Over the year, the number of Americans seeking asylum in Canada increased 6 times
The number of US citizens seeking asylum in Canada has increased dramatically in the 2017 year compared with previous years.
According to the Canadian Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Service, in 2017, 2 550 Americans applied for asylum in this country. This is six times more applications than was filed in the 2016 year, when Americans asked for asylum 395, writes CNN.
One of the reasons why more and more Americans want to flee to Canada is the tough immigration policy of US President Donald Trump.
The United States ranked third in the number of asylum seekers in Canada in the 2017 year after Haiti (7 785 applicants) and Nigeria (6 005 applicants).
This year, the number of Americans seeking asylum in Canada is also quite high - 1215 people as of the end of August.
Canadian officials said that, while Canada remains an open and hospitable country, crossing its border and applying for asylum does not guarantee a permanent resident status. Good grounds are needed for asylum.
Why Haitians leave the US
According to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, about 80-85% of asylum-seekers who arrived from the US in Canada are of Haitian origin. Many Haitians went to Canada because of fears that they would lose their temporary protected status (TPS), which gives them the right to be in the United States at the moment.
The Trump administration decided to end the TPS program, but its plans were temporarily blocked by a federal court, and the suspension of temporary protection programs against the deportation of immigrants from Sudan, El Salvador, Haiti and Nicaragua was suspended.
TPS for Haitians was introduced shortly after the devastating earthquake that occurred on the island in the 2010 year. Citizens of this country, located in the United States, were granted temporary protected status and allowed to remain in the country until the effects of the earthquake are eliminated in their homeland. Since then, the program has been updated several times. But in 2017, employees of the Department of Homeland Security stated that conditions in Haiti are improving, and that the program should be terminated.
After that, a wave of Haitians moved across the northern border of the United States in search of refuge in Canada. Many feared that they would be deported if they remained in the United States.
Canada completed its version of the program, which was similar to TPS, for Haitians in 2016. This means that Haitians who are not protected may also be deported from Canada.
Many asylum seekers went to Quebec, where a large Haitian community lives.
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