Immigration Seizure and Return Rules Updated

Summary#

These are final changes to Part 16 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations that clarify how officers seize, notify about, return, hold and dispose of seized items. The rules take effect on registration, which was August 12, 2021.

What it does#

• Requires officers to give written notice to the person from whom an item was seized and to try to notify the lawful owner. If notice is sent by mail, it is treated as received on the seventh day after mailing.
• Replaces two different application deadlines with a single deadline of 60 days to apply for the return of a seized item; the countdown starts when notice is given. (There had previously been different timelines such as 30 days for some applicants.)
• Makes clear that if both the person from whom an item was seized and the lawful owner apply, the lawful owner’s application is processed first.
• Adds a rule that items seized in error must be returned “without delay,” and items seized only to carry out the purposes of the Act must be returned when they are no longer needed for that purpose.
• Keeps the basic disposal rules: items not returned are sold unless the sale would cost more than the item’s value, in which case they are destroyed. Sale is paused for 15 days after notification of a decision not to return, or until a final court decision affecting the seizure is made. Documents are kept as long as needed and then returned to the issuing authority or otherwise disposed of under Canadian law.
• Removes two specific options that used to exist:
  • The option to apply for return by posting a cash security or guarantee is repealed.
  • The separate option to have a vehicle returned upon payment of $5,000 is repealed.
• Removes the previous rule that limited seizures for fraud/improper use to within six years of the obtaining or use of the thing, so seizures on those grounds may occur at any time consistent with the Act.
• Directs officers to use updated forms and field guidance to reflect these changes.

Who's affected#

• People whose passports, identity documents, electronics, vehicles or other things are seized at ports of entry or within Canada.
• Lawful owners of items that were in someone else’s possession when seized (for example, a car owner whose car was driven by someone else).
• People from whom an item was seized (for example, a traveller stopped at a border).
• Canada Border Services Agency and Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada officers, who will update forms and guidance to follow the new wording.
• If unclear: the rules apply broadly to seizures under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, so any individual affected by such a seizure could be covered.

Why it matters#

• Clearer rules make it easier for people to know who must be told and how long they have to ask for their property back.
• Eliminating the cash-security and $5,000-fee options simplifies the process and removes those payment-based routes for provisional return.
• Removing the six‑year time limit means seized items could be challenged or seized even if the relevant conduct happened many years earlier.
• The changes are mainly drafting and procedural improvements. The government says they don’t create new powers or costs for the public, but they do change how and when people can request the return of seized things.