Women Offender Programs and Issues

Foreign Nationals: Needs Identification - Meeting with Foreign National Federally Sentenced Women

Appendix 1

Definition of the Term Foreign National
Immigration Appeal

Definition of the Term Foreign National

Under CSC jurisdiction a Foreign National (FN) is any offender who does not have a Canadian Citizenship. This includes, refugees, landed immigrants, visitors and illegal aliens.

Convention Refugees: Persons who are outside their country of nationality or former habitual residence and who have a well founded fear of persecution due to their race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group or political opinion, and are unable or, owing to that fear, unwilling to return there. Everyone claiming refugee status in Canada must be found to be a Convention refugee before acquiring the right to apply in Canada.¹

Immigrant: A person who comes to settle in Canada as a permanent resident

Permanent Resident: Someone who has been granted admission as an imminent but who has not become a Canadian citizen.

Visitor: A person, other than a Canadian citizen, permanent resident or Minister's permit holder, who is lawfully in Canada, or seeks to come to Canada, for a temporary purpose.

Immigration Appeal

FN offenders, after being given a removal order from Canada by Immigration, are entitled to appeal. The Appeals Division hears appeals from permanent residents and recognized Convention refugees who have been ordered removed from Canada as a result of criminal convictions. ²

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1 Information provided by Immigration and Refugee Board, Communication Branch via FACSIMILE.

2 Immigration and Refugee Board, Immigration Appeal: What it is and How it Works pg. 5

An offender may appeal the removal order issued by Immigration on the following grounds:

• that the removal order itself is not valid and/ or

• that in taking into consideration all the circumstances of the case, they should not be removed from Canada.³

The following are the various circumstances the Appeals Division considers in reaching a decision about the deportation status of an offender:

• the seriousness of the offence;

• the likelihood of re-offending;

• the evidence of rehabilitation;

• the length of time spent in Canada;

• the degree of establishment in Canada;

• the effect of removal on family members remaining in Canada; and

• the community and family support available.⁴

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3 Ibid. P9- 9

4 Ibid.