ARCHIVED – Operational Bulletins 055 – April 9, 2008

This section contains policy, procedures and guidance used by IRCC staff. It is posted on the department’s website as a courtesy to stakeholders.

This Operational Bulletin has expired. Please refer to IP 9 – Use of Representatives Paid or Unpaid for current information.

End of transition period for Unauthorized Immigration Consultants

Background

Under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations, CIC will only communicate with “authorized representatives” who are members of a bar of a province or territory, the Chambre de notaires du Québec or the Canadian Society of Immigration Consultants (CSIC). These individuals can advise represent or consult with an immigration client.

The regulatory provisions relating to authorized representatives (R2, R10(2) and R13.1) came into force on April 13, 2004. The objectives of these amendments were twofold: to help protect vulnerable applicants from unscrupulous representatives and to preserve the integrity of Canada’s immigration system.

These regulatory provisions affect only those applications or proceedings that are subject to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) and do not apply to proceedings under the Citizenship Act.

General Policy

The transitional provisions accompanying the regulatory changes permit non-authorized representatives, who were representing clients on existing files at the time the regulatory amendments came into force, to continue to provide advice, represent or to consult for a fee on those applications for a period of four years, that is, until April 13, 2008. http://laws.justice.gc.ca/en/frame/cr/SOR-2002-227/bo-ga:l_2-gb:l_4/20080401

Procedures

The following instructions direct offices overseas and in Canada on how to deal with applications, involving an unauthorized representative, that were submitted on or prior to, April 13, 2004.

Applications submitted prior to April 13, 2004

For applications that were submitted before April 13, 2004, CIC continued to communicate with the unauthorized representative for those specific applications only. If at the end of the transition period, on April 13, 2008, the applicant is still using the services of an unauthorized representative, the office must no longer communicate with that representative.

CIC must inform the applicant that the department will no longer communicate with the representative as they are not a member in good standing of one of the governing bodies listed in the Regulations (Appendix G). The office should make reasonable and timely efforts to send this letter directly to the applicant (with a copy to the representative) by using a personal address on file or by obtaining such an address by phone. The applicant may choose to proceed without a representative or to hire an authorized representative. If the applicant chooses a new representative, they must provide a new IMM 5476 to the processing office within 30 days of the date of the letter. In the meantime, or if no new IMM 5476 is received within this time, the processing office will continue to process the application and will deal directly with the applicant. However, the applicant will still have the option of obtaining the services of an authorized representative at any time in the process.

If a judicial review was granted by the Federal Court on an application, or if the Immigration and Refugee Board granted a request for appeal in a family class matter, and the matter is redetermined by a different officer it is still considered to be the original application. In such a case an unauthorized representative could still continue to represent the client up to April 13, 2008 only.

Applications submitted on or after April 13, 2004

In accordance with the regulatory amendments and previous instructions to the field, CIC has not been dealing with unauthorized representatives in the context of applications submitted after April 13, 2004.

Please address any questions or comments regarding this message to OMC at OMC-Immigration@cic.gc.ca.

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