Yes, you can be extradited from Canada. The country regularly surrenders people to foreign governments for prosecution or to serve a sentence, but only after a formal process that runs through the Department of Justice, a superior court, and ultimately the Minister of Justice. Treaties, the federal Extradition Act, and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms all shape what happens, and the process gives the person sought several real chances to fight it.
When Canada Will Consider a Request
Two conditions have to be satisfied before Canada will even look at an extradition request seriously.
The first is a legal basis to cooperate with the requesting country. In most cases, that means a bilateral extradition treaty. Canada has treaties with dozens of countries, including the United States, France, and India. Without a treaty or another recognized arrangement, there is generally no obligation to hand anyone over.
The second is dual criminality. The conduct behind the request must be a crime in both countries. The offences do not have to share a name or identical elements; what matters is whether the underlying behaviour would be a crime under Canadian law. If a U.S. prosecutor alleges a securities fraud scheme, Canada asks whether the same conduct would amount to fraud here. The label on the foreign charge does not control.1Department of Justice Canada. General Overview of the Canadian Extradition Process
The offence also has to be serious enough. Under the Extradition Act’s default rule, it must be punishable by at least two years of imprisonment in both the requesting country and Canada.2Justice Laws Website. Extradition Act SC 1999 c 18 – Section 3 Treaties can set a different threshold. The Canada–United States treaty lowers it to offences punishable by more than one year in both countries,3Government of Canada. Treaty on Extradition Between the Government of Canada and the Government of the United States of America which is why most mid-level U.S. felonies that have a Canadian equivalent qualify.
How the Extradition Process Works
Three distinct phases follow a valid request: an executive screening, a court hearing, and a final executive decision. A challenge can succeed at any one of them.
Authority to Proceed
When a formal request arrives, Justice Department lawyers review it against the Extradition Act and the governing treaty. If the paperwork is in order, the Minister of Justice issues an Authority to Proceed, which starts the court case. The Department generally has 30 days from receiving the request and supporting materials to make that call, though treaty-specific timelines can vary.1Department of Justice Canada. General Overview of the Canadian Extradition Process
Provisional Arrest
In urgent cases, a foreign country does not have to wait for the full package before Canada acts. A judge can issue a provisional arrest warrant if there are reasonable grounds to believe the arrest is in the public interest, the person is in Canada or on the way, and a warrant or conviction already exists abroad.4Justice Laws Website. Extradition Act SC 1999 c 18 – Section 13 The requesting country then has a limited window to file the formal request. Where no treaty sets the deadline, the default is 60 days from the provisional arrest. Miss it, and the person must be released.5Justice Laws Website. Extradition Act SC 1999 c 18 – Full Text
Bail and the Committal Hearing
After arrest, the person goes before a superior court judge for a bail hearing. The extradition hearing that follows is not a trial. The judge does not decide guilt or innocence. For someone sought for prosecution, the question is whether there is enough evidence that, if the conduct had happened in Canada, the person would be committed to stand trial here. If so, the judge orders committal.6Justice Laws Website. Extradition Act SC 1999 c 18 – Section 29 For someone already convicted abroad, the judge simply confirms the conviction corresponds to the offence in the Authority to Proceed.
The Minister’s Final Decision
A committal order does not end things. The call on whether to actually surrender someone belongs to the Minister of Justice, who first invites written submissions from the person sought.7Department of Justice Canada. Independent Review of the Extradition of Dr. Hassan Diab – Section: The Extradition Process The Minister’s discretion at this stage is wide, and this is where many of the strongest arguments against surrender get made.
What Can Stop a Surrender
The Extradition Act and the Charter give the Minister several grounds, some mandatory and some discretionary, to refuse surrender even after a court orders committal.
Mandatory Refusal
Under Section 44 of the Extradition Act, the Minister must refuse to surrender someone if the surrender would be unjust or oppressive in all the circumstances, or if the request is really aimed at prosecuting or punishing the person because of race, religion, nationality, ethnic origin, colour, political opinion, sex, sexual orientation, age, or disability.8Justice Laws Website. Extradition Act SC 1999 c 18 – Section 44 The “unjust or oppressive” ground is a broad catch-all that courts have applied to extreme delays, serious health issues, and other factors that would make extradition fundamentally unfair.
