Canada to make it easier for Iranians to stay in country

The federal government is moving to support Iranian nationals in Canada, amid a bloody crackdown on dissidents in their home country.

The government announced in North Vancouver Thursday that effective March 1, new measures would be in place to allow Iranian temporary residents to prolong stays in Canada.

“Considering the gross and systemic human rights violations ongoing in Iran, some Iranians who are temporarily in Canada are rightly concerned about returning home at this time,” Natural Resources Minister and North Vancouver MP Johnathan Wilkinson said.

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“We are committed to making it easier for Iranians in Canada to extend their temporary status in Canada and for Canadian citizens and permanent residents to come home, and by prioritizing these cases to ensure that they are processed urgently so that individuals can have peace of mind.”

The new rules will make it easier for Iranians to extend their temporary status in Canada and to move between temporary streams to continue studying, working or visiting family by applying for a new permit while remaining in Canada.

Wilkinson said the government is also making an open work permit pathway available for Iranians already in the country.

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Applications from Iranians already in Canada will be processed on a priority basis, and the government will waive certain processing fees.

Wilkinson said Ottawa will also waive passport and permanent resident travel document fees for Canadian citizens and permanent residents in Iran who wish to leave.

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Along with the immediate changes, the government said it is exploring changes to other programs, including the Human Rights Defenders stream, which has a dedicated, permanent immigration program for people who fight for human rights.

Information on the changes will be available on the the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada website starting March 1.

Protests erupted in Iran in response to the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in the custody of the country’s morality police more than five months ago, leading to a brutal crackdown by the Iranian government.

The protesters have called for the overthrow of the country’s ruling clerics.

Security forces have attacked the demonstrators with live ammunition, bird shot and batons, rights groups say. At least 530 protesters have been killed and nearly 20,000 people have been arrested, according to Human Rights Activists in Iran, a group monitoring the unrest.

Iranian authorities have blamed the protests on hostile foreign powers, without providing evidence, and have not released official figures for those killed or arrested.

Iran has executed four men accused of violence linked to the protests, and activists say at least 16 others have been sentenced to death.

With files from the Canadian Press