Protected person
Statutory definition
(1) Refugee protection is conferred on a person when
(a) the person has been determined to be a Convention refugee or a person in similar circumstances under a visa application and becomes a permanent resident under the visa or a temporary resident under a temporary resident permit for protection reasons;
(b) the Board determines the person to be a Convention refugee or a person in need of protection; or
(c) except in the case of a person described in subsection 112(3), the Minister allows an application for protection.
(2) A protected person is a person on whom refugee protection is conferred under subsection (1), and whose claim or application has not subsequently been deemed to be rejected under subsection 108(3), 109(3) or 114(4).
Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, SC 2001, c 27, s 95
Explanation
A protected person is the legal status that results from a positive determination on a refugee claim or application for protection in Canada. Protected person status is distinct from the grounds for protection (Convention refugee or person in need of protection) — those are the bases for the claim; "protected person" is the resulting immigration status that attaches after a positive determination.
Protected persons are entitled to remain in Canada and may apply for permanent residence. They are generally not removable while they hold protected person status unless the protection is ceased or vacated.
How this term is used
Protected person status can be lost if refugee protection is ceased under IRPA s 108 (where the grounds for protection no longer exist, such as a fundamental change in country conditions, or voluntary re-availment of home country protection) or vacated under IRPA s 109 (where the protection was obtained by misrepresentation). Upon loss of protected person status, the person reverts to being a foreign national and may be subject to removal. A person whose status is vacated may also be found inadmissible for misrepresentation under IRPA s 40(1)(c).