Refugees will no longer be covered by legal aid for appeals and federal court reviews of negative and allegedly wrongful asylum and deportation decisions as of this week.

In a letter released late Monday, Legal Aid Ontario CEO David Field said the agency has suspended paying for new legal services for immigration and refugee clients, except for the preparation of asylum claim forms. The move comes after Ontario’s Progressive Conservative government announced cuts in Thursday’s provincial budget to refugee and immigration cases — part of a 30 per cent or $133 million reduction to Legal Aid Ontario’s annual budget.

Field stressed the importance of the asylum claim forms, which will be covered by federal funding.

“The Basis of Claim form is the first, and often most important, stage in the refugee process as it sets out a refugee claimant’s story and their reasons for leaving their country of origin, and sets out the legal case for their refugee claim,” Field wrote.

“Basis of Claim preparation is the highest priority service and provides a strong foundation for clients to be successful in their claims.”

Legal aid had anticipated handling up to 16,000 asylum claims this year, at a cost of about $22.6 million, including paying legal counsel at refugee hearings.

Appeals and other immigration cases such as fighting the revocation of permanent resident status were projected to cost $5.2 million.

Field said legal aid may tap into federal funding estimated at between $13 million and $16.5 million for these services in this fiscal year while the province covers the transition costs.

In a joint statement released Monday evening, the Canadian Association of Refugee Lawyers and Ontario Refugee Lawyers Association said refugees are among the most vulnerable people Legal Aid Ontario serves.

“They often arrive in Canada with nothing and do not have the ability to represent themselves in Canada’s refugee determination system. They often don’t speak English and can be traumatized, yet they are immediately faced with a complex legal system,” they said in the statement.

“When refugee claimants do not have adequate legal representation, many face life-threatening consequences, including detention, torture, and possibly even death after deportation to the places from which they fled. The consequences of not having adequate legal representation for immigrants and refugees are irreversible.”

According to statistics provided by the two associations, 21 per cent of refugee appeals were successful in 2018, while the success rate of immigration appeals was at an “incredible” 38 per cent.

“A wrong decision on their case could result in failed refugee claimants choosing to remain in Ontario without legal status due to serious fear of returning to their country. A wrong decision could result in a claimant returning to a country where they are at a severe risk of harm. Refugee claimants will seek alternative ways to pay for counsel and are at risk of exploitation,” said the legal associations, which have launched an online petition to ask the province to reverse the cuts.

“Refugees may have to prioritize legal costs over their own basic needs. This will force already vulnerable claimants to depend more on shelters, food banks, and other services such as emergency shelters, which will increase costs to other government departments.”

Legal Aid Ontario said it will begin public consultations in the coming days to determine which services to resume should federal government funding increase for refugee legal aid in the province, as well as provide feedback on the interim measures.

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Attorney General Caroline Mulroney outlined the funding changes in a letter to Field dated Friday. The letter said the province expects the federal government to fully fund immigration and refugee law services for cases before federal tribunals or in federal court.

“However, my ministry is eager to work with you to modernize the way these services are provided within federal funding levels, and we are amenable to LAO utilizing current provincial resources to transition to a system that is sustainable solely on federal funding,” she said.