In June 2025, the Government of Canada introduced legislation to help disrupt increasingly complex criminal groups and improve our immigration system. The Strong Borders Act would make legislative changes while protecting privacy and rights under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

About the Strong Borders Act

The Strong Borders Act is designed to keep people in Canada safe. It would make sure law enforcement has the right tools to:

• keep our borders secure
• fight transnational organized crime
• stop the flow of illegal fentanyl
• crack down on money laundering
• protect Canada while upholding Canada's privacy and Charter rights

The act would strengthen our security by proposing changes to laws that support:

• border security and immigration
• combating transnational organized crime
• disrupting illicit financing

Border security and immigration

Many of our laws related to managing our borders and immigration systems need to be updated to continue to address increasing and more complex security challenges.

The Strong Borders Act would give border, immigration and law enforcement agencies modernized powers to be more effective now and in the future.

Export inspections

Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) Officers have the power to inspect goods for export, but they may not be able to access the goods at certain locations.

The act would:

• give the CBSA access to exported goods located in warehouses and transportations hubs

Maritime security

Canada's coasts face evolving security risks. To respond effectively, departments and agencies must work together to strengthen maritime security.

The act would:

• allow the Canadian Coast Guard to conduct security patrols. They would be able to collect, analyze and disseminate information and intelligence for security purposes

Expanded information sharing

Border security requires a coordinated effort across all of entire government, as information from various federal institutions may be required to thoroughly access the situation.

Federal departments and agencies need to work together to share information to understand and respond to demands, and to keep people safe.

The act would:

• enhance the RCMP's ability to share information on registered sex offenders with domestic and international partners, including those in the United States
• improve how Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) shares information in order to ensure federal, provincial and territorial partners can make timely, accurate decisions related to fraud detection, or otherwise deliver public services.
  • IRCC already shares applicant information with its domestic partners in limited circumstances but the act would create clear and direct legal authorities to allow for systematic information sharing and reduce administrative burdens.

Any new use or disclosure of personal information under these new authorities would follow existing privacy laws, policies and best practices.

Improve asylum claim processing

Canada's asylum system exists to protect people who are fleeing persecution, violence, or risks to their life or safety in their home country. The Strong Borders Act would improve how we receive, process and decide on asylum claims to make the system faster and easier to navigate.

The act would:

• simplify the online application process ensure consistency, whether someone claims asylum at a port of entry or at an inland IRCC office
• allow only "scheduling ready" files to be referred claims to the Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) to speed up decisions
• ensure claims are decided by the IRB only while the claimant is physically present in Canada
• remove inactive cases from the system
• hasten voluntary departures by making removal orders effective the same day a claim is withdrawn
• help vulnerable persons, such as minors or those who might not fully understand the process, by assigning representatives to provide support during immigration or border enforcement proceedings.

These measures are designed to make the asylum process faster and more efficient so that claims are processed more effectively while Canada continues to help those in need of protection.

New ineligibility rules for asylum claimants

Our asylum system is meant to protect people who can prove that they have a well-founded fear of persecution or face a risk of serious harm, such as torture or cruel and unusual treatment or punishment. Our asylum system is not a shortcut to regular immigration pathways.

Claims are first assessed for eligibility to be referred to the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB). If eligible, each claim is assessed by the IRB based on the evidence and arguments presented, and in line with Canadian laws.

The Act proposes two measures to protect the asylum system against sudden increases in claims. It would alleviate current burdens on the system and deter people from using the asylum system to bypass regular immigration rules (including the Safe Third Country Agreement) or to extend their temporary stay in Canada

• Asylum claims made more than one year after someone first arrived in Canada, after June 24, 2020, would not be referred to the IRB. This would apply to anyone, including students and temporary residents, regardless of whether they left the country and returned.
• Asylum claims from people who enter Canada along the U.S. land border between ports of entry (irregularly) and who make a claim after 14 days would also not be referred to the IRB.

People who are affected by the proposed ineligibility provisions may still apply for a pre-removal risk assessment (PRRA). A PRRA takes into account each claimant's situation and can also result in refugee protection being granted. This prevents people from being returned to a country where they face risks like persecution, torture or other harm.

Authorities to strengthen control over immigration documents and applications

The Government of Canada must be able to respond to crises and unexpected events that could undermine the integrity of Canada's immigration system and the safety of Canadians. To improve our ability to respond, the act would:

• allow the Government of Canada to cancel, suspend or change immigration documents, and to suspend, cancel or stop accepting new applications when such action is determined to be in the public interest.

Fighting international organized crime

The greatest threats to our border continue to be international organized crime networks. They try to take advantage of areas along the border to smuggle people or illegal goods.

Law and border enforcement must keep pace with these modern criminal threats and prepare for future challenges.

The Strong Borders Act would modernize legal authorities for border and law enforcement agencies so they can respond to current and emerging challenges more effectively.

