OTTAWA - Global Affairs Canada has indicated that the deteriorating global stability is necessitating a significant increase in the resources required to protect Canadians abroad. The department has cautioned Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand that Canadians may need to prepare for increased costs and diminished expectations regarding consular services.
This information was outlined in a briefing binder prepared for Anand when she assumed her position in May 2023. The binder encompasses details about the eight Canadians currently facing the death penalty overseas, as well as the geopolitical tensions in regions where Canadian embassies are urgently evacuating citizens and their families.
The binder emphasizes that while Anand may anticipate prioritizing international policy, a considerable portion of her responsibilities will involve handling consular work. "Canadians' expectations are not anticipated to abate, and the minister of foreign affairs has a visible role in managing consular crises and demands for assistance," it states.
Global Affairs Canada reported a significant uptick in the deployment of evacuation personnel, noting a 3.4-fold increase over the past five years due to multiple factors such as heightened travel, a diverse Canadian population, geopolitical instability, wars, civil unrest, earthquakes, and climate-related disasters. The department also specified that its assistance is increasingly extended not only to Canadian citizens but also to permanent residents and their families.
This shift has resulted in a worrying financial shortfall for Global Affairs Canada (GAC), particularly since the $25 fee for consular services associated with adult passports has remained unchanged since 2013, even with the introduction of the 10-year passport option. GAC underscored that the growing gap between revenues and costs is exerting pressure on departmental resources, particularly during legal disputes concerning consular treatment.
In the fiscal year ending March 2024, GAC opened 7,208 consular cases, addressing a variety of issues, including severe illnesses and child abductions. Additionally, the department provided 271,340 routine services for Canadians abroad, such as issuing passports and citizenship certificates. Notably, consular issues accounted for approximately 40% of the total 3,358 media inquiries received by the department in 2024.
The financial implications of ongoing crises include evacuations related to escalating violence and instability in countries like Haiti, where the consular response for 2024 cost nearly $10 million to assist 681 Canadians. Furthermore, GAC has allocated an additional $40 million for evacuations and preparations concerning potential evacuations in the Middle East.
According to Global Affairs Canada, between March 2023 and March 2025, the department facilitated the evacuation of 5,231 Canadians from various locations, including 880 from the Gaza Strip, 1,627 from Israel, 462 from Sudan, and 153 due to wildfires in Hawaii.
The briefing document also highlighted that as of May 2025, Ottawa was aware of four Canadians on death row in the United States, noting that both federal and state governments have the authority to impose the death penalty for certain crimes. The binder pointed out that U.S. President Donald Trump had directed the Justice Department to seek the death penalty as a common practice.
In Canada, Robert Schellenberg, a native of Abbotsford, B.C., was sentenced to death in China in 2019 for drug-smuggling charges, a case Ottawa has deemed arbitrary and advocated for clemency. It was mentioned in the binder that, alarmingly, China executed four Canadian citizens in early 2025.
Regarding India, the binder detailed that Canadian citizen Tahawwur Hussain Rana was extradited from the U.S. in April to face trial related to the 2008 Mumbai terrorist attacks, where he could also potentially face the death penalty if convicted. The document noted that up to 18 Canadians were detained in India as of April 2025, with various issues leading to 120 new consular cases opened in the fiscal year ending in March 2024.
Another report, obtained through access-to-information laws, indicated that 993 Canadians were imprisoned abroad. This document identified three additional death penalty cases not included in the May briefing, including cases in Vietnam and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Furthermore, Anand's briefing stated that Canada is actively working to promote norms that prevent hostage diplomacy. Following the detention of two Canadian citizens by China for more than 1,000 days, Canada initiated the "arbitrary detention initiative" in 2021 to address such issues. GAC later appointed a senior official specifically for hostage affairs, integrating this role with existing consular responsibilities.
In contrast to the previous government, Anand’s current assistant for consular cases is MP Mona Fortier, and none of the parliamentary secretaries appointed by Prime Minister Mark Carney hold a public title related to consular matters.
