The Immigration Division conducts admissibility hearings for certain categories of people believed to be inadmissible to, or removable from, Canada under the law. It also conducts detention reviews for most persons being detained under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.

• The decision to detain someone is made by immigration officials of the Canada Border Services Agency(CBSA).
• The CBSA may detain a foreign national or permanent resident if it has reasonable grounds to believe the person:
  • is unlikely to appear for an immigration appointment, hearing or removal;
  • is a danger to the public;
  • is inadmissible on security grounds or for violating human or international rights, or
  • has not established her or his identity to the satisfaction of the CBSA (only applies to foreign nationals, not permanent residents).

Detention is a serious matter. Although you can represent yourself in your hearing, you may want to hire counsel to help you. Counsel can be a lawyer or a registered immigration consultant.

Please call us immediately at 514-516-6606 if you’re in this situation. We will make arrangements to visit you at the detention center and assist you to present an alternative to detention. This service applies only to people detained in Montreal or Ottawa.