Bill C-12

If you read the summary you will have enough knowledge to answer these simple Vote Questions Below.

An Act Respecting Certain Measures Relating to the Security of Canada's Borders and the Integrity of the Canadian Immigration System and Respecting Other Related Security Measures

Short title: Strengthening Canada's Immigration System and Borders Act

Bill type: House Government

Bill Sponsor: Minister of Public Safety

BILL C-12 Strengthening Border Security and the Immigration System Act

This massive omnibus bill spans 11 parts and 137 sections — overhauling border security, immigration, money laundering enforcement, Coast Guard mandate, and financial surveillance in a single piece of legislation.

WHO GAINS POWER

CBSA and border authorities:

  • Airports, wharves, railways, and bridges must provide free facilities for CBSA operations at their own cost
  • Officers gain warrantless access to goods destined for export
  • New tools to fast-track scheduling of fentanyl precursor chemicals
  • Undercover police exempted from drug conspiracy and counselling charges

The Immigration Minister:

  • Can require specific documents from asylum claimants with hard deadlines
  • Can deem claims "withdrawn" if claimant provides written notice
  • Can deem claims "abandoned" if claimant fails to provide documents or appear for examination
  • Refugee Board cannot proceed if claimant is not physically in Canada
  • Can share personal information — identity, status, documents — with federal and provincial agencies

Governor in Council (Cabinet):

  • Can suspend or terminate processing of visa applications "in the public interest" — term is undefined
  • Can cancel, suspend, or vary visas and permits already issued — including permanent resident cards
  • Can impose new conditions on temporary residents
  • Orders can be secret and exempt from normal regulatory process
  • Minister must report to Parliament within 7 days — but orders take effect immediately

National Defence:

  • Coast Guard transferred from Fisheries to National Defence
  • "Security" and intelligence collection added to Coast Guard mandate — militarizing a civilian agency

FINTRAC and financial regulators:

  • Penalties skyrocket: up to $20M for entities, $4M for individuals
  • New mandatory compliance agreement system — violations require entering an agreement
  • Refusing compliance agreement triggers a public compliance order
  • Violating a compliance order = new violation with penalties up to $30M for entities
  • New enrolment requirement for most businesses separate from registration
  • Enrolment can be denied or revoked for unpaid penalties
  • FINTRAC can share information with the Elections Commissioner
  • Criminal penalties increased: up to $20M fines and 5 years jail
  • FINTRAC Director added to financial institutions supervisory committee

Sex offender registry:

  • Expanded reporting requirements — vehicle changes must be reported within 7 days
  • CBSA can share sex offender travel data with police
  • Police can share registry info with victims, witnesses, and foreign agencies
  • Broader disclosure authorized for crime prevention

WHO LOSES POWER

Asylum claimants:

  • Claims ineligible if made more than 1 year after entering Canada — retroactive to June 2020
  • Claims ineligible if entered at a non-port-of-entry along the US border after the deadline
  • Eliminates the designated countries of origin regime

Visa and permit holders:

  • Already-issued visas, permits, and permanent resident cards can be cancelled by secret Cabinet order
  • No transparency requirement before cancellation — only a 7-day parliamentary report after

Businesses subject to AML rules:

  • Must enter compliance agreements if they violate anti-money laundering rules — no discretion
  • Penalties large enough to destroy small and mid-size businesses
  • Must enrol separately from registration or risk losing ability to operate

Provinces:

  • Banned from sharing immigration data with foreign entities without federal consent

WHO GAINS MONEY

  • Government gains massive new penalty revenue from AML violations
  • Legal and compliance industry gains from mandatory compliance agreements and orders
  • National Defence gains budget and mandate expansion via Coast Guard transfer

WHO LOSES MONEY

  • Airports, wharves, railways, and bridges absorb cost of providing free CBSA facilities
  • Businesses face penalties up to $30M for compliance order violations
  • Asylum claimants lose legal status and face deportation costs under retroactive rules
  • Taxpayers fund dual immigration and border infrastructure expansion

THE CATCH

  • "Public interest" is undefined — Cabinet decides unilaterally what qualifies, with no judicial review required before orders take effect
  • Secret orders can cancel visas and permanent resident cards with no advance notice or transparency
  • Retroactive asylum ineligibility rules punish people for decisions made before the rules existed — going back to June 2020
  • Coast Guard militarization moves a civilian agency under Defence with intelligence collection powers — no public debate on scope
  • $30M penalties for compliance order violations give government leverage to destroy any financial business that resists
  • FINTRAC sharing data with the Elections Commissioner creates a surveillance link between financial activity and political oversight with no clear boundary
  • Forcing private infrastructure to provide free government facilities transfers operating costs from government to business with no compensation
  • Monthly deportation reports to Parliament create the appearance of accountability while Cabinet retains secret cancellation powers
  • The bill bundles 11 unrelated areas into one vote — Parliament cannot reject Coast Guard militarization without also rejecting fentanyl precursor controls