Former lecturer at Chinese academy for cyberwarfare faces new immigration hearing in Canada

A former lecturer at a Chinese university which served as a military academy for cyberwarfare will face a third immigration hearing after a judge found problems with a previous decision that would have admitted him to Canada.

Huajie Xu, a 43-year-old Chinese national who has been in Canada since 2021, faces a new hearing before Canada's Immigration Appeal Division in order to determine whether he was a member of Chinese military units responsible for cyber espionage against Canada — and thus would be inadmissible on security grounds, according to a Federal Court of Canada decision issued on Feb. 19.

Xu and his wife Ying Ruan live in Winnipeg, a representative with Xu's Winnipeg law firm, Zaifman Immigration Lawyers, said on Monday.

The Manitoba Land Titles Registry states Ruan owns a home in Sage Creek, a neighbourhood in southeastern Winnipeg.

Xu arrived in 2021 with a permanent resident visa issued as part of his wife's sponsorship application, according to the court decision.

The decision does not state the reason for his immigration, but notes Xu described his application as a lengthy process.

In China, he served for 20 years in the People's Liberation Army, or PLA, eventually rising to the rank of lieutenant-colonel, the decision states.

He also taught for 20 years at the PLA's Information Engineering University, or PLAIEU, which the decision described as "China's only military academy for cyber and electronic warfare and is reputed to be a centre for information warfare research for the Chinese military."

As a student at the PLAIEU, the court documents noted that Xu took courses including:

Although Xu was issued a permanent resident visa for Canada, he was detained upon arrival on July 10, 2021, by the Canada Border Services Agency and questioned on the basis he could be a member of an organization that engaged in espionage, the decision states.

The university he taught at fell under the control of the 3PLA, a department of People's Liberation Army "recognized to have engaged in espionage against Canada and contrary to Canada's interests," the decision states, adding members of that department are inadmissible to Canada.

On July 17, 2021, the Canada Border Services Agency issued a report alleging Xu was inadmissible to Canada and stated he was detained "as a danger to the security of Canada," the court decision states.

At a subsequent Immigration Division hearing, the CBSA argued Xu's employment at the Chinese university equated to "providing material support" to the Chinese cyber espionage units and also argued his teaching made him a member of an organization which engaged in espionage against Canada, the federal court decision states.

The Immigration Division didn't agree. In a decision in September 2021, it found no reasonable grounds to conclude Xu was inadmissible to Canada, the federal court decision states.