The Canadian Council for Refugees (the “CCR“) has just distributed the following two PDFs to its followers. In brief, the Federal Court has issued an order saying that the best interests of non-detained children can be considered in detention reviews (e.g. of a parent who is accompanied in detention by a child who is in detention, but not legally detained).
As copied from the CCR e-mail, the Order confirms that:
- the factors to be considered by the Immigration Division when deciding whether to detain or release are not limited to those enumerated under R. 248 of the Regulations;
- the Immigration Division has the jurisdiction to consider the interests of a child who is a Canadian at an immigration holding centre (i.e. residing there with her detained parent) even if that child is not under a detention order herself and therefore not directly subject to the Immigration Division’s jurisdiction; and
- the interests of a child may be taken into account (but are not a primary consideration) when determining whether a person is a flight risk.
Also, according to the CCR, Canada Border Services Agency Hearings Officers have been instructed to bring this Order to the attention of Immigration Division members. The following instructions have also been provided to officers.