Are there many illegals in Canada? (tenants, subdivision, living in)

[Tom Lennox 70]

Just curious about this. Are there a lot of illegals living in Canada like there are throughout the US? As the US cracks down, are more and more Mexicans and Central Americans bypassing the US and going all the way to Canada?

If you go to a restaurant in Toronto or Winnipeg is it all illegals working in the kitchen. Does the average subdivision homeowner in Calgary have an illegal mowing their lawn? This is the case in every moderately-sized US city I've ever been to.

[cazelais]

I think they are pretty tough these days on whom is getting into Canada. I haven't heard of any illegals here in Montreal but there have been "refugees" that try to claim that status but get deported. My Daughter works at Pearson airport In Mississauga, Ontario and false claimers are deported and escorted right up to the plane. Plus as I've posted before my friend has lost a lot of tenants recently because of deportation of Mexicans claiming to be refuges but were deemed just plain old illegals.
It's pretty cold up here in Quebec. It snows 10-20 centimeters every three or four days this winter. That would make it pretty daunting. In a the south of the U.S. you could sleep in a car or in the bushes but not here. There is not a huge Spanish populace here either though I do hear Spanish spoken here now and again.

[FlyGuy_ca]

In Alberta I have not come across any illegals. There are many people here from other countries who are working here (short and long term) but they all have their papers.

PS - If there are they would be shovelling snow, not mowing lawns

[ZX14TJ]

Yes, there are people working and living in Canada without the proper authorizations. There are Americans working illegally here as well as people from other nations.

It sure doesn't seem like there are as many "illegals" as there were in California.

[Cornerguy1]

The number of "illegals" entering Canada is far smaller than that of the US simply due to geopgraphy.

That being said, the trend is more of people landing in Canada and claiming refugee status when perhaps they are not true humanitarian refugees.

The system has been tightened considerably over the last few years and many of those who don't meet the refugee qualifications are deported once they cases have been adjudicated.

Of course, there are still a number who merely disappear into the crowd and live a phantom life, but the incidence of this is no where near that of the US.

[KevK]

There are not that many illegals in Canada simply because it is much easier to be LEGAL in Canada than the USA. All you really have to do is show up there and say something like "I wanna live here and I feel picked on and oppressed in my country" and they hand you a green card.

[ZX14TJ]

Originally Posted by KevK

There are not that many illegals in Canada simply because it is much easier to be LEGAL in Canada than the USA. All you really have to do is show up there and say something like "I wanna live here and I feel picked on and oppressed in my country" and they hand you a green card.

This just simply isn't true. The US and Canada have very similar refugee laws and both countries signed the "Safe Third Country Agreement" that went into effect in 2004.

In Canada, there are no "green cards" and refugee status is not availble for people that feel "picked on" or "oppressed" in their own country.