Canada has deported 366 Nigerians between January and October 2025, with 974 more awaiting removal, as immigration enforcement intensifies amid housing and border security concerns
Canada Deports 366 Nigerians in 2025 as Immigration Enforcement Tightens
Canada has deported 366 Nigerians between January and October 2025 as part of an intensified immigration enforcement drive, according to official data from the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA).
Statistics from the CBSA removals programme, updated on November 25, 2025, also showed that 974 Nigerians are currently listed under “removal in progress,” indicating they are awaiting deportation from the country.
The figures placed Nigeria ninth among the top 10 nationalities deported from Canada in 2025, making it the only African country to feature on the list.
A closer look at the data revealed that deportations of Nigerians have varied significantly over the years. In 2019, Canada removed 339 Nigerians, a figure that dropped to 302 in 2020, 242 in 2021, and 199 in 2022. Nigeria did not appear among the top 10 deported nationalities in 2023 and 2024, but re-entered the list in 2025, with 366 removals recorded within just 10 months—an eight per cent increase compared to the 2019 figure.
Overall, Canada deported 18,048 people during the 2024–2025 fiscal year, spending approximately $78 million on removal operations.
The CBSA data showed that about 83 per cent of those deported were failed refugee claimants whose asylum applications had been denied, while criminality accounted for roughly four per cent of removals.
To strengthen enforcement, the Canadian government allocated an additional $30.5 million over three years to boost deportation efforts and committed $1.3 billion toward enhancing border security.
Authorities say the tougher stance is aimed at tightening immigration targets and addressing growing concerns over housing shortages, labour market pressures, and border security.
However, the move has raised concerns among legal experts. Aisling Bondy, President of the Canadian Association of Refugee Lawyers, warned that deportations could increase further if Bill C-12, also known as the “border bill,” is passed.
“One of the clauses in that bill is that a lot of people will be permanently banned from filing a refugee claim in Canada,” Bondy said.
Analysis of the CBSA figures showed that while Nigeria was the only African country in the top 10 deported nationalities, other African countries were grouped under ‘remaining nationals,’ which accounted for 6,233 removals in 2025.
The top 10 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, in the removal-in-progress inventory, Nigeria ranked fifth with 974 cases, behind India (6,515), Mexico (4,650), the United States (1,704), and China (1,430). Other countries on the list included Colombia (895), Pakistan (863), Haiti (741), Brazil (650), and Chile (621). Read More
