Irregular migration is perceived by the international community as a security issue. The criminalization of immigration becomes a tool for migration control and border security. In recent years, Canada adopted a punitive approach and increasingly relied on the criminalization of irregular migration, introducing more severe penalties including life imprisonment. Paradoxically, despite tougher legislation, including the adoption of mandatory minimum sentences and increasing maximum sentences, Canadian courts tend to impose short-term prison sentences on smugglers and usually conditional sentences to be served in the community. This paper presents the results of a legal analysis relating to the smuggling of migrants in Canada. The results show that sentences granted by the courts are not proportional to the political discourse and alarmist messages in the media regarding the threat posed by the smuggling of migrants.