The law regarding Convention Refugees and the process of claiming refuge is quite complex. Under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) a category of persons who are 'in need of protection' has been created .
Refugees can make a refugee claim inside Canada or outside Canada. Refugees can also be brought to Canada as 'government assisted refugees' (those selected by the government of Canada from outside Canada), OR as privately sponsored refugees (those selected by various Canadian religious groups or non-government organziation or as a a part of a 'group of five' private sponsorship).
Explanation
For a full explanation of the Refugee determination process, visit the CIC site at:
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/refugees/index.html [1]
In Depth Policy Manuals
For further in depth information you may also wish to refer to the following Policy Manuals used by CIC:
- For the Manual detailing how Refugee claims are to be processed within Canada visit:
http://www.cic.gc.ca/manuals-guides/english/pp/pp01e.pdf [2] - For the Manual detailing how Refugee claims are to be processed outside Canada visit:
http://www.irb.gc.ca/en/ [3]
Additional Sites of Interest - Refugee claims in Canada are determined by the Immigration and Refugee Board, the IRB's site can be visited at: http://www.irb.gc.ca/en/ [4].
The Canadian Council for Refugees also has a great deal of information relating to refugees (and persons in need of protection); the CCR's site can be visited at: http://www.web.net/~ccr/fronteng.htm [5]