Biometrics

If I’m asked to give my biometrics, does that mean my application is approved?

No. Giving your biometrics is one of the steps you need to do before we can process your application. Once you give us your biometrics, we’ll use them to assess your application.

Why do I have to give my biometrics (fingerprints and photo) when I apply?

Most people have to give biometrics when they apply for a visitor visa, a study or work permit or permanent residence.

Canadian visa officers use biometrics to confirm your identity. Biometrics also helps to:

• make it more difficult for someone to forge, steal or use your identity,
• resolve problems or errors that may happen if your name, date of birth and/or place of birth are similar to those of someone else, and
• confirm your identity the next time you apply, so it is easier for you to re-enter Canada.

How often will I need to go in person to give my fingerprints and photo?

If you apply for a visitor visa, study permit or work permit, you’ll only need to give your biometrics once every 10 years. We’ll keep your biometrics on file for the next application you make within a 10-year period.

If you apply for permanent residence, you’ll need to give biometrics each time you apply.

I need to give biometrics. What if there’s no visa application centre (VAC) in the country or territory I’m applying from?

If there’s nowhere to give your fingerprints and photo (biometrics) where you live, you’ll have to find the location closest to you. There are now 160 VACs in 108 countries around the world where you can give your biometrics.

As of December 3, 2019, you can also give your biometrics at designated Service Canada offices.

If you’re in the United States or a U.S. territory, you can give your biometrics at any of the 133 Application Support Centers (ASCs). Don’t travel to the U.S. if you’re going only to give biometrics. U.S. border officials may not let you enter the country. You can only give biometrics at an ASC if you’re already legally in the U.S.

Will it take longer to get my visitor visa because I have to give my biometrics?

It depends on the type of application.

For visitor visa, study or work permit applicants:

• The time it takes you to give your biometrics isn’t included in the application processing time.
• The sooner you provide your biometrics, the sooner we can start processing your application.
  • Pay the biometrics fee when you submit your application to get the instruction letter as soon as possible. This letter is what allows you to go give your biometrics at an official collection point.
• After we send you a request, you have up to 30 days to submit your biometrics.

For most permanent resident applicants:

• The time it takes you to give your biometrics is included in the application processing time.

For all applications, give us your biometrics as quickly as possible. You can only give your biometrics after you pay the biometrics fee and we send you the letter that tells you how and where to give your biometrics.

If there is no biometric service available where you live, you may need extra time to travel to a service location. Find the location closest to you.

If I get my photo taken for biometrics, do I still need to submit a paper photograph as part of my application?

No. We’ll use the digital photograph taken when you give your biometrics.

I cover my head or face for religious or cultural reasons. What will happen when I go to have my photo taken for biometrics?

When you have your photograph taken, your whole face must be clearly visible.

You may request to have your photo taken by an operator of the same gender and you may ask for a privacy curtain.

What will happen to my fingerprints and photo after they are collected for biometrics?

After you give your biometrics, your fingerprints and photo will be encrypted and sent electronically to a secure Government of Canada database. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) will check your fingerprints against the fingerprint records of:

• criminals,
• refugee claimants,
• deportees, and
• temporary resident applicants.

Any matches to existing RCMP records will be analyzed by the visa officer, who will use the information to make a final decision on your application.

When you arrive in Canada, a Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) border services officer will use your biometrics to verify that you are the same person the visa was given to.

Find out more about what to expect when you arrive in Canada.

How long will you keep my fingerprints and photo (biometrics)?

For visitor visa, or study or work permit applications

We’ll keep your fingerprints and photo for 15 years from the date you gave your biometrics.

However, if your application is refused based on serious security concerns, human or international rights violations, serious criminality, or organized criminality, we’ll keep your fingerprints and photo until your 100^th birthday.

For permanent residence applications

If your application is approved

We’ll keep your fingerprints and photo until your 80^th birthday.

If you’re granted Canadian citizenship, we’ll permanently delete your fingerprints and photo.

If your application is refused

If the refusal is based on serious security reasons, human or international rights violations, serious criminality, or organized criminality, we’ll keep your fingerprints and photo until your 100^th birthday.

If the refusal is based on misrepresentation, we’ll keep your fingerprints and photo for 10 years.

If the refusal is based on health concerns, financial reasons or non-compliance, we’ll keep your fingerprints and photo for 5 years.

