Convicted felons, such as Trump, can get permits to enter Canada | Fact check
The claim: Donald Trump can't travel to Canada because he is a convicted felon
A Dec. 3 Threads post (direct link, archive link) offers a theory as to why Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau traveled to Florida to meet with President-elect Donald Trump.
"Republicans gloating about how Justin Trudeau had to go to Mar-a-Lago to bend the knee, when in fact, they had to meet in Florida because Canada won't allow felons in their country," the post reads.
The post was liked more than 400 times in 10 days, and a similar claim was posted elsewhere on Threads.
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Our rating: False
While Canada can bar convicted felons from entering the country, there is no evidence the meeting came in Florida because Trump is not allowed in Canada. A spokesperson for the Canadian Border Services Agency said waivers can be granted on a case-by-case basis, and a Canadian immigration lawyer said a permit allowing Trump to enter should be granted with little difficulty.
No evidence Trump could not go to Canada
Trump announced on Nov. 25 he planned to impose 25% tariffs on all goods from Mexico and Canada upon taking office as punishment for illegal immigration and the flow of drugs into the U.S. Trudeau dined with Trump over Thanksgiving weekend at Mar-a-Lago, a meeting in which Trump reportedly joked that Canada could avoid tariffs by becoming the 51st U.S. state.
Even without absorbing the northern neighbor into the U.S. or getting his conviction on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records overturned, Trump should have little trouble entering Canada. There is no proof Trudeau had to come to Florida to meet with Trump, nor that the president-elect was barred from entering Canada.
The Canadian law that says convicted felons may not enter the country has mechanisms for obtaining permission in spite of a conviction, Rebecca Purdy, a spokesperson for the Canadian Border Services Agency, told Paste BN.
“Admissibility of all travelers is decided on a case-by-case basis and based on the information made available at the time of entry,” Purdy wrote in an email, adding that the agency would not comment publicly on any individual’s immigration or border-crossing eligibility.
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Purdy pointed to Canada’s Immigration and Refugee Protection Act as the starting point. The law declares people convicted of felonies in other countries or crimes that would be felonies in Canada “inadmissible,” but it says someone can be deemed “rehabilitated” and have the restriction permanently lifted.
A rehabilitated designation requires a lengthy process that cannot begin for at least five years after a sentence is completed, said Daniel Levy, a senior attorney with Cohen Immigration Law. The firm has worked for decades with entertainers, athletes and others to enter Canada.
The pathway for Trump to enter while in office would instead be with a temporary residence permit, which requires an immigration or border services agent to determine that a person’s “need to enter or stay in Canada must outweigh the health or safety risks to Canadian society.”
“If Mick Jagger and the Rolling Stones pull up in a bus and they are on their way to a sold-out show in Montreal or Toronto, they’re getting in,” Levy said, apparently nodding to Jagger's past.
“People get in for all kinds of reasons,” he said. “People going on Alaskan cruises that stop in Canada. I’ve done them for entertainers, athletes, businesspeople. People can come in for weddings and funerals. People with felonies get in just to see the Canadian side of Niagara Falls. The idea that Trump would be denied entry is nonsensical.”
Paste BN could not reach one of the Threads users who shared the claim for comment and did not immediately receive a response from the other.
Check Your Fact and Lead Stories also debunked the claim.
Our fact-check sources
- Rebecca Purdy, Dec. 11, Email exchange with Paste BN
- Daniel Levy, Dec. 11, Phone interview with Paste BN
- Government of Canada, accessed Dec. 10, Overcome criminal convictions
- Government of Canada, accessed Dec. 10, Temporary resident permits - inadmissibility
- Government of Canada, accessed Dec. 10, Reasons you may be inadmissible to Canada
- Government of Canada, accessed Dec. 10, Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (S.C. 2001, c. 27)
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