Removal order appeal lawyer in Brampton
Time-critical
Time limits here are short. Call the chambers now.
Monday to Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Outside office hours, leave a message at 905-452-0348 with your number, and say if someone is detained or has a removal date.
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The short answer
You can usually appeal a removal order to the Immigration Appeal Division (IAD) within 30 days. This applies if you are a permanent resident, a protected person, or a foreign national with a permanent resident visa. The IAD can allow the appeal, pause the order on conditions, or dismiss it. There is no appeal if you were found inadmissible for serious crime. One example is a Canadian sentence of six months or more.
Who this is for
This page is for people who have a removal order, or expect one, and want to stay in Canada. A removal order is a legal order that says you must leave Canada. There are three types:
- departure orders
- exclusion orders
- deportation orders
Each type has different rules about coming back. But any of them can end your life in Canada.
You may have the right to appeal to the Immigration Appeal Division (IAD). The IAD is part of the Immigration and Refugee Board, an independent tribunal. You may be able to appeal if you are:
- a permanent resident
- a protected person, such as someone given refugee protection in Canada
- a foreign national with a permanent resident visa. One example is a person found inadmissible, meaning not allowed into Canada, when they arrived to become a permanent resident.
Most removal orders against permanent residents come from one of three things:
- a crime
- misrepresentation, meaning false or missing information
- not meeting the residency rule
An officer may have made the order. Or the Immigration Division may have made it after a hearing. That hearing is called an admissibility hearing. See inadmissibility and residency obligation appeals.
An IAD appeal is a full hearing before an independent member. You tell your side and answer questions. A government lawyer, called Minister’s counsel, asks you questions too. They act for the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA). Then both sides make legal arguments. Manny Hundal is a lawyer, called to the Ontario Bar in 2013. He represents people at the IAD and, if needed, at the Federal Court.
Who cannot appeal
The law takes away the IAD appeal for people found inadmissible on certain grounds:
Serious crime with a Canadian sentence
A crime punished in Canada by a prison term of at least six months.
Serious crime outside Canada
A conviction or offence outside Canada that would carry a maximum of at least 10 years if done in Canada.
Other grounds
Security, human or international rights violations, sanctions, and organized crime.
This rule is in section 64 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. The six-month rule looks at the sentence the court actually gave. So your sentence in a criminal case can decide if you can appeal at all. Are you a permanent resident facing criminal charges? Then your criminal lawyer and your immigration lawyer should talk before you plead guilty or are sentenced. See criminal inadmissibility.
If you cannot appeal to the IAD, you may still have other options. You can ask the Federal Court to review the decision. In some cases, you can ask for a pre-removal risk assessment. You can also make a humanitarian and compassionate application. None of these stops removal on its own.
How it works
1. File the notice of appeal
The Immigration Division may have made the order at an admissibility hearing. If so, you can give your notice of appeal to the member at the end of the hearing. If not, you file a notice of appeal with the IAD, with a copy of the removal order. Filing starts the appeal.
2. The removal order is not enforced while the appeal is pending
If you appeal, the removal order does not take effect until the appeal is finally decided against you. This rule is in section 49 of the Act. A permanent resident keeps their status until the order takes effect. This is one of the most important protections an appeal gives you.
3. The appeal record and disclosure
The government prepares the appeal record. Both sides then file documents and witness details by the deadlines in the IAD Rules. The IAD must receive witness details at least 30 days before the hearing.
4. Early resolution
Some appeals are chosen for an early resolution meeting. This is also called alternative dispute resolution. Minister’s counsel and the person appealing talk about whether the appeal can be settled. For example, they might agree to a stay on conditions. If it does not settle, it goes to a hearing.
5. The hearing
You give evidence. Family members and other witnesses can give evidence too. Minister’s counsel asks questions. The member may also ask questions. Your lawyer makes legal arguments on the facts and on humanitarian grounds.
6. The decision
The IAD has three options, set out in sections 66 to 69 of the Act.
Allow the appeal
The removal order is cancelled. You keep your status.
Stay the removal order
The order stays in place but is paused for a time, on conditions. If you follow them, the IAD can later allow the appeal.
Dismiss the appeal
The removal order takes effect.
Grounds of appeal
The order is wrong in law or fact
For example, the conviction does not make you inadmissible. Or the facts were misread, or the process was unfair.
Humanitarian and compassionate grounds
This means kind and fair reasons based on your situation. Even if the order is legally valid, the IAD can grant special relief for these reasons. It must take into account the best interests of any child directly affected. Factors usually include how serious the conduct was, remorse and rehabilitation, time in Canada, how settled you are, family in Canada, the hardship of removal, and community support.
Stays of removal
A stay is a middle path. The IAD pauses the order and sets conditions. Examples are keeping the peace, reporting to the CBSA, reporting any new address, and following any treatment. The IAD can review the stay. At the end, it can allow the appeal or dismiss it.
