Prime Minister Mark Carney insists Canada keeping IRGC members out

IRGC-connected Iranian Football Federation president Mehdi Taj was turned away at YYZ by border guards, despite being granted a visitor visa

Published Apr 30, 2026  •  Last updated 19 minutes ago  •  2 minute read

A sniper team from the Prime Minister Protective Detail stand on a tower as PM Mark Carney speaks while touring IUOE Local 793 in Oakville, Ont. on Thursday, April 30, 2026. Photo by Frank Gunn /The Canadian Press

OTTAWA — In the wake of reports that the IRGC-connected president of Iran’s soccer federation was turned away at the border despite holding a valid visitor’s visa, Prime Minister Mark Carney insists high-ranking members of Iran’s despotic regime are indeed being kept out of Canada.

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Speaking to reporters on Thursday in Oakville, Carney was asked about reports that Iranian Football Federation President Mehdi Taj had been denied entry into Canada this week — after reportedly receiving a visa to enter Canada as a visitor.

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While declining to comment on this specific case as per privacy rules, Carney insists no IRGC members have entered Canada since they were listed as a terrorist group.

“The Iranian revolutionary guard and all its members has been listed as a terrorist organization for several years – their members are prohibited from coming,” Carney said during a noon-hour press conference.

“We have a series of screens that we take action, and no (IRGC) members have entered the country, action has been taken appropriately.”

Carney said there are “multiple hurdles” to get into Canada, but he added there are always opportunities to review policy and see where things can be improved.

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Rejection first reported by Iranian news

Tehran-based news outlet Iran International reported Taj had indeed been granted a temporary resident visa to enter Canada – a standard visa given to tourists and those visiting Canada on a temporary basis – ahead of his arrival at Toronto Pearson International Airport this week, but he was turned away by airport border guards as inadmissible, owing to his IRGC connections.

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Taj and two Iranian officials were reportedly returned to Turkey on the next available flight, with the IRGC-connected Tasnim news agency criticizing Canadian immigration officials of “inappropriate behaviour” in denying Taj entry.

Taj was en route to Canada ahead of this summer’s FIFA World Cup, with representatives of member soccer federations expected to attend pre-match events set to begin on Thursday.

On Wednesday, Conservative immigration critic Michelle Rempel Garner questioned why Taj was even granted a visa in the first place.

“How did this guy get on a plane? He’s an Iranian regime official – clearly documented,” she said.  “A simple Google search would’ve told them that.”

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Hundreds of Iranian visas cancelled

Numbers released last month by the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) suggests around 17,800 visa applications were reviewed for potential inadmissibility by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC,) with 239 of them being cancelled as of March 5. 

Thirty-two individuals were reportedly inadmissible due to established connections to Iranian leadership, and 23 cases referred to the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB) for admissibility hearings.

Seventeen cases were scheduled for hearings at the behest of the CBSA, with eight of those already having been concluded.

Of those eight, three were deemed to be senior regime officials and issued deportation orders, one of whom has already been removed from Canada.

— With files from the Canadian Press

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