Trafficking in persons in Canada, 2023
Released: 2024-11-01
In 2023, 570 human trafficking incidents were reported to police, a slight decrease from the 597 reported in 2022. There was also a decrease in the rate of human trafficking (1.4 incidents per 100,000 population in 2023 compared with 1.5 in 2022).
Human trafficking, also referred to as trafficking in persons, is a serious human rights violation that can occur domestically and transnationally with the crossing of international borders. It is a gendered crime, with most detected victims being women and girls and the majority of accused persons being men and boys. Human trafficking offences involve the recruitment, transportation or harbouring of a person, and they include controlling and influencing movements with the goal of exploiting, or facilitating the exploitation of, a person. Human trafficking can take on many forms, most often sexual exploitation or forced labour.
Official statistics, while important, provide only a partial picture of human trafficking in Canada due to its hidden and underreported nature. Identifying incidents of human trafficking depends in part on police resources and expertise, as well as victims' ability to recognize and report their experiences with trafficking.
General increase in number of police-reported human trafficking incidents since 2013
Just over 4,500 incidents of human trafficking were reported by police services in Canada from 2013 to 2023. These incidents accounted for 0.02% of all police-reported crime during this period and represented an average annual rate of 1.1 incidents per 100,000 population. Overall, there has been a general year-over-year increase in the number of police-reported incidents of human trafficking from 2013 to 2023, with the biggest jump occurring from 2018 to 2019.
Chart 1
Police-reported incidents of human trafficking, by statute, Canada, 2013 to 2023
Rates of human trafficking in Nova Scotia and Ontario higher than national average
Since 2013, the highest average annual rates of police-reported human trafficking among the provinces generally have been documented in Nova Scotia and Ontario. In 2023, Nova Scotia recorded 6.3 incidents per 100,000 population and Ontario recorded 2.1 incidents, both well above the national average (1.4 incidents).
The high concentration of urban areas and the accessibility and large number of land border crossings in Ontario may explain the higher rates of human trafficking in the province. In Nova Scotia, the rate of human trafficking may be better explained by geographic location. Previous research from advocates and police investigations suggests that Nova Scotia in general, and Halifax in particular, are part of a trafficking corridor frequently used to move victims from Atlantic Canada to the rest of the country.
Large majority of police-reported human trafficking incidents reported in urban centres
In 2023, the large majority (85%) of human trafficking incidents were reported in census metropolitan areas (CMAs). Similarly, from 2013 to 2023, more than 8 in 10 incidents of human trafficking (86%) were reported to police in CMAs.
From 2013 to 2023, five CMAs accounted for almost half (45%) of all police-reported incidents of human trafficking in Canada: Toronto (902 incidents; 20% of all incidents in Canada), Ottawa (388; 9%), Halifax (287; 6%), Montréal (264; 6%) and London (202; 4%).
It is important to note that police-reported data do not capture victim mobility—that is, victims may have been trafficked from one area to another. In addition, the data could reflect police practices and resources aimed at better identifying human trafficking incidents, which can vary from one jurisdiction to another.
Vast majority of police-reported victims of human trafficking are women and girls and one quarter of victims are minors
Of the 3,558 victims of police-reported human trafficking nationwide from 2013 to 2023, the vast majority (93%) were women and girls, and about one-quarter (23%) were children and youth younger than 18 years. A small number of victims (7%) were men and boys.
Chart 2
Victims in police-reported incidents of human trafficking, by gender and age group, Canada, 2013 to 2023
During this time, the largest proportion of victims were aged 18 to 24 years (42%), while over one in five victims (23%) were aged 25 to 34 years. Of the 3,223 women and girl victims of human trafficking, two-thirds (68%) were aged 24 years and younger. Almost 9 in 10 men and boy victims (88%) were 18 years and older.
Since 2013, a large majority (91%) of victims of police-reported human trafficking have known their accused trafficker, while a small proportion (9%) of victims have been trafficked by a stranger. Victims were most often trafficked by an intimate partner (34%) or a casual acquaintance (22%). A tactic employed by some traffickers involves drawing a potential victim into a romantic relationship with promises of love and affection, with the end goal of exploitation.
