Operational Bulletin 089 –
December 2, 2008

Ministerial Instructions

I. Background

On June 18, 2008, the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act was amended to give the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration authority to issue instructions that would ensure the processing of applications and requests be conducted in a manner that, in the opinion of the Minister, will best support the attainment of immigration goals set by the Government of Canada.

The first set of Ministerial Instructions was issued on November 28, 2008 and came into effect immediately.

II. Overview of Ministerial Instructions

The Ministerial Instructions apply only to applications submitted on or after February 27, 2008. They do not apply to refugees, protected persons or persons making a request on humanitarian and compassionate grounds from within Canada. The Instructions provide for the following applications to be placed into processing according to existing priorities:

• Québec Economic applicants
• Provincial Nominees
• Canadian Experience Class
• Investors
• Live-in Caregivers

The following applications shall be placed into processing immediately upon receipt:

• Family Class applicants
• Temporary Resident applicants
• Federal Skilled Workers with an arranged employment offer (AEO)
• Federal Skilled Workers who are residing legally in Canada for at least one year as Temporary Foreign Workers or International Students
• Federal Skilled Workers with experience in one or more of the occupations specified in the Instructions

Requests for humanitarian and compassionate consideration accompanying Federal Skilled Worker applications submitted on or after February 27, 2008 that are not eligible for processing under the Ministerial Instructions will not be considered.

All other applications will be processed in the usual manner.

III. Guidelines for existing and new applications

Federal Skilled Worker applications received before February 27, 2008
The Ministerial Instructions do not apply to any applications received prior to February 27, 2008. These cases will continue to be processed according to the legislation in force at the time the applications were received.

Federal Skilled Worker applications received on or after February 27, 2008
The Ministerial Instructions apply to cases submitted on or after February 27, 2008. Visa offices will assess the applications received on or after February 27, 2008 against the Ministerial Instructions to determine whether applicants are eligible for processing (see section VI below). Applications which are determined not to be eligible will receive a full refund. Those determined to be eligible will be processed on a priority basis. Guidance will be provided to visa offices by International Region as to the timelines within which these cases should be assessed (for eligibility) and processed.

Where to submit applications
Where applicants submit their application depends on whether they have an arranged employment offer, or whether they have been residing legally in Canada for at least one year as Temporary Foreign Workers or International Students.

1. Applications with an AEO are to be submitted directly to the visa office serving the applicant’s country of nationality or residence (subject to the requirements of R11).
2. Applications made by Temporary Foreign Workers or International Students who have resided legally in Canada for at least one year and are currently residing in Canada are to be submitted to the visa office in Buffalo, NY, or the visa office serving the applicant’s country of nationality.
3. All other Federal Skilled Worker applications are to be submitted directly to the Centralized Intake Office (CIO) at CPC-Sydney.

Note: Applications post-marked before December 1, 2008 will be received by the mission, whereas applications post-marked on or after December 1, 2008 will be returned to the applicant with a letter instructing them to send their application directly to the CIO.

IV. Procedures at the Central Intake Office

CIO staff will recover the fee, create a CAIPS file, enter key data and assess whether the work experience and main duties declared by the applicant correspond to the NOC codes in the list of eligible occupations issued by the Minister.

If the applicant does not meet the Ministerial Instructions, CIO staff will enter code “2” at the paper screening (T-11) stage in CAIPS. They will send a letter informing the applicant that they are not eligible for processing and will refund the fees.

Applicants with NOC codes, work experience and main duties corresponding to the Instructions will be sent a letter by the CIO requesting them to submit a full application and supporting documents within 120 days to the visa office. CIO staff will enter code“4” at the paper screening (T-11) stage in CAIPS, bring forward (BF) the file in CAIPS to“A87” for 120 days, and transfer the electronic B file to the visa office. The CIO will download the files each Monday and send missions an email with the file numbers of all transferred files. The missions will need to ensure that the download was successful. The application itself will be retained in Sydney and no paper file will be transferred to the visa office (see file transfer mechanism in procedural notes below).

V. Procedures at missions

Upon receipt of a complete application, the visa office will make the final assessment as to whether the applicant meets the Ministerial Instructions (see section VI below). If the applicant meets the Instructions, the visa office will enter code “1” at the paper screening (T-11) stage before the application is processed. This is important because it will clearly separate the eligibility assessment from processing (see section VI below). Once placed into processing, the processing fee is not refundable. Applications assessed by the visa office as meeting the Instructions should then be processed in the usual manner on a priority basis.

If it is determined by the visa office that the applicant does not meet the Instructions, the visa office will enter code “2” at the paper screening (T-11) stage in CAIPS. (Note: missions refusing applications at the paper-screening stage, based on minimum requirements or points, will discontinue this practice in order to clearly distinguish between cases which are not eligible and those which do not meet minimum requirements or the pass mark.) All original supporting documents will be returned along with a letter informing the applicant that they are not eligible and that a refund will be issued. For applications submitted directly to the visa office, the visa office will process the refund. For applications that were created in CAIPS at the CIO, the visa office will send an email to the CIO requesting them to initiate the refund. An email address and template as well as written procedures will soon be provided by International Region.