Surrender is also barred when the offence is purely political, strictly military with no civilian equivalent, or time-barred in the requesting country. The political offence exception has important carve-outs: violent acts like murder, kidnapping, hostage-taking, and the use of explosives can never qualify as political offences no matter the motive.9Justice Laws Website. Extradition Act SC 1999 c 18 – Section 46
The Death Penalty
When the offence could carry a death sentence abroad, the Minister has discretion to refuse surrender.8Justice Laws Website. Extradition Act SC 1999 c 18 – Section 44 After the Supreme Court of Canada’s 2001 decision in United States v. Burns, that discretion is tightly constrained: extraditing someone to face execution without first obtaining assurances the death penalty will not be imposed generally violates Section 7 of the Charter, which protects life, liberty, and security of the person.10Department of Justice Canada. Section 7 – Life, Liberty and Security of the Person A narrow exceptional-case door remains open, but in practice Canada now requires those assurances before handing over anyone who could face execution.
Charter Protections
The Charter follows the process throughout. Because the Canadian government’s role is a necessary step in any extradition, surrender cannot proceed if it would expose the person to treatment that shocks the conscience, such as torture or a flagrantly unfair trial, even when every statutory requirement is met.10Department of Justice Canada. Section 7 – Life, Liberty and Security of the Person
If you are a Canadian citizen, Section 6(1) of the Charter adds another layer. It guarantees every citizen the right to remain in Canada, and the Minister must refuse surrender if extradition would unjustifiably infringe that right. Citizenship does not make you immune — Canada does extradite its own nationals — but the Minister has to weigh the infringement against the seriousness of the alleged offence and the strength of the requesting country’s case.1Department of Justice Canada. General Overview of the Canadian Extradition Process
Appeals and Judicial Review
Losing at committal or before the Minister is not necessarily the end. The committal order can be appealed. The Minister’s surrender decision can be challenged by judicial review in the provincial court of appeal. An application for judicial review must be filed within 30 days of the Minister communicating the surrender decision, though the court can extend that deadline.11Justice Laws Website. Extradition Act SC 1999 c 18 – Section 57 If a court finds the Minister’s decision was unreasonable, the usual remedy is to send the file back for reconsideration rather than release the person outright.
These rights matter. A fully contested extradition that works through the committal appeal and the ministerial review can take years.
Consenting to Extradition
Not every extradition gets fought. A person can consent in writing, before a judge, at any point after arrest. Consent compresses everything: the judge orders committal immediately, and the Minister can order surrender without going through the usual submissions process. But consent waives the right to make submissions to the Minister, the Minister’s obligation to consider the usual refusal grounds, and the right to seek judicial review of the surrender decision.12Justice Laws Website. Extradition Act SC 1999 c 18 – Section 71 Anyone considering it should know exactly what is being given up.
What Happens After Surrender
One protection travels with the person. Under the specialty principle, the requesting country can only prosecute or punish the individual for the specific offences that justified the extradition. If Canada hands someone over for fraud, the receiving country cannot then try them for an unrelated assault. The person must also be given a chance to leave the requesting country once the case concludes; only if they stay beyond 30 days after being free to go, or voluntarily return after leaving, can they be prosecuted for other offences.13Government of Canada. Treaty on Extradition Between the Government of Canada and the Government of the United States of America
How Long It Takes and How Often It Happens
Extradition from Canada is not quick. The 30-day window for the Authority to Proceed, the bail and committal hearings, the Minister’s decision period, and any appeals all add up. If the Minister orders surrender and no appeal is filed, the person must be handed over within 45 days.1Department of Justice Canada. General Overview of the Canadian Extradition Process Contested cases rarely move that cleanly. When both the committal order and the Minister’s decision are challenged, the fight can run for years.
The volume is modest. In the 2022–2023 fiscal year, Canada surrendered 17 people to the United States and 2 to other countries, for a total of 19 nationwide.14Department of Justice Canada. Extradition Fact Sheet – Statistics on Requests From the United States The overwhelming majority of requests Canada receives come from the United States.