CBSA flags 12 international student protesters in Calgary as potentially inadmissible to Canada

A dozen people participating in a weeks-long protest by international students in northeast Calgary have been flagged by the Canada Border Services Agency as potentially inadmissible to Canada.

In a startling display of government efficiency, CBSA officers attended the protest site Wednesday and conducted immigration status checks on demonstrators, according to CBC News and a widely circulated social media video. 

Messages to us claim CBSA officers attended a protest by international students in Calgary and checked attendees’ immigration do***ents. pic.twitter.com/hjahgb10he

— YEGWAVE (@yegwave) August 12, 2026

The agency confirmed officers checked 20 people, with 12 identified as “being possibly inadmissible” under Canada’s Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.

The protesters have been calling on Ottawa to address expiring work permits and provide pathways allowing them to remain in Canada. Some participants have reportedly been facing the prospect of losing their legal authorization to work as their permits expire.

The CBSA checks followed weeks of demonstrations by former international students seeking changes to federal immigration policy.

Ottawa has said it is tightening eligibility for post-graduation work permits and introduced caps on international study permits as it attempts to bring temporary immigration levels down.

For the Calgary protesters, however, Wednesday’s visit from border officials brought those immigration rules directly to the demonstration.

While 20 people had their status checked, 60 percent of those examined were subsequently flagged as potentially inadmissible to Canada.