Anand backs report that Iranian soccer officials have been denied entry into Canada – National
Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand said Wednesday it was her “understanding” that Iranian soccer officials had seen their entry permit to Canada revoked ahead of the FIFA Congress in Vancouver.
“It is not my personal leadership, but my understanding that the permission has been withdrawn. It was not specific, but I will leave it to the minister to say,” said Anand when asked about the situation on his way to question period.
Tasnim, an Iranian news agency affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, said Iranian Football Federation president Mehdi Taj and two other Iranian officials were denied entry due to “improper behavior by immigration officials” at Toronto’s Pearson airport.
Online newspaper Iran International first reported that Taj was granted a visa on Monday and that he was removed from Canada on Tuesday evening due to his links to the IRGC, a Canadian-listed terrorist organization.
Conservative immigration critic Michelle Rempel Garner said reporting Taj was denied entry to Canada and said she was left wondering if she would have been able to enter Canada without you.
“How did the guy get on the plane? He’s an Iranian official, like that, it’s clearly written. I think a simple Google search would have told them that,” Rempel Garner said after question period.
“So it’s extreme incompetence or worse. And the government will have to answer for that because there are many members living in other countries who are being persecuted by government officials.”
Get daily world news
Get daily Canadian news delivered to your inbox so you don’t miss the top stories of the day.
Rempel Garner said she was “disappointed” that Taj was able to get to Canada in the first place and did not know why the immigration minister had not spoken publicly about the situation.
An emailed response from the office of Immigration Minister Lena Diab said all visa applications are reviewed on a case-by-case basis by trained officials.
“Although we cannot comment on individual cases due to privacy laws, the government has been clear and consistent: IRGC officials are not welcome in Canada and have no place in our country,” said Taous Ait, Diab’s press secretary.
“We have taken strong steps to hold the IRGC accountable and will continue to do so, while protecting the safety of Canadians and upholding the integrity of our immigration system.”
When asked about the Taj at a Toronto press conference on Thursday, Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree said he could not talk about specific cases due to privacy laws but people linked to terrorist organizations are not welcome in Canada.
“IRGC members are not welcome in Canada, they are not welcome in Canada. There are a number, as you know, that we are trying to remove, we will remove them quickly. But let’s make no mistake, IRGC members are not welcome, and they are not welcome here in Canada,” said Anandasangaree.
The Canadian Press has contacted the Canada Border Services Agency and the Iranian Football Federation for comment.
CBSA data shows that as of March 5, approximately 17,800 visa applications have been reviewed for inadmissibility due to contacts with the Iranian regime.
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada canceled 239 visas and 174 investigations were opened by the CBSA. Of the completed cases, 79 involved individuals found to have no links to the Iranian regime that would result in them being deemed inadmissible.
Thirty-two individuals have been deemed ineligible by the CBSA for their connections to the Iranian regime. The agency says 20 of these cases will be sent to its immigration unit for trial.
The three persons who served the completed trials were deemed unacceptable and given deportation orders. Only one has been removed.
Five people were declared ineligible and the CBSA says it is appealing four of those decisions.
– With files from Dylan Robertson in Ottawa and Kathryn Mannie in Toronto
© 2026 The Canadian Press
