Fact Sheet

Date issued: January 2011
Last reviewed: June 2013

Criminal Investigations

Criminal Investigations Program (CIP)

The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) is committed to upholding Canadian laws and taking appropriate enforcement action to ensure the health, safety, security and prosperity of Canada and its citizens.

The CBSA's Criminal Investigations Program helps protect Canadians and Canada's economy by investigating potential border-related offences and pursuing prosecution of individuals who commit these offences.

Laws administered by the CIP

There are over 200 CBSA criminal investigators across the country. Their work is crucial to ensuring that Canadian laws as they relate to the border are respected, and, where they are not, that appropriate enforcement and legal action is taken.

Criminal investigators are responsible for enforcing a wide variety of Canadian border-related laws. Here are some of the most commonly breached:

• Immigration and Refugee Protection Act
• Customs Act
• Export and Import Permits Act
• Special Import Measures Act
• Cultural Property Import and Export Act
• Health of Animals Act
• Plant Protection Act

Types of cases and offences

Any individuals — including foreign nationals and Canadian citizens — who may have committed customs fraud, immigration fraud or any other offence against Canada's border legislation may be subject to an investigation by a CBSA criminal investigations unit. 

The types of cases investigated range from cases such as those that pose a safety or security risk to Canada and Canadians to those that create an unfair advantage for businesses or that jeopardize the integrity of Canada's immigration program.

Offences frequently investigated and prosecuted under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act include:

• Human smuggling
• Immigration consultant fraud
• International student or worker fraud
• Marriage fraud

The most common offences investigated and prosecuted under the Customs Act include:

• Illegal importation or exportation of controlled, regulated or prohibited goods (e.g. weapons, contraband tobacco, etc.).
• Evading the payment of duties and taxes on goods being imported.

Other types of offences investigated and prosecuted under various other Acts include:

• Illegal importation of food, plant and animals. Contraventions of this nature may lead to an increased risk for the spread of pests and diseases.

Please visit our Media Room regularly for news releases on cases where charges have been laid and others where penalties were imposed for various border-related offences.

Launching an investigation

A criminal investigation is launched as a result of a tip and/or information received from the public, other divisions within the CBSA, other government departments, as well as local and provincial police agencies.

Information can be provided by calling the Border Watch toll-free line or a local criminal investigations unit.

Investigative process

The investigative process usually includes interviewing the individual concerned and/or individuals who provided the information, conducting verifications in CBSA's various systems, and the use of investigative techniques such as surveillance and execution of search warrants. Once an investigation is complete, if there is sufficient evidence to indicate a serious and deliberate border-related offence, criminal investigators work with the Public Prosecution Service of Canada to lay the appropriate charges and follow through with prosecution in a court of law.

Additional factors considered prior to pursuing criminal charges and prosecution can include the impact of the offence on public order and confidence in the administration of justice, availability of alternate enforcement options (such as pursuing removal of the foreign national or permanent resident from Canada), and the need for deterrence.

In cases involving foreign nationals or permanent residents, it may be determined   after an initial review that it is more appropriate for the CBSA to pursue the case by way of immigration proceedings. If so, the criminal investigations unit will refer the information to the appropriate division to prepare a report regarding the immigration violation for the Minister's delegate. This may lead to a hearing before the Immigration and Refugee Board. If successful, enforcement action in these cases usually involves removal of the individual from Canada.

Penalties upon criminal prosecution

The severity of the offence generally correlates to the severity of the penalty imposed as outlined in the relevant Act. Successful criminal prosecutions may result in lifelong criminal records, court imposed fines, probation periods and incarceration.

A human smuggling offence, for example, may be punishable by a fine of up to $1 million and/or to life imprisonment if convicted on indictment. An offence involving a person who misrepresented or counseled someone else to misrepresent themselves by providing false information for immigration purposes may be fined up to $100,000 and/or up to five years imprisonment.

Criminal investigators may also initiate civil penalties such as seizures of goods and monetary penalties (i.e. AMPS).

Federal partners

Criminal investigators work closely and consult with a number of other federal enforcement agencies and departments. These include the RCMP, Citizenship and Immigration Canada, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, the Public Prosecution Service of Canada, Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada and Environment Canada.

The CBSA often combines investigative and enforcement efforts with the RCMP and other local and provincial police agencies as appropriate. 

Citizenship and Immigration Canada provides crucial information in investigations involving immigration fraud where temporary foreign workers, students, and immigration consultants may be involved.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency provides valuable information and collaborates with the CBSA to investigate import offences related to food, plant and animal legislation.

Environment Canada collaborates by providing important information in relation to offences against the Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act.

The CBSA also works and collaborates with the Public Prosecution Service of Canada in the laying of charges and throughout the court process.