Protection with a Price Tag: The Head Tax for Refugees and Their Families Must Go

In 1995, Ottawa imposed a $975 right of landing fee, or “Head Tax,” on immigrants and refugees. This tax came in addition to a $500 processing fee introduced the previous year. Canada gained the dubious distinction of being the only country in the world that imposed such fees upon refugees. At the time, the government argued that the federal deficit left it no choice but to impose such distasteful fees. Today, however, that justification no longer applies. The cost of exempting refugees from the Head Tax is less than one percent of the unallocated Budget surplus.

ISBN – 1-894159-54-3