Ottawa spent at least $839 million on direct cash payments to Ukraine war refugees arriving in Canada, according to federal records that detail the scale of benefits provided under emergency immigration measures.Blacklock's Reporter says an inquiry of ministry response from the Department of Immigration says 296,779 Ukrainians received one-time cash grants after landing in Canada, with adults paid $3,000 and minor children $1,500 to help cover basic needs such as food, housing, clothing, furniture, and other immediate expenses.The cash payments were only part of the overall cost. Federal documents show an additional $102.5 million was spent on free hotels and temporary accommodations, $87.9 million on settlement services, and $16.8 million to administer the Canada-Ukraine Transition Assistance Initiative. Total spending under the program reached approximately $1.14 billion.The figures were tabled in the House of Commons in response to a written question from Conservative MP Kerry Diotte (Edmonton Griesbach), who asked for a detailed breakdown of the roughly $20 billion Ottawa has committed to Ukraine-related initiatives since 2022..Under the emergency program, Ukrainian refugees were offered free flights to Canada, up to 14 nights of free accommodation, language training, orientation services to help families enroll children in school, and free work and study permits. More than one million Ukrainians applied to settle in Canada before the program expired in 2024, with about 990,000 applications approved.Internal government documents released previously acknowledged concerns about preferential treatment. A 2024 internal report, Rapid Evaluation Of The Ukraine Response, said there was a “perception of unfairness” compared with Canada’s response to other humanitarian crises.It noted criticism that the program was seen as a privileged initiative for a mostly white population, particularly when compared to the treatment of Afghan allies following the fall of Kabul.The report also revealed Ukrainians were granted exemptions from standard security screening requirements. .Due to overwhelming demand, mandatory fingerprinting and other biometric checks were waived for children under 17, adults over 61, and Ukrainians who had previously held a Canadian visitor visa within the past 10 years.In addition, Ukrainians were exempted from declaring when they intended to leave Canada, a departure from standard immigration rules. The department warned these measures could have long-term consequences.“This may set precedents for future crisis responses,” the report said.
