The Trump administration’s renewed enforcement of current immigration laws is having an impact beyond actual deportations.
Illegal immigration from Mexico appears to be in decline as fewer people are being detained crossing the border.
Another effect appears to be Mexicans increasingly heading to Canada, after Canada eased restrictions just as Trump was increasing law enforcement.
Reuters reports, Exclusive: Canadian border authorities detaining record number of Mexicans:
Canada’s border authorities detained more Mexicans in the first 67 days of 2017 than they did annually in any of the three previous years, according to statistics obtained by Reuters.The spike comes immediately after Canada’s federal government lifted its visa requirement for Mexican citizens in December.Many Mexicans looking north have shifted their focus from the United States to Canada as President Donald Trump vows to crack down on America’s undocumented immigrants, about half of whom are Mexican. On Friday, Reuters reported, immigration judges were reassigned to 12 U.S. cities to speed up deportation.The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) said it detained 444 Mexican nationals between Jan. 1 and March 8, compared with 410 for all of 2016, 351 for 2015, and 399 for 2014.The CBSA can detain foreign nationals if it is believed they pose a danger to the public, if their identity is unclear or if they are deemed unlikely to appear for removal or for a proceeding.The number of Mexicans turned back at the airport has risen, too – to 313 in January, more than any January since 2012 and more than the annual totals for 2012, 2013 and 2014.With the visa requirement lifted, all that Mexicans need to come to Canada is an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA), obtainable online in a matter of minutes. But they cannot work without a work permit, and the eTA does not guarantee entry.
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