Miguel, 22, is the breadwinner of his young family. An apprentice carpenter in Montreal and father to a seven-month-old, he now faces deportation in what lawyers and advocates say is becoming an increasingly common situation where asylum seeker families face separation by Canada’s push to deport more people.

The family is scrambling to convince the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) to give them more time to appeal with what’s called a pre-removal risk assessment, a last-ditch effort to prove to immigration officials he faces threats to his life in Mexico.

But his deportation date — May 5 — comes 10 days before he’d be eligible for that.