How do I complete my Pre-removal Risk Assessment and what evidence can I include?

A Pre-Removal Risk Assessment (PRRA) is a written application where you explain why you’re afraid to return to your country and you provide documents to support your fear.

You might be eligible for a PRRA if:

• you’re going to be removed from Canada
• you’re not eligible to make a refugee claim because you arrived from a country that has an information sharing agreement with Canada and you already made a claim in that country

The list of countries includes the United States, Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. If this applies to you, get legal advice right away. Unlike other PRRA applicants, you must be given an oral hearing with an immigration officer. At this oral hearing, you will be asked questions about what you fear and the evidence you have to support that fear.

Apply

There is no fee to apply for a PRRA.

If you’re applying for a PRRA for the first time, you must wait for a Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) officer to give you the application form. If you’re eligible for a PRRA, the CBSA officer will give you an application form when they’re ready to remove you from Canada. The application form is not available online. 

If you already had a PRRA, you don’t need to wait for the CBSA officer to give you the application form to apply again.

To apply for a PRRA, you need to:

• fill out and submit the application form within 15 days of receiving it, and 
• give evidence that supports your fear of returning to your country. You must file your evidence no later than 15 days after you submit your application form or 30 days after you receive the application form from the CBSA officer.

If it’s your first PRRA application and you follow the rules in applying, your removal order will be temporarily stayed. This means that you can’t be removed from Canada until your PRRA is decided.   

But your removal order won’t be put on hold if:

• you’re making a second PRRA application,
• you apply for a PRRA at a Port of Entry (POE) because you don’t qualify for an exception to the Safe Third Country Agreement, or
• you have a removal order that is in force when you’re at the POE.

This means that you can be removed from Canada before there is a decision made on your PRRA. Speak with a lawyer about stopping your removal before you apply for a second PRRA. These situations are usually complicated.

Get a decision

An Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) officer reviews your PRRA using the same legal test that the Refugee Board uses to decide if you meet the definition of a Convention refugee or a person in need of protection.

Get legal help

You should get legal advice right away if you’re applying for a PRRA. A lawyer can help you complete the application, gather evidence, and make written submissions about the risk you face if you’re removed from Canada.