How does the system work?
According to the immigration law of Canada, when entering the country, each traveler is obligated to honestly answer all questions asked by the immigration officer on the border. This process was introduced for the purpose of collection of data on people who officially visit the country.
However, a similar system was not adjusted for the accounting of people who leave the country. Therefore, for official structures, it was difficult to define dates of departure of travelers and their presence or absence in the country.
What innovations were introduced?
The ministry of Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship of Canada (IRCC) and the Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA) will shortly be able to obtain objective data on each person leaving and visiting the country. CBSA will have access to information from several official institutions and airlines, which will be obliged to provide this information 72 hours prior to the passenger’s departure. IRCC, in its turn, will be able to use multiple data resources for confirmation of the reliability of information on the immigrants applying for permanent residence, sponsorship, family immigration, refugee programs, etc.
What will be the cost of this innovation?
According to preliminary estimates, it will be necessary to allocate $79.6 million for the development of new systems for the collection of information within the next ten years. Airlines will also be responsible for investing $30.33 million during the same period. Estimated profit in 10 years is expected to be of $357.17 million.
This information will help to easily find illegal penetration into the country of unregistered immigrants and/or terrorists and to react to the announcements of disappearance and kidnapping more effectively. Also, with this system, it will easier to find those who avoid paying taxes. This practice is already effectively used in several developed countries, in particular, Great Britain and the USA.