Men make up majority of accused adults, while an equal proportion of girls and boys are among youth accused
Overall, 2,697 persons were accused of police-reported human trafficking in Canada from 2013 to 2023. The majority of accused persons were aged 18 to 24 years (39%) and 25 to 34 years (36%). Smaller proportions of accused were aged 35 to 44 years (13%) and 45 years and older (8%), while youth aged 12 to 17 years accounted for 4% of all accused persons.
Chart 3
Accused persons in police-reported incidents of human trafficking, by gender and age group, Canada, 2013 to 2023
Just over 8 in 10 accused persons (82%) were men and boys. Men accounted for a larger proportion of accused persons across all adult age groups. In contrast, of the 105 youth accused, equal proportions were girls (50%) and boys (50%).
Over half of human trafficking incidents are unsolved
Since 2013, almost 4 in 10 incidents (38%) of police-reported human trafficking have resulted in the laying or recommendation of charges. Over half (58%) of human trafficking incidents were not solved (i.e., cleared) by police. This could be due to several factors, including the incident still being under investigation, having insufficient evidence to proceed, and no accused person having been identified.
Overall increase in charges and cases of human trafficking completed in court
From 2012/2013 to 2022/2023, 1,184 cases involving 4,000 human trafficking charges were completed in adult criminal court in Canada. In general, the number of human trafficking cases seen in court has increased over this time.
Chart 4
Completed charges and cases related to human trafficking in adult criminal courts, Canada, 2012/2013 to 2022/2023
Overall, 1 in 10 completed human trafficking cases results in a finding of guilt
Since 2012/2013, the large majority (84%) of completed adult criminal court cases involving at least one human trafficking charge have resulted in either a stay, a withdrawal, a dismissal or a discharge. A small proportion of human trafficking cases resulted in a guilty decision (10%), an acquittal (4%) or another type of decision (2%), such as being found unfit to stand trial or not criminally responsible.
Chart 5
Type of decision in completed adult criminal court cases, by selected offence, Canada, 2012/2013 to 2022/2023
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Note to readers
Police-reported data come from the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Survey, and the category of human trafficking offences includes six provisions under the Criminal Code and one offence under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act that targets international cross-border trafficking. Police services can report up to four violations for each criminal incident.
- Criminal Code offences: trafficking in persons; trafficking in persons under 18 years; material benefit from trafficking in persons; material benefit from trafficking of persons under 18 years; withholding or destroying documents; and withholding or destroying documents to facilitate trafficking of persons under 18 years.
- Immigrant and Refugee Protection Act: trafficking in persons into Canada.
In the UCR Survey, victim information is reported by police for Criminal Code incidents of human trafficking, but not for Immigration and Refugee Protection Act violations. As a result, there are fewer victims of police-reported human trafficking than there are incidents, and analysis of victim characteristics is based on Criminal Code human trafficking incidents only. Given that small counts of accused persons identified as "gender diverse" may exist, the UCR Survey data available to the public has been recoded to assign these counts to either "female" or "male" to ensure the protection of confidentiality and privacy. Percent calculation excludes accused persons whose gender was unknown.
Data on human trafficking in courts come from the Integrated Criminal Court Survey, which collects statistical information on adult criminal and youth court cases involving Criminal Code and other federal statute offences. A case is defined as one or more charges against an accused person or company that were processed by the courts at the same time and received a final decision. A case combines all charges against the same person having one or more key overlapping dates (date of offence, date of initiation, date of first appearance, date of decision, or date of sentencing) into a single case. The "guilty findings" category includes guilty of the charged offence, of an included offence, of an attempt of the charged offence, or of an attempt of an included offence. This category also includes guilty pleas, and cases where an absolute or conditional discharge has been imposed. Some evidence about geographic location can be found in Mulligan, 2018, and Luck, 2019.
Contact information
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