The decision to lift the visa requirements for Romanians who travel to Canada not only led to an increase in refugee claims from Romanian citizens but also fueled organized crime in Canada, according to a declassified report quoted by Global News.

The report, which was issued in February 2018 by the Canada Border Services Agency, said “the lifting of the visa requirement for Romanian nationals on December 1, 2017, has precipitated a noticeable increase of the activities of Romanian-based Organized Crime Groups (ROCs) targeting Canada.”

It also pointed out that, in addition to the significant increase in the number of refugee claims by Romanian nationals following the visa lift, another “tangible result” was that there has been “a noticeable increase in the instances of members or associates of ROGs entering or attempting to enter Canada,” Global News reported.

Canada has lifted the visas for Romanians and Bulgarians from December 1, 2017. However, those who plan to go to or transit Canada by air have to obtain an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA). The Romanian Foreign Ministry also announced earlier this month that the Romanians traveling to Canada without a visa would be able to apply for an eTA only with a simple electronic passport (with biometric data). The change applied starting June 5.

Canada has seen an increase in asylum claims from Romanian citizens after the visa lift. Local media reported in late May that Romania was third in the ranking of countries with most asylum seekers in Canada in 2018, after Nigeria and India, according to data from the Refugee Protection Division (RPD) within the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB).

Irina Marica, irina.marica@romania-insider.com