Safe Third Country Agreement (STCA)
Statutory definition
Section 101(1)(e) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, SC 2001, c 27, makes a refugee claim ineligible if the claimant came to Canada from a country that is a designated country for the purposes of s 101(1)(e). IRPR r 159.3 designates the United States as such a country. IRPR rr 159.4–159.7 set out the exceptions to the ineligibility rule.
Explanation
Under the STCA, most persons crossing the Canada-US land border at a designated port of entry who seek asylum must make their claim in the US (the country of first arrival). Exceptions include: persons who have family members in Canada, unaccompanied minors, persons holding a Canadian visa or permit, and persons from a country for which Canada or the US has suspended removals.
The STCA applies only at designated land border ports of entry — it does not apply to persons crossing irregularly between ports (e.g., at Roxham Road, until that crossing was closed). Since March 2023, Canada and the US have extended the STCA to the entire land border, closing the irregular crossing loophole.
How this term is used
The STCA was upheld by the Supreme Court of Canada in 2023, but the Court noted that US conditions must continue to be monitored and that the STCA could be suspended if conditions in the US no longer meet the STCA requirements. Persons who are returned to the US under the STCA are not entitled to an inland hearing in Canada and cannot reapply until they leave the US and no longer qualify for return under the STCA.