TRENTON, Canada

The Canadian government has been accused of deliberately stalling on visas after only 620 of 5,000 Palestinians deemed eligible to come to Canada have arrived, Canada media reported Friday.

Canadian immigration lawyers levelled the charge and said now is the opportunity to bring Palestinians to Canada now that there is a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas and the Rafah crossing is open.

“For those still seeking relocation – particularly individuals with family in Canada – this moment presents a crucial opportunity to fulfill our humanitarian obligations,” Toronto immigration lawyer Warda Shazadi Meighen told the Globe and Mail newspaper.

About 5,000 Palestinians took advantage of a special temporary immigration program that allowed them to come to Canada if they had relatives living in the country. But while they were approved, only 15% have made the journey.

Some Palestinians have paid thousands of dollars in bribes to enter Egypt so they can complete the checks deemed necessary for approval by the Canadian government, immigration lawyers said.

They are in limbo, along with others, in Gaza awaiting word their visas have been accepted.

Matthew Behrens, a co-ordinator with the Rural Refugee Rights Network, said it is “inexcusable” for Canada to tarry on applications when “the border could be closed again at a moment’s notice,” the Globe and Mail reported.

Initiated in 2023, the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) program enabled Palestinians who had family with permanent residency or Canadian citizenship to bring family members to Canada. They would be able to reside in Canada for three years.

As of Jan. 11, 4,831 applications had been completed, the Globe and Mail reported. But a government official said Canada can only do so to speed up the process.

“We have put forward names of people who passed preliminary eligibility and admissibility reviews to local authorities for approval to exit Gaza; however, Canada does not control who or when someone can exit Gaza,” Nancy Caron, an IRCC spokeswoman, told the Globe and Mail.