An assessment of risk available to some people facing removal from Canada.
A Pre-Removal Risk Assessment is a review of whether a person facing removal from Canada would be at risk if returned. It exists as a safeguard against removing someone into danger, and it is assessed by an officer rather than by the Immigration and Refugee Board.
Access to it is defined and restricted. Not everyone facing removal can apply, and bars apply in various situations, including in a period following a negative refugee decision. Where a PRRA is available, notification usually comes with an extremely short window to respond — this is one of the tightest deadlines in the system.
Where a person previously had a refugee claim refused, the assessment generally focuses on new evidence: developments that arose after the earlier decision, or that could not reasonably have been presented then. Re-arguing the original claim on the same material is not what the process is for, and understanding that distinction is most of what makes a PRRA submission useful.
| What it assesses | Risk on return, for a person facing removal |
|---|---|
| Decided by | An officer, not the Immigration and Refugee Board |
| Access | Defined and restricted; bars apply in some situations |
| Deadline | Very short once notified |
| Usually turns on | New evidence since any earlier decision |
What an application on this route usually involves. Not a checklist that guarantees anything — IRCC sets the requirements, and they change.
Whether it fits you is what a consultation is for. This page cannot answer that and does not try to.
The deadline is short enough that reading about the process can itself consume the window. Get advice first, read second.
Where a claim was previously refused, the assessment is about new evidence. The same material re-argued rarely advances anything.
Submissions need to establish that the evidence arose later or could not reasonably have been presented before.
The interaction between a PRRA and a removal date depends on the situation and should be confirmed, not assumed.
No. Access is defined and restricted, and bars apply in various situations including within a period following a negative refugee decision.
The window is very short once notified — among the tightest in the system. It should be treated as immediately urgent rather than researched at length.
Generally not usefully. Where there was an earlier refused claim, the assessment focuses on new evidence rather than re-argument of the same material.
The relationship between a PRRA and a removal date is specific and depends on the circumstances. It is not safe to assume that applying pauses everything.
That is the one question this page cannot answer. Start with the free assessment, then bring your situation to a consultation with the RCIC-IRB.
Start Your AssessmentBook a paid consultationThis page is general information. It is not an assessment of your eligibility, and nothing on it is immigration advice for consideration. Pre-Removal Risk Assessment matters at ZIMMR are advised on directly by Irshad Osman, RCIC-IRB.
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