Every year, hundreds of thousands of people apply to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) for study permits, work permits, visitor visas, permanent residence, and citizenship.

While most applications are processed properly, many applicants experience administrative errors, unreasonable delays, missing documents that were already submitted, factual misunderstandings, or decisions that appear inconsistent with the information contained in their files.

When these problems occur, applicants often have very limited options. Webforms frequently result in generic responses. Requests for reconsideration are discretionary. Judicial Review in Federal Court is costly, time consuming, and inaccessible for many individuals and families.

Unlike other federal departments and agencies that have independent complaint or ombudsman mechanisms, IRCC applicants do not have access to an independent body that can investigate administrative mistakes, service failures, and systemic issues.

We are not asking for an organization that overturns immigration decisions or interferes with officers’ lawful discretion. We are asking for a fair, transparent, and independent review process when administrative errors or service failures occur.

We call upon the Government of Canada to establish an Independent Immigration Ombudsman to:

• Investigate complaints involving administrative errors and service failures;

• Review systemic issues affecting immigration applicants;

• Make recommendations to improve transparency, accountability, and service standards within IRCC;

• Provide applicants with an accessible and affordable avenue for redress outside of costly court proceedings.

Canada’s immigration system should be fair, transparent, and accountable. When mistakes happen, applicants deserve an independent place to turn.

No applicant should be forced to choose between accepting an obvious administrative error and spending thousands of dollars in Federal Court.