Canadian Legislation

Human trafficking is an offence under the Criminal Code of Canada and the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.

Specific criminal laws against trafficking in persons (TIP) in the Criminal Code

Four offences in the Criminal Code specifically address human trafficking:

  1. Trafficking in Persons (section 279.01): which carries a maximum penalty of 14 years imprisonment. If, however, it involves kidnapping, aggravated assault, aggravated sexual assault, or death. The maximum penalty is life imprisonment.

279.01 (1) Every person who recruits, transports, transfers, receives, holds, conceals or harbours a person, or exercises control, direction or influence over the movements of a person, for the purpose of exploiting them or facilitating their exploitation is guilty of an indictable offence and liable

  1. (a) to imprisonment for life and to a minimum punishment of imprisonment for a term of five years if they kidnap, commit an aggravated assault or aggravated sexual assault against, or cause death to, the victim during the commission of the offence; or
  2. (b) to imprisonment for a term of not more than 14 years and to a minimum punishment of imprisonment for a term of four years in any other case.

Consent

(2) No consent to the activity that forms the subject-matter of a charge under subsection (1) is valid.

  1. Trafficking of a person under the age of eighteen years (section 279.011) which carries a maximum penalty of 14 years imprisonment and a mandatory minimum penalty of imprisonment of 5 years. In cases involving kidnapping, aggravated assault, aggravated sexual assault or death, the maximum penalty is life imprisonment and the minimum penalty is six years imprisonment.

279.011 (1) Every person who recruits, transports, transfers, receives, holds, conceals or harbours a person under the age of eighteen years, or exercises control, direction or influence over the movements of a person under the age of eighteen years, for the purpose of exploiting them or facilitating their exploitation is guilty of an indictable offence and liable

    1. (a) to imprisonment for life and to a minimum punishment of imprisonment for a term of six years if they kidnap, commit an aggravated assault or aggravated sexual assault against, or cause death to, the victim during the commission of the offence; or
    2. (b) to imprisonment for a term of not more than fourteen years and to a minimum punishment of imprisonment for a term of five years, in any other case.

Consent

(2) No consent to the activity that forms the subject-matter of a charge under subsection (1) is valid.

  1. Receiving a Financial or Other Material Benefit for the purpose of committing or facilitating trafficking in persons (section 279.02): punishable by a maximum of 10 years imprisonment;

279.02 (1) Everyone who receives a financial or other material benefit, knowing that it is obtained by or derived directly or indirectly from the commission of an offence under subsection 279.01(1), is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term of not more than 10 years.

Material benefit — trafficking of person under 18 years

(2) Everyone who receives a financial or other material benefit, knowing that it is obtained by or derived directly or indirectly from the commission of an offence under subsection 279.011(1), is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term of not more than 14 years and to a minimum punishment of imprisonment for a term of two years.

and,

  1. Withholding or Destroying a Person’s Identity Documents (for example, a passport) for the purpose of committing or facilitating trafficking of that person (section 279.03): carries a maximum penalty of five years imprisonment.

279.03 (1) Everyone who, for the purpose of committing or facilitating an offence under subsection 279.01(1), conceals, removes, withholds or destroys any travel document that belongs to another person or any document that establishes or purports to establish another person’s identity or immigration status  — whether or not the document is of Canadian origin or is authentic  —  is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term of not more than five years.

Withholding or destroying documents — trafficking of person under 18 years

(2) Everyone who, for the purpose of committing or facilitating an offence under subsection 279.011(1), conceals, removes, withholds or destroys any travel document that belongs to another person or any document that establishes or purports to establish another person’s identity or immigration status  — whether or not the document is of Canadian origin or is authentic  —  is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term of not more than 10 years and to a minimum punishment of imprisonment for a term of one year.

Trafficking in persons is about exploitation and does not necessarily involve movement. For the purpose of the trafficking offences, the Criminal Code states that a person exploits another person if they:

cause someone to provide, or offer to provide, labour or a service by engaging in conduct that, in all the circumstances, could reasonably be expected to cause the other person to believe that their safety or the safety of a person known to them would be threatened if they failed to provide, or offer to provide, the labour or service. cause a person, by means of deception or the use or threat of force or of any other form of coercion, to have an organ or tissue removed -(section 279.04).

279.04 (1) For the purposes of sections 279.01 to 279.03, a person exploits another person if they cause them to provide, or offer to provide, labour or a service by engaging in conduct that, in all the circumstances, could reasonably be expected to cause the other person to believe that their safety or the safety of a person known to them would be threatened if they failed to provide, or offer to provide, the labour or service.

 

Factors

(2) In determining whether an accused exploits another person under subsection (1), the Court may consider, among other factors, whether the accused

  1. (a) used or threatened to use force or another form of coercion;
  2. (b) used deception; or
  3. (c) abused a position of trust, power or authority.

Organ or tissue removal

(3) For the purposes of sections 279.01 to 279.03, a person exploits another person if they cause them, by means of deception or the use or threat of force or of any other form of coercion, to have an organ or tissue removed.

 

The Act further defines the factors that may be considered when determining if an accused is guilty of exploiting another person.

Other Criminal Code offences can also be used by police and Crown prosecutors depending on the facts and circumstances of the case. They include:

Kidnapping

Forcible Confinement

Uttering Threats

Extortion

Assault

Sexual Assault

Aggravated Sexual Assault

Prostitution Related Offences

Criminal Organization Offences

Bill C-268: On June 17, 2010 the Senate of Canada adopted at Third Reading Bill C-268, An Act to amend the Criminal Code (minimum sentence for offences involving trafficking of persons under the age of eighteen years). Bill C-268 will amend Canada’s Criminal Code to introduce a new human trafficking offence specifically addressing child traffickers. The new law will provide a minimum sentence of five years imprisonment for anyone convicted of trafficking a minor in Canada and a minimum of six years imprisonment for cases with aggravating factors.

Bill C-310:  Bill C-310, which passed Third Reading in the House of Commons on June 18, 2012 with unanimous support, amends the Criminal Code to make human trafficking an offense for which Canadian citizens or permanent residents may be prosecuted in Canada even if the crime itself occurred outside the country.

Specific offences in the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act targeting cross-border trafficking:

The Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) prohibits knowingly organizing the coming into Canada of one or more persons by means of abduction, fraud, deception, or use or threat of force or coercion (section 118). The offence is punishable by a maximum penalty of life imprisonment and a fine of up to $1 million. The offence found in the IRPA is limited to transnational cases where a person is brought into Canada from somewhere else. The term “organize” includes recruitment, transportation, and after entry into Canada, receipt and harbouring. Section 117 Organizing entry into Canada prohibits providing advice and representation for a fee to all stages of an application or proceeding.