Citizenship and Immigration Canada
www.cic.gc.ca
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Refugees: Refugee claims in Canada—Humanitarian and compassionate review
Any person can apply to stay in Canada on humanitarian or compassionate grounds. This includes refugee protection claimants whose claims are not approved by the Immigration and Refugee Board.
Applications to become a permanent resident on humanitarian and compassionate grounds are approved only in exceptional circumstances. It can take many years to process an application.
If you have received an order to leave Canada (this is called a removal order), you can still apply to stay in Canada on humanitarian and compassionate grounds. Your application will not prevent or delay your removal from Canada—you must leave on or before the date stated on your removal order. Your application will still be processed even if you have to leave Canada. Citizenship and Immigration Canada will notify you in writing about the decision on your case.
There is no guarantee that your application will be approved. There is no right to appeal a refused application for permanent residence on humanitarian and compassionate grounds. In some cases, however, you can ask the Federal Court of Canada to review the decision. You can find more information on reviews by the Court in the Related Links section at the bottom of this page.
You can get more information and an application kit for humanitarian and compassionate review of your case in the Related Links section at the bottom of this page. You can also obtain an application kit by contacting the Citizenship and Immigration Canada Call Centre (see Contact Us at the top of this page).
