Canada to change online asylum claim process from November 3, 2026

Canada will change the way asylum seekers submit refugee claims online from November 3, 2026. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) announced a cutover to a new online process for asylum claims, effective Nov. 3, 2026. Anyone who wants their application processed under the existing system must submit it through the IRCC Portal by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on November 2, 2026.

How unfinished claims are handled during the transition

Personal information already entered in an unfinished claim will be saved when the new process takes effect. Once the old intake path closes, unfinished claims carry over into the new system with saved information intact. The claimant must revisit every response and complete whatever the new process adds.

If a claimant has already linked their CBSA claim to an IRCC Portal account but has not submitted it by the deadline, their personal information will remain saved. They will need to answer the new questions and review information already provided.

The situation differs for those instructed by CBSA to complete their claim online but who have not linked the claim to an IRCC Portal account by the deadline. In those cases, information previously collected by CBSA will not be saved. The claimant will have to link the claim and enter information about themselves and their family again.

What claimants should do before the deadline

Claimants and supporting organizations should check the status of any claim application started through the IRCC Portal now. They must finish every outstanding step before the cutoff. Anyone who has already started an inland asylum application should first establish whether they can complete and submit it before the November 2 deadline.

People who started their claim with CBSA should also confirm that they have linked the claim to their IRCC Portal account. Those who have not linked their CBSA claim by the deadline risk losing information previously collected by the border agency. They would have to enter it again under the new process.

Submitting a rushed or incomplete refugee claim simply to meet the transition deadline could create other problems. Claimants must provide accurate and truthful information. They should make sure they understand the questions and documentation requirements before submitting.

The broader context of asylum modernization under Bill C-12

The portal changes are part of Canada’s wider asylum modernization program following the passage of Bill C-12, the Strengthening Canada’s Immigration System and Borders Act. Bill C-12 received Royal Assent on March 26, 2026. It introduced a framework for major changes to how Canada receives, reviews and refers refugee claims.

The government said the changes would simplify online applications, reduce duplicate questions and allow officials to carry out more work on claims before referring them to the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB). The aim is for only complete claims that are ready to be scheduled to reach the IRB for a decision.

A central part of the program is the move towards a more simplified application. The federal government said the new framework is intended to reduce situations in which refugee claimants provide the same or similar information through different forms and stages of the process. This should give officials a more complete file earlier and help the IRB manage and schedule cases more efficiently.

The November 3 portal changes represent one of the first practical ways in which claimants will see this broader restructuring when they make an application.

Under the current system, asylum claimants can request an open work permit as part of their online refugee claim. A permit is generally issued only after the claim has been found eligible for referral to the IRB and the claimant has passed the required immigration medical examination. Separate restrictions apply to certain people who enter Canada irregularly between official ports of entry along the Canada, U.S. land border and wait more than 14 days before making their claim.

The impact on claimants will vary depending on their stage in the process at the time immediately before the cutover. Claimants who submit before the deadline will not normally need to provide the new information introduced on November 3 unless IRCC specifically requests it.