CIC Portal Enrolment Guide – Authorized Paid Representatives

Contents

Introduction

The CIC portal is a secure gateway that enables third parties to conduct certain types of business with Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) electronically. Based on a user’s enrolment profile, they will be provided with a CIC portal page tailored to their dealings with CIC.

This guide is intended as a resource for users who plan to enrol with the CIC portal as Authorized Paid Representatives and contains step-by-step instructions for doing so.

An Authorized Paid Representative is an individual who is a member, in good standing, of a law society of a province or territory, the Chambre des notaires du Québec, or a body designated pursuant to subsection 91(5) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) and who will receive remuneration for the immigration services they provide.

Obtaining a Secure Credential

Before accessing the CIC portal for the first time, you must obtain a secure credential. A secure credential is a unique credential that protects your communications with online Government of Canada programs and services.

There are two types of secure credentials, which you can use to access Government of Canada services:

  1. A GCKey credential – this option allows you to log in using a Government of Canada User ID and password.
     
  2. A SecureKey credential with a Sign-In Partner – this option allows you to log in with a User ID and password that you may already have, such as for online banking.
     
    Note: In order to access Government of Canada services using a Secure Key, you will need to have already established a credential with one of the Government of Canada’s Sign-In Partners. Tell me more about available Sign-In Partners (SecureKey Concierge)

Steps for obtaining a GCKey credential

  1. Go to the GCKey website.
  2. Click the Register button from the left-hand menu bar.
    The GCKey Terms and Conditions of Use page is displayed.
  3. Read the Terms and Conditions of Use.
  4. Click the I accept button to accept the Terms and Conditions of Use.
    The GCKey – Registration page is displayed.
  5. Enter values in all of the fields marked with an asterisk (*).
    Note: You will need to create a user ID, three recovery questions and a password.
  6. Once you have completed all the fields, click Submit.
    The GCKey – Registration Complete page is displayed.
  7. Click the Continue button.
    The CIC Portal Terms and Conditions page is displayed.
  8. Continue the steps as outlined in the Steps to Complete the Enrolment Request section.

Steps for logging in with a Sign-In Partner (SecureKey Concierge)

  1. Go to the Secure Key Concierge website.
  2. Select the Sign-In Partner that you wish to use.
  3. Follow the steps to sign in with the Sign-In Partner you have selected.
  4. Click the Continue button.
    The CIC Portal Terms and Conditions page is displayed.
  5. Continue the steps as outlined in the Steps to Complete the Enrolment Request section.

Submitting Your Enrolment Request to CIC

Now that you have obtained your Secure Credential, you can submit a request to CIC to enrol as an Authorized Paid Representative.

Steps to complete the enrolment request

  1. You will now need to answer a series of questions to determine your business with CIC.

    Note: You should answer in the following way to continue:

    • No. You have not received a Personal Identification Number.
    • No. You are not associated with an educational institution in support of the Off‑Campus Work Permit program.
    • Yes. You wish to enrol in CIC’s portal as an Authorized Paid Representative.
      A CIC portal account has now been created for you.
  2. To begin your enrolment request, click on “Authorized Paid Representative Enrolment Application.”
  3. The online application will guide you through the creation of your electronic enrolment request. You will be presented with one question at a time. As well, help text and glossary terms are provided in the question if you have any difficulties completing the request.
    • This information will be used to verify that you are in good standing with the governing body [Note 1] of which you are a member and ensure that the information you provide in this enrolment application matches the membership information on your governing body’s website.
    • During the enrolment application, you will be asked to indicate the two pieces of identification that you will provide in support of your enrolment request.
      • The first piece of identification must be photo identification and must be selected from a list of options.
      • The second piece of identification can be any piece of identification that displays your name and at least one other piece of personal information, such as your date of birth or home address.
  4. Once you have answered all the questions in the request, you will be presented with a page that displays all the questions and the answers you have provided. If you want to revise any of your answers, click on the “Modify” button adjacent to the question. You will be returned to that question and will be able to modify your answer.

    Note: Modifying an answer may trigger additional questions. If this is the case, the application will present you with these additional questions.

  5. At the bottom of this page is a “Print IMM 5661” button; this will enable you to open or save a copy of the CIC Portal Enrolment Form for Authorized Paid Representative (IMM 5661). You will need to print this form in order to continue with the enrolment request process.

    Note: The IMM 5661 form has been pre-filled with the answers that you have provided in your electronic enrolment request.

  6. Once you have printed the IMM 5661, select “Exit” and logout of the CIC portal.
  7. Complete the signature block section under “Representative Information” on the IMM 5661 form.
  8. Have the “Attestation of Identity” section of the form completed by another person who is a member, also in good standing, of one of the governing bodies for representatives as named in the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA).
  9. Scan the completed IMM 5661 form, along with the two pieces of identification that you wish to submit in support of your electronic enrolment request, and save them on your computer.
  10. Return to the CIC portal.
  11. Under the “What would you like to do today?” banner, click on your in-progress request.
     
