Canada deported no fewer than 366 Nigerians between January and October 2025, as authorities ramped up immigration enforcement to its highest level in more than a decade, official data have revealed.
Figures obtained from the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) removals programme further showed that an additional 974 Nigerians are currently listed as “removal in progress” and are awaiting deportation.
The statistics, last updated on November 25, 2025, placed Nigeria ninth among the top 10 countries whose nationals were removed from Canada within the period under review. Nigeria also ranked fifth among countries with the highest number of people awaiting removal.
A review of historical data indicated fluctuating deportation trends involving Nigerians. In 2019, 339 Nigerians were deported, a figure that dropped to 302 in 2020, 242 in 2021 and 199 in 2022.
Nigeria did not feature among the top 10 deported nationalities in 2023 and 2024 but returned to the list in 2025, with 366 deportations recorded within just 10 months—about an eight per cent increase compared to 2019.
The surge coincided with a sweeping immigration clampdown by Canadian authorities, with the CBSA now deporting nearly 400 foreign nationals weekly—the fastest rate in over 10 years.
In the 2024–2025 fiscal year alone, Canada removed 18,048 people at an estimated cost of $78m.
Under Canada’s Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, the CBSA is required to remove any foreign national with an enforceable removal order.
Individuals may be deemed inadmissible for reasons ranging from criminality and security concerns to misrepresentation, health issues, financial incapacity or failure to comply with immigration regulations.
CBSA data showed that about 83 per cent of deportees were failed refugee claimants whose asylum applications had been rejected, while criminal-related cases accounted for roughly four per cent of removals.
Canadian law recognises three types of removal orders: departure orders, which require individuals to leave within 30 days; exclusion orders, which bar re-entry for between one and five years; and deportation orders, which permanently prohibit return unless special authorisation is granted.
An analysis of the 2025 data revealed that Nigeria was the only African country listed among the top 10 nationalities deported from Canada.
Other African countries were grouped under “remaining nationals,” accounting for a combined 6,233 removals.
The leading countries for deportations in 2025 were Mexico (3,972), India (2,831), Haiti (2,012), Colombia (737), Romania (672), the United States (656), Venezuela (562), China (385), Nigeria (366) and Pakistan (359).
Similarly, Nigeria was the only African country among the top 10 nationalities with cases “in removal progress,” a list led by India (6,515), followed by Mexico (4,650), the United States (1,704), China (1,430) and Nigeria (974).
Canadian authorities said the intensified deportation drive was aimed at meeting revised immigration targets and easing pressures linked to housing shortages, labour market strain and border security.
To support the effort, the government earmarked an additional $30.5m over three years for removals, alongside a $1.3bn investment in border security.
However, refugee advocates have raised concerns over the policy direction. President of the Canadian Association of Refugee Lawyers, Aisling Bondy, warned that deportations could rise further if Bill C-12, popularly known as the “border bill,” is passed.
“One of the clauses in that bill would permanently bar many people from making refugee claims in Canada,” Bondy said.
Despite the tightening immigration regime, Canada remains a major destination for Nigerians seeking education, employment and better living conditions.
The 2021 Canadian census showed that more than 40,000 Nigerians migrated to Canada between 2016 and 2021, making them the largest African migrant group and the fifth-largest recent immigrant population overall.
Data from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada also indicated that 6,600 Nigerians became permanent residents in the first four months of 2024 alone, ranking fourth behind India, the Philippines and China.
Between 2005 and 2024, over 71,000 Nigerians acquired Canadian citizenship, placing Nigeria among the top 10 source countries for new Canadian citizens, even as Canada’s ageing population and labour shortages continue to attract skilled Nigerian professionals and students amid stricter immigration controls.
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