The three types of removal order
| Order | What it means | Returning to Canada |
|---|---|---|
| Departure order | You must leave within 30 days after it becomes enforceable and confirm your departure with the CBSA. | No special permission needed if you complied. If you did not, it becomes a deportation order. |
| Exclusion order | You must leave Canada. | Permission (an ARC) needed for one year after removal, or five years if the order was for misrepresentation. |
| Deportation order | You must leave Canada. | You cannot return without an Authorization to Return to Canada, at any time. |
Missing a CBSA appointment or a removal date can lead to a Canada-wide warrant, arrest and detention. If you cannot attend, contact counsel before the date, not after.
When removal can be paused
- Statutory stays apply automatically in some situations, for example during a timely RAD appeal or IAD appeal, or a timely PRRA application.
- Deferral requests ask the removals officer to postpone the removal date for a short-term reason, such as a pending decision, a child’s school year, or a medical issue.
- Federal Court stays are urgent motions asking the court to stop removal while a related case is decided. They are argued by our litigation counsel partners.
- Country-wide pauses, called Administrative Deferrals or Temporary Suspensions of Removals, apply to certain countries in crisis, with exceptions for criminality and security cases.
Pre-removal risk assessment (PRRA)
A PRRA is a written assessment by an IRCC officer of whether you would face persecution, torture, a risk to life, or cruel and unusual treatment or punishment if removed. It uses the same tests as a refugee claim.
- NotificationThe CBSA tells you when you are eligible to apply, usually at a removal interview.
- Apply within 15 daysAn application within 15 days of notification generally stays removal until the decision. If notification was by mail, an extra 7 days are added.
- Submissions within the next 15 daysWritten submissions and evidence follow. We file them with the application wherever we can.
- DecisionMost PRRAs are decided on paper. An oral hearing is held only where credibility is central to the decision.
Who can apply
People whose refugee claims were rejected, abandoned or withdrawn must usually wait 12 months before they can apply for a PRRA, subject to exceptions. People whose claims were found ineligible, including under the 2026 one-year and 14-day rules, are generally sent to the PRRA process instead of a hearing. For them it can be the only chance to have their risk assessed.
A positive PRRA usually gives you protected person status, and with it the right to apply for permanent residence. People who are inadmissible on serious grounds may receive a stay of removal instead.
How ATWORLD IMMIGRATION helps
- We explain your order and your real timeline.
- We prepare deferral requests and PRRA applications with up-to-date country evidence.
- We attend CBSA removal interviews with you where the officer allows it.
- We coordinate with litigation counsel on Federal Court stays of removal.
Last reviewed November 2026. This page is general information, not legal advice. Immigration law and IRB procedure change often; we confirm the current rules for your file at your consultation.