“Flagpoling,” often known as “sidedooring,” are phrases which describe the method of people who’re inside Canada travelling briefly to the US after which upon re-entry to Canada submitting an software at a Canadian port of entry (“POE“). For most people who’re eligible to flag-pole it’s the popular methodology to acquire examine permits, work permits, and to have their Confirmations of Everlasting Residence signed. The reason being as a result of it sometimes takes a Canada Border Providers Company (“CBSA“) officer lower than half-hour to course of an software, whereas it will possibly take Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (“IRCC“) weeks or months to both course of an software or schedule a touchdown interview.
Who Can Flag-Pole (Work Permits)
Within the work allow context, regulation 198 of the Immigration and Refugee Safety Rules (“IRPR”) gives that:
(1) Topic to subsection (2), a international nationwide might apply for a piece allow when getting into Canada if the international nationwide is exempt underneath Division 5 of Half 9 from the requirement to acquire a short lived resident visa.
Exceptions
(2) A international nationwide might not apply for a piece allow when getting into Canada if
(a) a willpower underneath part 203 is required, until
(i) the Division of Employment and Social Growth has offered an opinion underneath paragraph 203(2)(a) in respect of a proposal of employment — aside from seasonal agricultural employment or employment as a live-in caregiver — to the international nationwide, or
(ii) the international nationwide is a nationwide or everlasting resident of the US or is a resident of Greenland or St. Pierre and Miquelon;
(b) the international nationwide doesn’t maintain a medical certificates that they’re required to carry underneath subsection 30(4); or
(c) the international nationwide is a participant in a global youth trade program, until they’re a nationwide or everlasting resident of the US or their software for a piece allow was accredited earlier than their entry into Canada.
IRPR r. 190 units out who’s exempt from the requirement to acquire a Non permanent Resident Visa earlier than getting into Canada. Importantly, IRPR r. 193(3)(f) gives that:
A international nationwide is exempt from the requirement to acquire a short lived resident visa if they’re searching for to enter and stay in Canada solely
(f) to re-enter Canada following a go to solely to the US or St. Pierre and Miquelon, in the event that they
(i) held a examine allow or a piece allow that was issued earlier than they left Canada on such a go to or had been approved to enter and stay in Canada as a short lived resident, and
(ii) return to Canada by the top of the interval initially approved for his or her keep or any extension to it.
A duplicate of the implications of IRPR r. 193(3)(f) might be discovered right here. It is rather necessary to grasp when a person who sometimes requires a Non permanent Resident Visa to enter Canada is exempt from the requirement to take action underneath IRPR r. 193(3)(f). Our workplace routinely meets with people who misinterpret this coverage, which is past the scope of this publish.
Who can Flag-Pole (Examine Permits)
Within the examine allow context, IRPR r. 214 gives that:
Software on entry
214. A international nationwide might apply for a examine allow when getting into Canada if they’re
(a) a nationwide or a everlasting resident of the US;
(b) an individual who has been lawfully admitted to the US for everlasting residence;
(c) a resident of Greenland; or
(d) a resident of St. Pierre and Miquelon.
(e) [Repealed, SOR/2014-14, s. 10]
Who can Flag-Pole (Touchdown)
Anybody can flag-pole to land as a everlasting resident.
Dangers of Flag-Poling
The time period “flagpoling” doesn’t really seem in Canadian immigration laws. In Yang v. Canada (Public Security and Emergency Preparedness), 2014 FC 383, Justice Harrington remarked that (emphasis added):
It was on 21 Might 2013 that Ms. Yang left Canada in physique, if not in spirit, and introduced herself to the U.S. authorities. They gave her a kind referred to as “Discover of Refusal of Admission/Parole into the US”. This way was addressed to the Division of Manpower and Immigration, Douglas, B.C. Inside a column which bears the title “Causes for Excludability or Parole”, the phrase “Flagpole” was typed in. There have been two different bins within the kind. One is to point whether or not the alien was refused admission into the US. The opposite was whether or not the alien was refused admission and parole in the US. Each bins remained clean.
“Flagpole” clearly means one thing to each the U.S. and Canadian authorities, though no matter understanding there’s, was not set out within the file. Counsel for Ms. Yang says it’s well-known that people in Canada searching for extension of labor or examine permits merely stroll throughout the border and are available again in.
Along with illustrating that “flag-poling” is a loosely outlined idea, the above passage highlights one other widespread observe that’s really very dangerous for people.
Many individuals who flagpole don’t really get admitted to the US as a result of they lack American visas. Along with these people being denied entry to the US, which may probably have long-term penalties, it’s unclear whether or not such folks really meet the necessities of IRPR r. 198. In spite of everything, in the event that they had been denied entry to the US, did they technically go away Canada? In the event that they didn’t go away Canada, then how can they make an software on entry? The query has had authorized students scratching their head for a while.
Finally the prevalence of flag-poling could also be diminishing. Because the doc beneath signifies, CBSA is changing into more and more pissed off with folks flag-poling, and have voiced their considerations to CIC. It stays to be seen what CIC finally does.
Please notice that what I’ve reproduced beneath shouldn’t be seen as authorized recommendation. I obtained a duplicate of this inner Service Canada query and reply by way of an Entry to Data Act request (the “ATI”). The copy of query and reply has not occurred with the affiliation of the Authorities of Canada, nor with the endorsement of the Authorities of Canada. (I’ve determined to not reproduce the names of the Service Canada officers concerned.) Please e-mail me if you need a duplicate of the unique query and reply contained within the ATI.
Statistics
This chart reveals the variety of work permits issued by way of flagpoling from 2022-2024 primarily based on the kind of work allow.