Federal Court overwhelmed as immigration cases surge to record 30,000

CALGARY — Canada’s Federal Court says it is buckling under an unprecedented wave of immigration litigation, warning that a record 30,000 immigration-related cases could be filed this year — nearly five times the pre-pandemic average.According to documents obtained by Blacklock’s Reporter, court administrators have alerted lawyers and litigants that growing caseloads, budget constraints and staffing shortages are forcing significant delays in processing court documents and hearing immigration matters.“The Court is required to take this additional step in light of increasing caseload, budget restrictions and insufficient resources,” administrators wrote in a formal notice.The notice said immigration filings have risen for a fifth consecutive record-breaking year and are expected to exceed 30,000 cases in 2026.“This is nearly five times the average annual filing volume before the pandemic from 2014 to 2019,” the Court wrote. “This persistent surge is causing significant and sustained operational pressures on the Court.”As a result, document processing times that previously took about 48 hours may now take up to eight weeks in some cases.“The Registry strives to process documents within 48 hours,” the notice stated. “However due to the continuous and significant surge in filings, processing times have increased.”Court officials noted immigration-related filings account for most of the increase.In response to the mounting backlog, the Court has also doubled filing deadlines for immigration cases. Effective Friday, parties will have 90 days instead of 45 days to file certain materials, a measure intended to reduce the number of requests seeking deadline extensions..Independent businesses advocated for temporary foreign workers months before Smith called Alberta's immigration referendum.The volume of immigration litigation has risen sharply over the past decade. Federal Court records show immigration cases numbered just 5,572 in 2017.The increase to roughly 30,000 cases coincides with record immigration levels. Federal data showed there were 3,049,277 foreign nationals in Canada last year on temporary permits, including foreign students, refugee claimants and illegal border crossers.The rising caseload has also driven higher taxpayer costs for immigration-related legal services.According to a Department of Justice memorandum, taxpayer-funded legal aid for immigration claimants increased 378%, rising from $11.5 million annually to $55 million on a permanent basis.The increase came even as a Federal Court judge rejected a bid by the Canadian Immigration Lawyers Association seeking recognition of a broad right to legal counsel throughout the immigration process, including visa applications.In court filings dated May 13, the Department of Justice argued there is no legal requirement for the federal government to provide or formally recognize counsel at every stage of immigration proceedings.“There is no legal bar to individuals retaining and instructing counsel to represent them in matters relating to applications, interviews and examinations under the Immigration And Refugee Protection Act,” the department wrote.“However, nor is there any corresponding legal obligation for the Minister to recognize counsel, interact with them and accord them participatory rights in those matters.”Advocacy groups have continued to push for expanded publicly funded legal representation.In a submission to the House of Commons finance committee last year, Amnesty International called for greater access to free legal services for temporary residents, describing the issue as one of “dignity, justice, human rights and well-being of all peoples,” with particular focus on marginalized communities.

Federal Court overwhelmed as immigration cases surge to record 30,000

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