Disrupt illegal drug production

While Canada strictly controls synthetic opioids and the precursor chemicals used to produce them, the illegal drug market is constantly evolving in an attempt to evade these controls.

The act would:

• amend the accelerated scheduling pathway that allows precursor chemicals that can be used to produce illicit drugs to be rapidly controlled by the Minister of Health
  • This would allow law and border enforcement agencies to take swift action to prevent their illegal importation and use, and would ensure strict federal oversight over any legitimate use of these chemicals

Timely access to basic information and data

Changing digital technologies create challenges for investigators in accessing the basic information and data they need to investigate crime and threats to national security.

The act would:

• help law enforcement lawfully access basic information and data needed early in criminal investigations, including identifying and ruling out suspects
• update existing law enforcement tools, such as search warrants, to meet modern digital challenges, including to explicitly deal with the search of computer systems and data stored on or accessible from those systems
• clarify that law enforcement can use specific powers to seize specific information without a warrant in urgent, time-sensitive circumstances, such as the abuse of a child
• clarify that the Canadian Security Intelligence Service has the same access to basic information for national security purposes

Access or intercept information and communications

New and evolving technologies allow criminal organizations to work across borders and online.

The act would:

• Ensure that electronic service providers have the capabilities in place to support criminal and intelligence investigations by requiring them to fulfil lawfully authorized requests.

Search of Canada Post mail

Fentanyl and other illegal substances can be easily transported by criminals through the mail. Right now, police officers are not allowed to search and seize Canada Post mail as part of an investigation, even when police have sufficient evidence to obtain a warrant to seize the mail in the context of investigating a crime.

The act would:

• allow police to search Canada Post mail, where authorized to do so in accordance with an Act of Parliament, for example under a search warrant, in the same way that they can search private courier mail
• expand Canada Post's authority to inspect mail to search for non-mailable matter, including illegal drugs

Disrupting illicit financing

Financial crimes are not victimless. Money laundering supports and perpetuates crimes such as human trafficking, fentanyl trafficking, and other illicit drug trafficking, as well as fraud, theft, and other economic crimes. Terrorist financing wreaks havoc on communities at home and around the world.

To disrupt illicit finance and combat transnational organized crime, new tools are needed to keep pace with increasingly sophisticated criminal threats and techniques.

Anti-money laundering and anti-terrorist financing: Supervision, compliance, and enforcement

Businesses with anti-money laundering and anti-terrorist financing (AML/ATF) obligations are on the front lines of the fight against financial crimes. These obligations, such as reporting suspicious transactions, are designed to detect and deter financial crimes.

The act would:

• strengthen AML/ATF compliance, supervision, and enforcement, including through a 40 times increase in administrative money penalties, so that non-compliance is not treated as the cost of doing business.

Restrictions on certain cash transactions

Criminals use cash to integrate illicit funds into the financial system and purchase luxury and high-value goods as an asset or for personal consumption. They also avoid client identification requirements by using 'money mules' to deposit cash in multiple accounts at numerous financial institutions.

The act would:

• restrict large cash payments, donations, and deposits of $10,000 or more.
  • this applies only to persons or entities engaged in a business or profession, not personal sales between private individuals.
  • it covers only 'physical' cash transfers, not electronic payments (cheque, debit card, credit card, wire-transfer, e-transfer, etc.).
• restrict deposit-taking institutions from accepting cash deposits from a person who is not the holder of the account or who is authorized to give instructions on that account.

Sharing Information

Information sharing is internationally recognized as a best practice for an effective anti-money laundering and anti-terrorist financing regime.

The act would:

• clarify public to private information sharing provisions to help better detect and deter money laundering and support the recently created Integrated Money Laundering Intelligence Partnership (IMLIP) between banks and law enforcement.

Supervisory collaboration

Coordination among federal agencies with financial sector responsibilities supports high standards of regulatory compliance by federally regulated financial institutions.

The act would:

• enable FINTRAC to exchange supervisory information on federally regulated financial institutions with other members of the Financial Institutions Supervisory Committee (FISC)
• add the Director of FINTRAC to FISC.

Resources

Government Bills

• Government Bill C-2 (45-1) - Strong Borders Act - House of Commons
• Supporting Authorized Access to Information Act: Allowing law enforcement and CSIS to get information that they are legally authorized to receive to protect Canadians

Parliament of Canada

• LEGISinfo - C-2 (45-1)

News

• Government of Canada strengthens border security - Canada.ca (Public Safety Canada, June 3, 2025)
• The Strong Borders Act - Government of Canada strengthens border security - Canada.ca (Public Safety Canada, June 3, 2025)
• Additional information about the Strong Borders Act - Canada.ca (Immigration and Citizenship, June 17, 2025)
• Bill C-2: An Act respecting certain measures relating to the security of the border between Canada and the United States and respecting other related security measures (Justice Canada, June 19, 2025)