If your application is incomplete or if you withdraw or abandon it, we’ll keep your fingerprints and photo for 5 years.

For asylum claimants

We’ll keep your fingerprints and photo until your 100^th birthday.

What if I have a Canadian visa that has not yet expired when you start taking biometrics from citizens of my country or territory?

If you have a valid visitor visa, you won't need to give your biometrics until the next time you apply.

Do I need to give my biometrics to visit Canada if I’m in the United States and I’ve already given my biometrics when I entered the U.S.?

Yes. If you’re a foreign national (not a U.S. national) visiting or living in the United States, you’ll still need to give your biometrics to Canada. You only need to give your biometrics once you get the letter from us that asks you for it.

In the United States, you can give your biometrics at any of the 135 Application Support Centers.

If I’m in Canada, do I have to give my biometrics?

If you’re applying for permanent residence, you need to give your fingerprints and photo (biometrics).

If you’re applying, or have an application in progress for temporary residence, you’re temporarily exempt from giving biometrics.

You can answer some questions to find out if you need to give biometrics.

If my visa, work or study permit application is refused, will I have to give biometrics for my next application?

No, when you apply for a visitor visa or a work or study permit and you give your biometrics, they will stay valid for a 10-year period, even if your visa or permit application is refused or has expired.

Will it take longer to process my application because I have to give biometrics?

It depends on the type of application.

For visitor visa, study or work permit applicants:

• The time it takes you to give your biometrics isn’t included in the application processing time.
• The sooner you provide your biometrics, the sooner we can start processing your application.
  • Pay the biometrics fee when you submit your application to get the instruction letter as soon as possible. This letter is what allows you to go give your biometrics at an official collection point.
• After we send you a request, you have up to 30 days to submit your biometrics.

For most permanent resident applicants:

• The time it takes you to give your biometrics is included in the application processing time.

For all applications, give us your biometrics as quickly as possible. You can only give your biometrics after you pay the biometrics fee and we send you the letter that tells you how and where to give your biometrics.

If there is no biometric service available where you live, you may need extra time to travel to a service location. Find the location closest to you.

Can I go to a port of entry to give biometrics if it’s closer than a Service Canada location?

No. Only certain people can give their fingerprints and photo (biometrics) at a Canadian port of entry (POE).

For example, students and workers who meet the specific eligibility requirements can give their biometrics at a POE only if they begin and complete their application for a study or work permit at the POE.

All other applicants must give their biometrics at an official biometrics collection location. If you already have a biometrics instruction letter, this means you can’t give your biometrics at a POE.

Find out if you need to give biometrics, and if you do, how to give you biometrics.

I am from Asia, Asia Pacific or the Americas and have applied for a visa, work or study permit, or for permanent residence before December 31, 2018, but my application is still being processed. Do I have to give my biometrics?

If you’re from a country in Asia, Asia Pacific or the Americas and we received your application before December 31, 2018, you don’t need to give your biometrics, even if your application is still being processed.

This same requirement has applied to:

• nationals from countries in Europe, the Middle East and Africa since July 31, 2018, and
• nationals from these 29 countries and 1 territory since 2013 who applied for a visitor visa, study or work permit.

How do I know if my application was received before December 31, 2018?

How can I pay for biometrics after I submitted my application?

To pay for your biometrics fee after you already applied:

• If you applied online
  • pay online
  • upload your receipt in your IRCC secure account or by using our Web form
• If you applied on paper
  • pay online
  • upload your receipt using our Web form

They didn’t take my photo when I gave my biometrics in Canada. Will my application still be processed?

Yes. If Service Canada staff didn’t take your photo due to COVID-19-related public health measures,

• we’ll still process your current permanent residence application and
• you won’t need to come back to give your photo for your current application

See also: COVID-19 and biometrics

I’m applying for a work or study permit from Saint-Pierre and Miquelon and need to give biometrics, but there is no service available where I live. What do I do?

You can apply for a work or study permit online if you’ve given biometrics to IRCC within the last 10 years.

If you need to give biometrics and there is no biometric service available where you live, you usually have to find the location closest to you.

However, if you’re a resident of Saint-Pierre and Miquelon, you can apply for your permit at a port of entry (POE), where we can take your biometrics.

Make sure you have everything you need to apply for a work permit or a study permit at a POE.