What are the refugee responsibilities?

Immigration Canada

What are the Refugee Responsibilities?

Application and admissibility requirements: Refugees must complete the application forms contained in the IMM 6000 kit and gather all supporting documentation before sending the entire package back to either the sponsoring group or to CPO-W, whichever option they choose (see 2.14). During their interview, they must provide accurate and complete information about their refugee claim and their circumstances in their country of asylum. If selected at the interview stage, the refugees must visit a Panel Physician to receive medical clearance for travel to Canada.

The visa office will provide applicants with instructions for the medical examination. The refugee applicants will also undergo and need to pass criminality and security checks. The refugee applicants may be required to produce supplemental documentation to finalize these checks.

Medical costs and costs of travel to Canada: Refugee applicants are responsible for the medical and travel costs for themselves and all dependent family members. Two loan options are available to refugees who are unable to cover these costs at the time of application:

1. transportation loan: to cover transportation costs up to and including arrival in Canada; and
2. admissibility loan: to cover the costs of overseas medical services.

Settlement responsibilities: The newly arrived refugee is expected to make every effort to become self-sufficient as soon as possible after arriving in Canada. This includes taking advantage of language classes as well as other settlement services and actively seeking employment.

Other Information

Coverage of health-care costs: Depending on the province of destination, the waiting period for provincial health insurance coverage can be as much as 90 days for new permanent residents. However, in most jurisdictions, resettled refugees may be eligible from the day of arrival. Privately sponsored refugees should apply for provincial or territorial health insurance as soon as possible.

The Interim Federal Health Program (IFHP) provides limited, temporary health coverage for specific groups of people in Canada. The coverage is paid by CIC. The IFHP is a payer of last resort when the beneficiary has no access to any provincial or territorial health-care coverage or private health coverage for that service or product. Privately sponsored refugees who are not yet eligible for provincial or territorial health insurance may be covered by the IFHP for physician and hospital care during the waiting period.

Privately sponsored refugees may also be covered by the IFHP for vaccines and medications to protect public health or public safety for as long as they are under a private sponsorship. Those who also receive governmental resettlement assistance in the form of income support may be eligible for additional medications as well as other health-care products and services while they receive income support or while they are under private sponsorship. Details about the IFHP, including how to apply and the scope of coverage, can be found on the CIC website.

Canada child tax benefit: Most resettled refugee parents with children under the age of 18 qualify for a monthly payment to help them with the cost of raising their children. For more information or to obtain the application form for this benefit, applicants should contact the nearest tax services office, visit the Canada Revenue Agency website or call 1-800-387-1193 toll-free.

Trust accounts: Some groups establish trust accounts for the funds collected, raised or donated for the settlement of sponsored refugees. CIC neither promotes nor objects to the use of trust accounts. However, groups should use caution in ensuring that the funds in the account and all interest accrued are used only for the direct settlement costs of the refugees for whom the funds were collected. Groups must be able to account for all expenditures. To ensure this, the account can be registered in the name of the sponsoring group with a note specifying that the money is in trust for the sponsored refugee. For withdrawals, the account should require the signature of at least two group members.

Permanent resident card:All new permanent residents to Canada receive a permanent resident (PR) card. These cards are valid for five years. To receive their PR cards, permanent residents must provide their new mailing address in Canada. Permanent residents can use the Address Notification tool to update their information.

To avoid a $50 processing fee, permanent residents must provide their new address within 180 days after entering Canada.

Secondary migration and self-destination: Sponsors are encouraged to maintain open lines of communication with both the refugee and CPO-W throughout the sponsorship period.

It may happen that, at some point during the sponsorship period, the refugee either fails to establish in or decides to move out of the sponsor’s community. This is referred to as self-destination or secondary migration. If this happens to a group sponsoring under a SAH, the group is advised to discuss the situation with the SAH.

Scenarios:

• If the refugee is able to support himself or herself in the new community for the remainder of the sponsorship period, the sponsoring group has no further obligations.
• If the sponsoring group wishes to transfer the sponsorship to another group in the new community or if the group is not willing or able to continue providing material assistance to the refugee in the new location, CPO-W must be contacted immediately. (Note: If the former, the SAH is expected to make the initial contact with another sponsoring group.)

In a transfer of sponsorship, the new group signs a sponsorship undertaking for the remainder of the sponsorship period. The new undertaking replaces the first and the original group is no longer considered the sponsor. Where the sponsor has decided that it will not or cannot continue to support the refugee in the new community, the sponsorship is in danger of breakdown.

In this case, the local Citizenship and Immigration Centre, the sponsoring group (including the SAH if a CG is involved) and the refugee will meet to try to resolve the sponsorship breakdown and, if applicable, to ascertain responsibility. The three-way meeting will also address the ongoing needs of the refugee for the remainder of the sponsorship period and the capacity of the sponsor to support the refugee under the changed circumstances. Where there is no agreement on who is ultimately responsible for the breakdown, the local Citizenship and Immigration Centre makes the final determination. If the sponsor is found responsible, the group must continue to support the refugee in the new community. If it is not responsible, it is released from all further obligations.

It is important to remember that unless the local Citizenship and Immigration Centre issues a formal notice of sponsorship breakdown, (which effectively cancels the sponsorship undertaking) sponsored refugees are not entitled to obtain income support through provincial or municipal social assistance programs or the Resettlement Assistance Program (RAP) during the sponsorship period (normally 12 months).

Furthermore, sponsoring groups may, under certain circumstances, be liable for reimbursing the government concerned for income support issued to refugees under the group’s sponsorship. For more information on sponsorship breakdown, consult Chapter 3 of CIC’s in-Canada processing manual (IP 3) (PDF, 235.29 KB) or the Sponsorship Agreement, both of which are available on the CIC website.