Bill C-12 and the Transformation of Canada’s Refugee Determination System
July 2026
About This Report
Refugee protection systems operate at the intersection of administrative efficiency and procedural fairness. Managing claims requires balancing system capacity with meaningful access to protection. In Canada, this balance has historically been reflected in a refugee determination system centred on independent adjudication, including oral hearings and internal appeal mechanisms within the Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) (Rehaag, 2024). Bill C‑12, the Strengthening Canada’s Immigration System and Borders Act, is introduced as a response to system pressures, including backlogs and increasing claim volumes (IRCC, 2026). Government framing presents the bill as improving efficiency, strengthening system integrity, and maintaining fairness in the processing of claims (IRCC, 2026).
The central issue, however, is not whether efficiency is pursued. It is how system performance is achieved. As developed in this paper, the changes associated with Bill C‑12 rely on limiting access to adjudicative processes designed to ensure substantive assessment and error correction. These changes raise broader legal and operational considerations. The paper examines the pre C-12 system, the structural changes introduced by the legislation, their implications for system re-design, legal obligations, and claimant outcomes.