The federal government is continuing to fund housing for thousands of asylum seekers across Canada, despite previously announcing an end to taxpayer-funded hotel accommodations.

In response to order paper question Q-855 from Conservative MP Fred Davies, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada confirmed that while its hotel program ended in September 2025, funding for housing support remains in place through other channels.

The department says the majority of asylum claimants who had been housed in federally funded hotels were transitioned to other accommodations, largely outside direct federal control.

However, Ottawa continues to provide funding through the Interim Housing Assistance Program, which allocates money to provinces and municipalities to support asylum seeker housing.

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For the 2025–2027 period, the program is set to distribute approximately $363 million to jurisdictions including Ottawa, Peel Region, York Region, Hamilton, and several provinces.

According to government figures, an estimated 8,505 asylum seekers were housed through the program between January and September 2025, based on data submitted by participating jurisdictions.

But there’s a catch: the federal government admits it does not have “comprehensive and reliable information” on where these individuals are actually being housed or the type of accommodations they are receiving.

Instead, Ottawa relies on self-reported data from municipalities and provinces, and even that reporting was not required prior to 2025.

The figures also exclude the city of Toronto, which had not yet signed on to the latest funding agreement at the time of reporting, suggesting the total number of supported claimants could be higher.

While the government characterizes the hotel program as a temporary pandemic-era measure, the continuation of funding through other programs indicates federal support for asylum seeker housing remains firmly in place.