More than 32,000 individuals with outstanding deportation orders have disappeared within Canada, according to newly released data covering 2025. The figures, comprised largely of failed refugee claimants, represent a significant challenge for the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), though the agency maintains it is meeting its removal targets despite the large number of individuals unaccounted for. This report examines the growing issue of missing deportees, recent criticisms of the CBSA’s data handling, and a concerning case highlighting potential gaps in the system.
More than 32,000 migrants facing deportation from Canada have disappeared after escaping the oversight of border authorities, according to data from 2025. The figures, largely comprised of failed refugee claimants, haven’t raised concerns within the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), which maintains its teams are meeting demand.
The CBSA reported completing 22,100 removals in 2025, a record since the agency’s creation. “We carried out 22,100 removals for the year 2025, which is a record since the creation of the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA),” said Carl Desmarais, the agency’s director general of enforcement and internal services, in an interview.
Responsible for enforcing deportation orders, the CBSA is tasked with removing foreign nationals subject to removal warrants. According to Desmarais, this work is ongoing due to the “number of failed refugees,” leading him to describe the list of individuals sought for removal as “dynamic” and fluctuating daily.
Data obtained by Radio-Canada confirms that roughly half of the 63,000 foreign nationals with outstanding deportation warrants were unaccounted for as of August 31, 2025. This situation underscores the challenges faced by immigration authorities in tracking and removing individuals ordered deported.
Number of People in Canada Subject to a Deportation Warrant
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| Years | People Subject to a Deportation Warrant | People Reported Missing |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 63,298 | 32,811 |
| 2020 | 50,000 | 34,700 |
The situation was similar in 2020, prompting criticism of the CBSA by the Auditor General for the “poor quality” of its data and the “fundamental weaknesses” it displayed.
“The number of people sought today is roughly the same as in 2020, but that doesn’t mean they are the same people,” Desmarais explained. “We issued 7,000 arrest warrants during the 2023-2024 and 2024-2025 fiscal years, while executing approximately 9,500. This shows there is turnover and that we have the means to locate these individuals.”
Desmarais added that some foreign nationals may leave the country voluntarily without notifying Canadian authorities.
The vast majority of those facing deportation are failed asylum seekers, with a few thousand being criminals.
Reasons for Deportation from Canada
| Reasons for Deportation | Number of People Affected |
|---|---|
| Security reasons | 69 |
| Violation of human rights or international rights | 21 |
| Criminality | 5 |
| Transnational crime | 1,399 |
| Organized crime | 38 |
| False statements | 438 |
| Cessation | 72 |
| Non-compliance/non-asylum seekers | 1,399 |
| Non-compliance other/failed asylum seekers | 25,786 |
| Section not entered into the system | 287 |
| Other | 28 |
| Total | 29,542 |
We review warrants on a periodic and proactive basis. We assign certain priorities. A warrant targeting someone with a history of criminality, for example, will be reviewed more intensely than if it were a failed refugee.
A Rare, But Troubling Case
Long deportation delays can sometimes disrupt the lives of Canadian citizens. This is the case for Stéphanie, whose attacker and former partner, Mouad Sghir, remains free despite a deportation order to his native Morocco.
Imprisoned in 2023, Sghir was released on January 4, 2026. “I had medical appointments in the city where he is currently located, but I won’t be able to go. I’m not ready to find myself in the same city as him,” she said.
Sghir brutally assaulted and raped Stéphanie in 2020. He was described by the Parole Board of Canada as a dangerous offender with a “high risk” of reoffending. After the crime, he was on the run for 11 months before being arrested in 2021.
I don’t understand why they’re giving a chance to a violent former fugitive to be free. He made no effort at rehabilitation in prison. I would like them to tell me where my rights are, because I feel they are being trampled on. I feel like they’re asking me to disappear, when I’m the Canadian citizen.
A vehicle from the Canada Border Services Agency. (File photo)
Photo: Radio-Canada / Natacha Lavigne
Carl Desmarais, who is not authorized to comment on Sghir’s case, reiterated that cases of this nature are “closely monitored.”
“It’s important to remember that individuals who have committed crimes have certain rights of appeal. In some cases, it may also be necessary to obtain authorization from the country of origin. There are several circumstances that can cause the removal to take longer than anticipated,” he explained.
Authorities encourage offenders like Sghir to initiate the deportation process themselves. If they refuse, the CBSA can begin the process, including diplomatic efforts, to carry out the removal “in a timely manner,” Desmarais said.
A deportation can only begin upon a person’s release from prison. Having been released two weeks ago, Sghir is residing with a relative and must report to a CBSA office twice a month.
Minister Questioned
Federal MP Sébastien Lemire in the House of Commons. (File photo)
Photo: House of Commons
Federal MP for Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Sébastien Lemire, said he is continuing to pressure Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree.
“We are aware that Canada wants to respect international conventions by ensuring that the person being deported has a valid passport. Mr. Sghir lost his right to be on Canadian soil due to his serious crimes and, document or not, he should have been deported already,” he said in a written statement.
It may be utopian, but I would really like the federal Minister of Public Safety to answer me and explain to me why he (Mouad Sghir) is still here. I would also like to understand why he is not being held in prison while awaiting deportation.
The minister’s office did not respond to requests for comment, nor did the Prime Minister’s office or federal parties.
“In general, immigration detention is always used as a last resort,” Carl Desmarais responded. “In some cases, we must use it, for example if we anticipate that the person represents a flight risk or a danger to society. We have powers and we use them responsibly before the Immigration and Refugee Board.”