Missions are requested to do CAIPS runs, based on the A87 BF code, at regular intervals to ensure that files transferred from the CIO are closed after the 120 days have elapsed. If no application is received within 120 days, the visa office will close the file using code “3” at the paper-screening (T-11) stage and request the CIO to refund the fees.

VI. Assessing the application against the Ministerial Instructions

As noted above, only applications which meet the Ministerial Instructions will be placed into processing. This means that an extra step will have to be taken upon receipt of the application by the visa office to determine whether or not the application can be processed. Federal Skilled Workers are eligible for processing under at least one of three categories:

1. Occupations on the NOC list
   To be eligible for processing, Federal Skilled Worker applications must have work experience under the NOC codes. Work experience is defined as one year of continuous full-time (or equivalent) paid work experience in the last 10 years. To determine whether the applicant has the requisite work experience, the main duties listed in the application form will be assessed to ensure that the applicant has performed the actions described in the lead statement for the occupation, as set out in the occupational descriptions of the NOC, and that they have performed a substantial number of the main duties of the occupation, as set out in the occupational descriptions of the NOC. The educational background of the applicant may also be a factor.
2. Arranged employment offer
   Pursuant to the Ministerial Instructions, all applications submitted to visa offices with an AEO are eligible for processing. This includes applicants with work experience not falling under the NOC codes listed in the Instructions. Proof of the AEO must be submitted with the application.
3. Temporary Foreign Workers and International Students
   Pursuant to the Ministerial Instructions, all applications submitted to visa offices by Temporary Foreign Workers or International Students legally residing in Canada for at least one year are eligible for processing. This includes applicants with work experience not falling under the NOC codes listed in the Instructions. Proof of the applicant’s status in Canada, such as a copy of their work or study permit, a letter of employment, or proof of enrolment at an educational institution must be submitted with the application.

Applications that meet the Instructions are eligible for processing and should be placed into processing immediately. Once in process, the processing fee is not refundable.

Applications that do not meet the Ministerial Instructions are not eligible for processing and the applicant will receive a full refund.

NOTE: Applications deemed eligible for processing must then meet the Federal Skilled Worker requirements in IRPA. That is, they must meet the minimum requirements and the pass mark.

More detailed information is available in OP 6.

VII. Procedural notes

Lock-in date
The lock-in date will be the date that the application is received at the CIO (occupations on the list) or at the visa office (AEOs, Temporary Foreign Workers and International Students).

When does processing start?
Processing begins once the visa office has determined that the application is eligible for processing. In practice, this means the application will be assessed against the Ministerial Instructions. If it is determined that the applicant meets the Instructions, a“1” will be entered at the paper-screening (T-11) stage. This will indicate that the file has entered processing and no refund will be permitted after this point. The usual Federal Skilled Worker paper screening will then begin. If a visa officer discovers during processing (e.g., at interview or through document/reference verifications) that the applicant does not have work experience in one of the NOC codes specified, the officer will refuse the application and the applicant will not be eligible for a refund.

File transfer mechanism
The CIO will create a B file and enter all available data from the application forms. If the application is placed into processing, the CIO will transfer the electronic file to visa offices on Mondays. No paper file will be sent to the visa office from the CIO, so the mission will not have a file jacket that corresponds to the B file number. The mission will, therefore, have to use a new B file number. At the time of electronic file transfer, the CIO B file number will be added to the XREF field automatically. This field will then be permanently locked. Missions must ensure that applicants are informed of the change in B file numbers.

VIII. Specific instructions

• CAIPS managers must immediately add charge-out code A87 to the C/O table in CAIPS as it will be used to manage incoming files from the CIO.
• Missions should ensure that they have received all the transferred files by comparing the night-job print-out with the email from the CIO on a weekly basis.
• Missions will need to do CAIPS command-mode runs regularly to identify files for which no full application has been received after 120 days and then proceed to close these files.
• Missions must ensure that the AOR letter they are using for Federal Skilled Workers does not state that the application has been placed into processing. Rather, it should state that the file will be processed only if the application is eligible for processing, as per the Ministerial Instructions, and that the application fees and right of permanent residence fees (if paid) will be refunded if it is determined not to be eligible. They must also notify the applicant of the change in their B file number.
• As of December 1, 2008, missions can no longer accept FSW applications that do not have an AEO or that are not from Temporary Foreign Workers or International Students residing in Canada. These must be returned to the applicant with a letter instructing them to submit the application to the CIO.

IX. Toolkit

• The Federal Skilled Workers Chapter (OP 6) has been amended and is available online.
• International Region has prepared a number of template letters, CAIPS notes, and emails to be used by the CIO and visa offices which will follow.
• A separate message detailing refund procedures will also follow.
• An announcement will be published on the main CIC website, and changes will be made to all affected pages. CIC is working with DFAIT webmasters to publish a notice and hyperlink to the announcement on the main CIC website.

Appendix A

Template letter: C-50 Not Eligible – General with H and C – Missions.

This letter is the general not-eligible letter that is included in OP 6.

Appendix B – References

• Ministerial Instructions
• Federal Skilled Workers – OP 6
• Federal Skilled Workers – Application Guide

Please address any comments or questions about this bulletin to: OMC-Immigration@cic.gc.ca or
Nat Operational Coordination Selection RIM@cic.gc.ca.