Halima’s Story: Life as a Refugee Claimant in Canada

Being a single parent of three kids, Halima was unable to apply for welfare in fear that her refugee claim will be rejected. Living in poverty and deprivation for years, Halima was struggling to provide for her kids’ needs. Her refugee case was rejected twice over the course of 4 years, so maintaining a job was difficult as her legal status was not stable. There are over 90,000 refugee claimants facing the same situation in Canada, so when she had to apply for a humanitarian dispute to her case, she knew that it would take years to hear back on the final decision.

Although Halima managed to get a low paying job, she was laid off due to the COVID pandemic. Shortly after she started receiving CERB payments from the government, her wok permit expired. Scared and helpless, Halima started to suffer from mental illness with nowhere and no one to ask for assistance. Feeling anxious to feed her kids, she started to become desperate. Her local mosque advised her to seek help from National Zakat Foundation and she did. Alhamdulillah, we were able to provide her with rent assistance, food vouchers and mental health counseling. She is now stronger and able to renew her work permit and continue her journey to become a Permanent Resident in Canada.

Refugee Claimants make up sizable portion of the poor population in Canada. Facing language barriers and a limited social network usually means that newcomers struggle to find jobs. This along with waiting for years to gain a legal status in Canada, means that Refugees’ livelihood is always threatened. At National Zakat Foundation, we make sure to distribute Zakat and Sadaqah money to those who need it the most and alleviate the burdens of Muslims in any way we can. Remember to think of those less fortunate and always donate when you can!