Former refugee believes she wouldn’t have been able to stay with proposed border bill

By Canadian Press on October 31, 2025.

OTTAWA — A trans woman does not believe she would have been able to stay in Canada if the refugee rules outlined in the government’s new border bill were in effect.

Asya Medea came to Canada in 2018 on a student visa to begin a PhD and about 18 months later she claimed refugee status after she began transitioning believing returning to Turkey would be dangerous for her.

Bill C-12 will bar the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada from hearing refugee claims from individuals who have been in Canada for more than a year.

Immigration Minister Lena Diab has said people in that situation who are looking to make a refugee claim could still request a pre-removal risk assessment.

Evidence presented at an immigration hearing in 2022 suggests only about six per cent those assessments result in permission to stay in Canada.

Medea is now a permanent resident in Canada but says she knows other people with pending refugee claims who no longer know if they will be eligible if this bill passes.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 31, 2025.

David Baxter, The Canadian Press