The number of illegal immigrants trying to sneak into Canada from the United States skyrocketed more than 80 percent from July to August, a Canadian news service reported.

Figures released by the government showed 3,134 illegals seeking asylum were stopped by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in July, while 5,712 were caught in August, an increase of about 82 percent, Torstar News Service reported.

The vast majority were stopped at the New York-Quebec portion of the border, the figures showed, where 5,530 people crossed into Canada in August, compared with 102 in British Columbia and 80 in Manitoba, according to the news service.

So far this year, 13,211 people have crossed into Canada illegally from the United States – most to get around the Safe Third Country Agreement, which forces refugee claimants to file their asylum request in the first country in which they land, Torstar reported.

By sneaking into Canada, the illegals, when caught, are permitted to make their refugee claim there.

The Canadian numbers are still small compared to the U.S. southwestern border, The Washington Times reported.

More than 30,000 illegal immigrants were nabbed either at the ports of entry or trying to sneak in between the official ports in August, according to the latest American government statistics, the newspaper reported.