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National actions 18 June 2025 2 min de lecture

Bill C-2: A Threat to the Rights of Migrants and Asylum Seekers

Bill C-2 introduces measures that deeply undermine Migrants and Asylum Seekers in Canada. Under the guise of “border security,” it marks a repressive shift contrary to Canada’s international commitments.

Bill C-2: A Threat to the Rights of Migrants and Asylum Seekers

<h1>What Bill C-2 Proposes</h1>

  • Prohibition on applying for asylum after one year of presence in Canada, with retroactive effect to June 24, 2020.
  • Expanded powers for the Minister of Immigration to cancel or suspend statuses without judicial oversight.
  • Removal of the exception to the Safe Third Country Agreement for irregular entries.
  • Widespread sharing of personal data between governments, without consent or restrictions.

<h1>Impact on Health and Human Rights</h1>

Bill C-2 would result in the loss of status and an increased risk of deportation for thousands of Migrants and Asylum Seekers, including those who have been living in Canada for many years, paving the way for growing violations of fundamental rights. By exacerbating the precariousness of migrant status, this bill creates new barriers to accessing health care, housing, and employment, depriving already vulnerable individuals of essential services and seriously compromising their health and well-being.

Persons without status, already facing daily insecurity, would see their isolation and institutional invisibility further reinforced. Moreover, the expansion of the Safe Third Country Agreement worsens a migration crisis without providing humane, fair, or realistic solutions to the root causes of forced displacement.

Finally, the extension of detention, surveillance, and control powers contributes to the criminalization and stigmatization of Migrants, racialized individuals, and those in irregular situations, fostering a climate of fear and suspicion that runs counter to the principles of justice, dignity, and public health.

<h1>Médecins du Monde Canada, along with other civil society organizations, demands:</h1>

<h3>the withdrawal of the most dangerous measures</h3>

  • Time limit for asylum applications
  • Powers to revoke statuses
  • Removal of the border exception
  • Unlimited sharing of personal data

<h3>a fair and humane migration policy</h3&gt>

  • Pathway to permanent regularization
  • Strengthening of access routes to protection
  • Protection of the Right to health for all
  • Fair and accessible asylum system
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