H&C

that the CCR call for people seeking protection in Canada to have access to humanitarian and compassionate considerations at any stage of their legal process following arrival in Canada, and in any event prior to removal.

that the CCR:

1. Oppose refugee claims being determined at any stage by way of administrative process;
2. Support the proposition that refugee claims should be determined by the IRB, an independent quasi-judicial body;
3. Support the proposition that decisions about humanitarian and compassionate claims and risk assessment should be made after a determination of a person's refugee claim;
4. Support the proposition that the IRB is the best available body to make the initial decision about the risks a person may face should that person be removed from Canada or to deal with a re-opening for changes of conditions.

That the CCR call for refugees and permanent residents facing removal on the basis of serious criminality or organized crime to have access to the IAD for consideration of humanitarian and compassionate factors.

That the CCR:

1. Strongly urge the Minister to amend IRPA to include statelessness as a ground for protection (both in Canada and for resettlement).
2. In the alternative, use the authority of subsection 25(1) to establish "protection of stateless persons" as a public policy category for permanent residence and amend the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations to include statelessness as a ground for resettlement to Canada.
3. As an interim measure urge CIC to amend the Immigration Manual, Chapter IP5, to include statelessness as a factor for landing in H&C applications. ID requirements and establishment requirements should be waived in view of the special hardships faced by stateless persons.

That the CCR request that:

1. The criteria for deciding on humanitarian and compassionate requests in the IP-5 Manual be modified to read “unusual and undeserved hardship” with the addition of “or sufficient family ties.”
2. The departmental police and guidelines be modified so that, in the absence of significant countervailing factors, the following categories will benefit from a favourable presumption in analysis of humanitarian applications:
   a) Married couples with a valid relationship will not be separated by removal during the processing of the permanent residence.
   b) Applicants with Canadian children will be generally accepted for permanent residence in Canada.
   c) Applicants with over five years in Canada of continuous presence are generally allowed to stay in Canada.
   d) Applicants with children who have become culturally acclimated to Canada and have over three years Canadian schooling should generally be accepted for residence.> e) Applicants whose removal would create significant disruption to a Canadian employer or to other Canadian employees should warrant humanitarian considerations.
   f) Torture or rape victims should not normally be sent back to the country where they suffered rape or torture. Serious risk of re-traumatisation must be an important humanitarian concern.

That the CCR request an amendment to the Regulations requiring that a person who is granted approval in principle for landing on H&C grounds be exempt from medical admissibility criteria and be landed without delay.

That the CCR advocate in favour of a policy providing that:

1. A humanitarian and compassionate application involving the best interests of any child facing removal, or whose parents face removal, receive a full and proper assessment prior to potential removal from Canada;
2. Applications for permanent residence based on humanitarian and compassionate grounds, made either inland or abroad, that invoke the best interests of a child living abroad be processed in priority; an accelerated priority should be given to those applications which invoke risk concerns to the child living abroad.

That the CCR recommend an amendment of the Regulations to restore provision for concurrent processing of family members of persons accepted on H&C grounds.

That the CCR advocate for a commitment from CIC to rule on H&C applications within a fixed time frame of four months from the time of filing of the H&C application or, if a removal date is set before that, prior to the scheduled removal date.