Agency (CBSA) and IRCC, which will determine if the claim is eligible. If it is, the case is referred to the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB), an independent, quasi-judicial tribunal that "makes the final decision on whether the claimant meets the United Nations definition of a Convention refugee, which has been adopted into Canadian law, or is a person in need of protection."