A stay needs care. Some appeals are about a crime. In those cases, a new conviction that makes the person inadmissible cancels the stay automatically. The appeal then ends. There is no second hearing.
Deadlines
Notice of appeal
the IAD must receive it no later than 30 days after the day you get the removal order. This is rule 16 of the Immigration Appeal Division Rules, 2022.
Witness details
at least 30 days before the hearing.
Federal Court review of a dismissed appeal, or of an order you cannot appeal
you must file a leave application with the Federal Court within 15 days for a decision made in Canada (IRPA section 72). “Leave” means permission for the court to hear the case.
Evidence that matters
- the removal order, the officer’s report and any Immigration Division decision
- court records, sentencing transcripts and police reports, if a crime is involved
- proof of rehabilitation: programs completed, counselling, probation reports, letters from employers or community leaders
- proof that you are settled in Canada: work history, taxes, property, schooling
- proof about children and family in Canada, and how removal would affect them
- proof of conditions in the country you would be sent to
Common problems
Pleading guilty without immigration advice. A sentence of six months or more can take away the appeal right completely.
Treating the appeal as a formality. At the hearing, the member tests whether you are believable and truly sorry.
Breaking a stay. New charges, missed reporting or ignoring conditions can end a stay and the appeal.
How Manny helps
- He reviews the removal order. He tells you if you can appeal to the IAD and what deadline applies.
- He files the notice of appeal, or gives it at the end of an admissibility hearing.
- He gets the appeal record and builds the evidence, including rehabilitation and family evidence.
- He prepares you and your witnesses to give evidence. He represents you at early resolution and at the hearing.
- When a stay is the realistic outcome, he negotiates or argues for one on workable conditions.
- If the appeal is dismissed or there is no appeal, he advises on a Federal Court review. He can also ask the Federal Court for a stay of removal, a court order that pauses your removal.
Consultations are available in English, Punjabi and Hindi. This page is general information, not legal advice. No lawyer can promise a result.
Frequently asked questions
Three groups have a right to appeal under section 63 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. They are permanent residents, protected persons, and foreign nationals with a permanent resident visa. Most other foreign nationals cannot appeal a removal order to the IAD. This includes visitors, students and workers. For them, the usual route is a Federal Court review. Even in the three groups, some people cannot appeal. This includes people found inadmissible for serious crime, organized crime, security reasons or human rights violations. Serious crime includes a crime punished in Canada by a prison term of at least six months. If you are unsure which group you are in, a lawyer can check your status and the grounds in the order.
The Immigration Appeal Division must receive the notice of appeal no later than 30 days after the day you get the removal order. This is set by rule 16 of the Immigration Appeal Division Rules, 2022. The Immigration Division may have made the order at the end of an admissibility hearing. If so, you can give the notice of appeal to the member at the hearing itself. The IAD must receive the notice in time. Sending it is not enough. There are also later deadlines. For example, the IAD must receive witness details at least 30 days before the hearing. Missing the first deadline can mean losing the right to appeal. Treat it as fixed.
Usually, no. If you file an appeal, the removal order does not take effect until a final decision confirms it. This rule is in section 49 of the Act. A permanent resident does not lose status until the order takes effect. In practice, the CBSA should not remove you while a valid appeal is waiting at the IAD. But this protection has two conditions. The appeal must be filed properly and on time. And you must have a right to appeal at all. If there is no appeal right, the order can take effect right away. You may then need to ask the Federal Court for a stay of removal, a court order that pauses your removal.
A stay means the removal order stays in place but is paused for a set time. During that time, you must follow conditions the IAD sets. Common conditions are keeping the peace, reporting to the CBSA, reporting any new address, and following treatment or counselling. The IAD can review the stay and change the conditions. At the end, it can allow the appeal or dismiss it. A stay is often the result when the order is valid, but the IAD sees real reasons to give you a chance. Breaking the conditions is serious. If a new conviction makes you inadmissible, the stay is cancelled automatically and the appeal ends.
Get immigration advice before you plead guilty or are sentenced, not after. A permanent resident can lose the right to appeal a removal order to the IAD. This happens if they are found inadmissible for a crime punished in Canada by a prison term of at least six months. This rule is in section 64 of the Act. Whether a conviction makes you inadmissible at all also depends on the offence and how it is charged. These questions should be looked at alongside the criminal case. Manny can work with your criminal defence lawyer. He can explain the immigration effect of each option, so the criminal case is resolved with your status in mind.
If the IAD dismisses the appeal, the removal order takes effect. A permanent resident loses their status. You can ask the Federal Court to review the IAD’s decision. You must file for leave, meaning permission, within 15 days. Filing for a review does not stop removal on its own. If the CBSA sets a removal date, you may need to ask the Federal Court for a stay of removal. That is a separate request. Depending on your situation, a pre-removal risk assessment or a humanitarian and compassionate application may also be possible. If you leave Canada under a deportation order, you usually need written permission to come back. Get advice on the reasons for the decision right away.
This page is general information, not legal advice about your situation.