ACTOR Randy Quaid has told Canada's immigration board that he and his wife are seeking asylum there because eight of their close friends, including Australian actor Heath Ledger, have been "murdered" in the US and they don't want to be next.

He said they were fleeing "the murderers of Hollywood" and were applying for refugee status in Canada, after they were arrested on US warrants related to vandalism charges.

The pair were nabbed on Friday in Vancouver and were jailed on outstanding US warrants.

The Quaids are wanted in Santa Barbara, where they missed a court hearing on Tuesday.

The Quaids were released from custody on Saturday, but must each post $US9750 bail and fulfill their promise to appear for their next hearing on Friday.

Santa Barbara County Senior Deputy District Attorney Lee Carter said on Friday that Quaid and his wife Evi's bail increased to $US500,000 apiece.

Their lawyer, Robert Sanger, said he hoped the situation could be resolved but declined comment citing the pending case.

The couple told the immigration adjudicator they are being persecuted in the US.

Evi Quaid begged a Canadian immigration adjudicator not to force them to return, saying on Friday that friends, such as actors David Carradine and Ledger have been "murdered" under mysterious circumstances and she worried something would happen to her husband next.

"We feel our lives are in danger," she said. "Randy has known eight close friends murdered in odd, strange manners ... We feel that we're next."

During a break in the proceedings, the Quaids' lawyer, Brian Tsuji approached the media to read a single-sentence statement from the Quaids. "We are requesting asylum from Hollywood star whackers," he read, declining further comment on the mental state of his clients.

Evi Quaid said she's been told by a jail nurse that her blood pressure is dangerously high due to stress and that Randy Quaid's mother has been hospitalised in the US as a result of the stress from their legal troubles.

Friday's hearing was a mandatory detention review.

On Friday, the Quaids promised they would appear for their next hearing. Evi Quaid said she'd be willing to wear an ankle bracelet while staying at a posh Vancouver hotel.

Randy Quaid said the couple came to Canada because he was being given an award by a film critics group. He said they were considering moving to Vancouver where Randy planned to jump-start his career.

"Canada is a beautiful country for what we want to do," Quaid said outside the hearing room, without elaborating on his plans.

The Quaids face no charges in Canada.

A US judge issued arrest warrants on Monday for the couple after they failed to show up at a California court hearing stemming from their arrests last month on suspicion of illegally squatting at a home.

Quaid and his wife face felony vandalism charges after more than $US5000 in damage was found in a guest house of a Montecito, California home they had previously owned.

The Quaids frequently missed court appearances in an earlier US case involving charges they defrauded an innkeeper. That case was resolved in April with Evi Quaid pleading no contest to a misdemeanour. The charges against her husband were dropped.

Randy Quaid, 60, is best-known for supporting roles in films such as Independence Day and National Lampoon's Vacation. He is the older brother of Dennis Quaid.

Ledger was nominated for an Oscar for his lead role in the movie Brokeback Mountain. He died in January, 2008 from an accidental prescription drug overdose.

Carradine was star of the hit 1970s television series Kung Fu and also had a movie career before he hanged himself in Thailand last year. He was 72.