    Note: You will be brought back to the page where you printed the IMM 5661 form.
  12. Click on “Continue.”
  13. The “Checklist of Required Documents” page will be presented to you.

    Note: You will need to upload the documents that you will be submitting in support of your request and that you have previously scanned.

  14. To attach a document:
    • Click on the “Upload” button next to the document that you want to attach.
    • Click on “Browse” and select the scanned image of the document.
    • Click on “Next.”
    • Repeat until each document has been attached.
  15. Click on “Submit.”
  16. You will receive a confirmation that your request has been transmitted to CIC.

    Note: You have 30 days to submit your enrolment request. If you have not completed your request within 30 days, you will have to complete a new enrolment request.

After Your Enrolment Request Is Processed

Once your enrolment request is processed by CIC, you will receive an e-mail message indicating the result. There are three possible outcomes for the processing of your enrolment request: approved, refused, and additional documents required.

Note: The e-mail will be sent from donotreply@cic.gc.ca. You may want to ensure that this address is on your safe sender list and not automatically rerouted to your junk e-mail folder.

  1. If your request is approved, you will receive an e-mail that includes a personal identification number (PIN).
  2. If your request is refused, you may wish to consult with your governing body: there may be a problem with your membership status as it is listed on their website.
  3. If the person processing your request requires additional documents, you will receive an e-mail indicating that you have a message in your CIC portal account message box. To view your messages, follow the steps for accessing the CIC portal and then click on the message under the “My Messages” banner on your CIC portal page.

    Note: If you need to submit additional documents, follow the steps listed below to attach a document.

  • Click on “View Checklist” beside your submitted enrolment request.
  • You will be brought to the “Documents Submitted by the Client” page, where you will see that one, or more, of your documents has a status of either “Replacement Needed” or “Not Provided.”
    • The status of “Replacement Needed” indicates that CIC has requested a new copy of a document that you have already submitted.
    • The status of “Not Provided” indicates that CIC has requested an additional document from you, one that you had not provided before.
  • To attach a document, follow Step 14.
  • Once you have provided all the required documents, click on “Submit.”
  • You will receive a confirmation page indicating that your documents have been submitted to CIC.

To ensure that your enrolment request is processed quickly and without issues, we encourage you to review the following list of the most common reasons for an enrolment application to be refused.

  • Supplying an incorrect membership identification number
    Immigration Consultants of Canada Regulatory Council (ICCRC) members should ensure that if they are attempting to enrol with their transitional membership, they are not currently listed as full members on the ICCRC website.
  • Failure to include a valid supplementary piece of identification
    Credit cards and bank cards are not acceptable as second pieces of personal information.
  • Failure to properly complete or attach the IMM 5661 form (CIC Portal Enrolment Form for Authorized Paid Representatives)
    The IMM 5661 form must be signed by another member of the law society of a province or territory, the Chambre des notaires du Québec or a body designated pursuant to subsection 91(5) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.

Steps to enrol in the CIC portal once you have received your PIN

  1. Go to the CIC portal Log In page.
  2. Select your login method (GCKey or Sign-In Partner).
  3. You will be taken to the sign in page for the log-in method you selected.
    • If you selected  a Sign-In Partner, you will need to identify which Sign-In Partner you wish to use.
  4. Enter your User ID and password.
  5. Click the Log In button.
    • The Welcome page is displayed.
  6. Click the Continue button.
    • The CIC Portal Terms and Conditions page is displayed.
  7. Read the Terms and Conditions of Use.
  8. Click the I accept button to accept the Terms and Conditions of Use.
    • The Welcome to CIC’s Portal page is displayed.
  9. Click the Next button.
    • Note: To continue your enrolment, you must have received a Personal Identification Number (PIN) directly from Citizenship and Immigration Canada or from an authorized person within your organization.
  10. Click the Yes button.
  11. Enter the appropriate values in the Given Name(s), Family Name and PIN fields.
  12. Click the Continue button.
    • The CIC Portal Terms and Conditions page is displayed.
  13. Read the Terms and Conditions of Use.
  14. Click the I accept button to accept the Terms and Conditions of Use.
  15. Follow the instructions to create four security questions.
    • These security questions will be used to authenticate you each time you attempt to log into the CIC Portal and when you attempt to migrate your account to a new credential.
    • Once you have entered your four security questions, click continue.
  16. The Welcome to CIC’s Portal page is displayed with your name.
    • You have now enrolled in the CIC portal, and will be able to utilize the tools available to your user role.

Remember to click the Logout button to exit the portal.

Footnote

  • [1] These bodies are a law society of a province or territory, the Chambre des notaires du Québec, or a body designated pursuant to subsection 91(5) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA). [back to note 1]