Unfinished asylum claims face new questions after Nov. 2

Updated Oct. 16, 2026

Asylum claimants who have started a claim in the federal online portal but not submitted it by 11:59 p.m. ET on Nov. 2 will have to answer new questions and review their earlier answers when a changed form takes effect on Nov. 3, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada said on its website.

Claims submitted before the cutoff are not affected. The department said claimants who submit by then do not need to provide new information unless Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, known as IRCC, asks for it.

The change is described in a notice titled “Changes to the asylum application start Nov 3, 2026” on the department’s page for claiming asylum from within Canada, which was last modified Oct. 1. The notice said the department’s “ongoing efforts to modernise the asylum process” will change how claims are submitted in the IRCC Portal.

For someone who has already begun a claim inside Canada, the cutoff is the key date. A claim that is started but unsubmitted at 11:59 p.m. ET on Nov. 2 moves to the new process. The department said the personal information already entered will be saved, but the claimant will have to answer the new questions and look over the old ones before submitting.

A separate page for people whose claims began at the border sets out a stricter rule. Under the department’s instructions for continuing a border claim online, a claim collected by the Canada Border Services Agency must be linked to a portal account before 11:59 p.m. ET on Nov. 2. If it is not, the page said, the information the agency collected will not be saved. The claimant will then have to link the claim and re-enter details about themselves and any family members.

The same page said claimants who link their claim to a portal account but do not submit it by the cutoff will face the same requirement as other unfinished claims. They will have to answer new questions and review earlier answers, with their personal information saved.

In short, the department’s pages describe three situations on Nov. 2 at 11:59 p.m. ET. A submitted claim needs nothing more unless IRCC asks. A started but unsubmitted portal claim keeps its saved information but needs new answers. A border claim that was never linked to a portal account loses the information the border agency gathered and must be entered again.

Neither page lists the new questions. The department said only that claimants with unfinished claims will be asked to answer them. Claimants who want to know what the new form will ask, or whether a particular claim is covered, can contact IRCC through the help links on its website, or speak to a lawyer, a licensed immigration consultant or a legal aid clinic. This article explains the department’s published notice and is not legal advice.

Asylum policy has been a live issue in Ottawa this month. Immigration Minister Lena Diab appeared not to recognize the Supreme Court of Canada’s 1985 Singh refugee ruling in a radio interview, Canada News Media reported on Oct. 11, citing CBC. The Immigration and Refugee Board also barred AI-written claim narratives from Sept. 7, as Canada News Media reported on Sept. 5.

The Nov. 2 cutoff falls just over two weeks after this article was published. IRCC said the new questions apply from Nov. 3, a Tuesday.

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Sources: IRCC, Claiming asylum from within Canada; IRCC, continuing a border claim online.