Evaluation of the Immigration Consultants of Canada Regulatory Council – Management Response Action Plan (MRAP)

Recommendations Response Action Accountability Completion date
1. CIC should ensure that staff processing immigration applications have a common understanding of the regulations, the role of the regulatory body, and the process for CIC to validate the use of authorized representatives and to file complaints regarding authorized and unauthorized representatives. This should be done by:

CIC is committed to respecting the provisions of Section 91 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) and will continue to apply the legislative changes consistently to all persons subject to Canadian laws.
CIC currently has centralized intake for all applications for permanent residence in Canada at various Centralized Processing Centres (CPCs). CPCs include the following offices:

  • CIO-Sydney
  • CPC-Mississauga
  • CPC-Vegreville
  • Query Response Centre
  • CPC-PRC-Sydney

Applications for Temporary residence are submitted to a visa office overseas via e-applications, by mail/drop box, or to the Visa Application Centre (VAC) that serve the visa office territory.
 
Tools built within the Program Integrity framework in conjunction with validation of immigration representative procedures outlined in Inland Processing (IP) manual 9 are jointly used to identify fraud and ensure transparency in reviewing applications for compliance with S91 (1) of IRPA. CIC is aiming to achieve consistency with regards to the procedures for the validation and reporting on authorized representatives. In doing so, CIC must take into account the challenges associated with its versatile network.

     
a. Clarifying the process for how CIC validates the use of authorized representatives and for how complaints should be filed Operational instructions regarding validating or checking the status of representatives listed on the Use of Representatives Form (IMM 5476) will be updated and distributed to all CIC employees. Operational Management and Coordination Branch (OMC) Q2, 2014-2015
b. Updating the relevant manuals (e.g., IP9) in a timely manner to reflect any changes to these processes As part of the modernization project, all CIC manuals will be updated to include new web features making it fast and easy to update. IP 9 will be updated in a timely manner. OMC and Communications Q2, 2014-2015
c. Issuing operational bulletins in a timely manner to ensure processing centres and visa offices are aware of any changes to the processes CIC is currently working on enhancing the tools we use in accomplishing our day to day work (e.g., the intranet/Connexion) which will reduce the need for operational bulletins. Going forward IP 9 will be updated regularly to reflect any changes in policy or operational directives. OMC Q1, 2014-2015
d. Updating relevant training material and/or courses to ensure that they include information on the regulations, the use of authorized representatives, the role of the ICCRC as the regulatory body, and the process in place within CIC for validating authorized representatives and for filing complaints. CIC will review the training module currently available for CPC staff for clarification and update as needed.
 
OMC will partner with International Region (IR) training, to develop a training module on immigration representatives which will be included in the learning agenda of all new hires. This will cover subjects such as: who is an authorized immigration representative, verifying the status of a representative listed on the use of representative form, what is the role of ICCRC, how to file a complaint against an authorized representative and what to do if a representative is not authorized.
OMC, Centralized Processing Region (CPR) and International Region (IR) Q2, 2014-2015
2. CIC should establish a communication strategy to raise public awareness regarding authorized representatives. This strategy should ensure that stakeholders (e.g., the public and potential applicants) understand the role of immigration consultants and that an authorized representative must be used if applicants choose to be represented.   Given the number of inquiries that the department received related to the implementation of C-35, OMC in collaboration with Communications have developed additional communication products and made the information on authorized immigration representatives more prominent on the Website and on each web page for every line of business. The outreach materials on the CIC website are more visible and can be accessed with fewer keystrokes than before. The strategy developed includes key messages for those working with stakeholders. This project was undertaken after data collection for the evaluation was completed and as such was not considered as part of the evaluation.
CIC will also be launching an awareness campaign in March 2014 to reinforce the use of authorized immigration representatives, and how to avoid becoming a victim of fraud.
OMC and Communications Completed
 
Q4, 2013-2014

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