Economy: Canada deports 366 Nigerians over housing shortages, border security

*The Canadian Government explains the North American country is intensifying deportations to tighten immigration targets towards addressing concerns about housing shortages, labour market pressures, and border security

Gbenga Kayode | ConsumerConnect

The Canadian Government has deported 366 Nigerians, citing issues of housing shortages and border security.

ConsumerConnect gathered the North American country has continued to intensify deportations to tighten immigration targets and address other concerns over labour market pressures.

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Canada also affirmed that it deported the number of Nigerians between January and October 2025 in an intensified crackdown on its immigration enforcement drive.

974 Nigerians currently in ‘removal in progress’ inventory, awaiting deportation -Official

Besides, official data obtained from the Canada Border Services Agency removals programme statistics indicated that that 974 Nigerians are currently in the “removal in progress” inventory, awaiting deportation from the country.

The November 2025 updated figure also showed that Nigeria ranked ninth among the 10 top nationalities deported from Canada.

Further analysis of the data showed that Nigerian deportations have fluctuated over the years.

For example, in fiscal year 2024-2025, Canada removed 18,048 people, spending approximately $78 million in the process.

In 2019, Canada removed 339 Nigerians; this dropped to 302 in 2020, then to 242 in 2021, and to 199 in 2022.

While Nigeria did not feature in the top 10 in 2023 and 2024, it returned to the list in 2025, recording 366 removals in just 10 months.

This represented an eight per cent increase compared to the 2019 figure.

It was gathered that the majority of those being removed, about 83 percent, are failed refugee claimants whose asylum applications Canada has denied.

Criminality accounts for about four percent of removals.

It also allocated an additional $30.5 million over three years to bolster removal efforts, while committing $1.3 billion to enhance border security.

The Canadian Government, therefore, averred that it is intensifying deportations to tighten immigration targets and address concerns over housing shortages, labour market pressures, and border security.

Speaking on the development, Aisling Bondy, President of the Canadian Association of Refugee Lawyers, reportedly expressed concern that deportations might ramp up further, if Bill C-12, also known as the ‘border bill’, passes.

Body explained: “One of the clauses in that bill is that a lot of people will be permanently banned from filing a refugee claim in Canada.”

Analysis of the CBSA data as well that Nigeria is the only African country featured in the 10 top nationalities for deportations in 2025.

Other African nations are grouped under “remaining nationals,” which accounted for 6,233 removals in 2025.

The 10 top countries for removals in 2025 are: Mexico (3,972), India (2,831), Haiti (2,012), Colombia (737), Romania (672), United States (656), Venezuela (562), China (385), Nigeria (366), and Pakistan (359), according to report.

Similarly, in the removal-in-progress record, Nigeria (974) is the only African country listed in the top 10. The inventory is led by India (6,515), followed by Mexico (4,650), the United States (1,704), China (1,430), Nigeria (974), Colombia (895), Pakistan (863), Haiti (741), Brazil (650), and Chile (621), report noted.

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