Audit of Operational Controls at
Ports of Entry (Based on the
1996 Tassé Report) – Final Report
2.3.3 Future Initiatives for Cost Recovery
Many ports of entry did not have enough staff to have full segregation of duties. We also found that the volume of cost recovery transactions varied considerably. Since the Department collects monies, procedures and controls must be put in place, a task that would involve staff and their time.
All the land ports of entry that we visited were co-located with CCRA, and these CCRA offices had a dedicated cashier on duty. In two ports of entry in regions other than those visited, MOUs between CIC and CCRA provide for CCRA to collect monies on behalf of CIC. (In one region, the MOU was between senior management of both departments in the region; in the other region, the MOU was between the managers of the local offices). These funds are then transferred to CIC. As a result of these arrangements, the immigration officers are “released” from the necessity of collecting funds; finance employees do not need to make deposits, and the safekeeping issues related to having monies on CIC sites are reduced considerably.
This arrangement may not be practical at airports, given the physical distances separating CCRA and CIC staff and the large volumes of passenger traffic.
To put this information in perspective, in 2000-01, the Department collected over $502 million in cost recovery revenues. Out of this total, only $22 million came from local offices, including ports of entry. The balance, $480 million, came from Central Processing Centres, such as Vegreville, and overseas operations. It makes sense, in light of the relatively low volumes of revenues that pass through the ports of entry (see Appendix B), that CCRA handle revenue collection on behalf of CIC.
Recommendation 11: Nationally, the Department should explore the possibility of having CCRA collect cost recovery funds on behalf of CIC, in locations where this arrangement would be workable.
Management Response and Action
Management agrees with this recommendation. CIC is discussing with CCRA the possibility of having CCRA collect cost recovery funds on behalf of the Department at locations where this arrangement is workable. Discussions are aimed at developing and implementing this capability in an integrated fashion.
- Date Modified:
