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ARCHIVED – Context on Indigenous border mobility in Canada

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We have archived this page and will not be updating it.

You can use it for research or reference.

Currently, the legislative right to enter and stay in Canada is set out under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA). Under IRPA:

19(1) Every Canadian citizen within the meaning of the Citizenship Act and every person registered as an Indian under the Indian Act has the right to enter and remain in Canada in accordance with this Act, and an officer shall allow the person to enter Canada if satisfied following an examination on their entry that the person is a citizen or registered Indian.

— Immigration and Refugee Protection Act

IRPA does not reference a specific right to enter and stay for “Aboriginal Peoples of Canada.” However, for members of First Nations, Inuit and Métis in Canada, the right to enter and stay in Canada is based on the person being:

IRPA currently treats Indigenous Peoples outside Canada as foreign nationals for the purposes of entering and staying in Canada (if they are not otherwise registered under the Indian Act, Canadian citizens or permanent residents).

Work on Indigenous border mobility builds on previous input from Indigenous Peoples.

  • 2016

    First Nations engage with the Senate Standing Committee on Aboriginal Peoples. This results in publication of the 2016 report, “Border Crossing Issues and the Jay Treaty (PDF, 530 KB).”

  • 2017

    Ministerial Special Representative Fred Caron releases a report highlighting potential solutions to long-standing border crossing challenges for First Nations, particularly for those in communities near or divided by Canada’s international borders. Proposed solutions include the expansion of the legislative right to enter and stay in Canada through amending section 19 of IRPA.

  • 2018

    In response, the government commits to a range of measures, including:

    • the addition of a machine-readable zone for the Secure Certificate of Indian Status
    • recruitment of more Indigenous border services officers
    • enhanced training on Indigenous cultures for CBSA staff
    • stronger outreach and partnerships with First Nations communities along the Canada–US border
    • a longer term process to discuss potential solutions to more complex border crossing issues with concerned First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities

    The CBSA establishes the Indigenous Affairs Secretariat to provide organizational capacity on Indigenous border crossing issues.

  • 2021

    In June 2021, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act becomes law in Canada.

  • 2023

    In March 2023, Prime Minister Trudeau and President Biden commit to working in partnership with First Nations, Inuit, and Métis Peoples in Canada and Tribal Nations and Alaska Native Villages in the United States to find solutions to the challenges that creating the international border between Canada and the US placed on Indigenous communities.

    The Minister of Justice tables and releases the United Nations Declaration Act (UNDA) Action Plan to achieve the objectives of the UN Declaration in June 2023. IRCC and CBSA have been working with Indigenous partners to co-develop and implement Action Plan Measure 52, one of the shared priorities under the UNDA Action Plan.

    IRCC and the CBSA lead the process of engaging with First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities across Canada to help develop future legislative and policy changes.

  • 2024

    Publication of a “What we’ve heard” report following engagement on Indigenous border mobility in the winter of 2024.

Upcoming work with Indigenous Peoples on border mobility

To further improve mobility across borders for Indigenous Peoples, we will:

We are currently engaging in nation-to-nation, Inuit-Crown, and government-to-government discussions about border mobility. In addition, from October 2023 to January 2024, we will invite Indigenous partners and the organizations that represent them to take part in Regional Roundtables and share their contributions on border mobility with us.

More about Indigenous border mobility

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