The return of survivors to Canada was arduous. The Canadian government continued its policy of ignoring or prosecuting the veterans of Spain, in accordance with the Foreign Enlistment Act. They depended on friends and family to collect the money to get them home; some men were arrested in France. It was not until January 1939 that the government agreed the veteran combatants could return to Canada. Upon their return, many were investigated by the RCMP because of communist party affiliations. Some were denied employment. A good number of the Mac-Pap veterans fought in the Second World War, but a number were prohibited because of their history.