ARCHIVED – Information and orientation services

On this page

• Description
• Expected outcomes
• Eligible activities
• Mode of delivery
• Eligible clients
• Organizational capacity
• Eligible applicants for funding
• How we assess applications for this service
• References for applicants

Description

Information and orientation services provide eligible clients with information that is relevant, accurate, consistent, and timely to help them make informed decisions about their settlement in Canada. This includes providing eligible clients with targeted sessions (for individuals, families or groups) to help orient them on certain topics that are specific to their needs or to their region or local community. IRCC emphasizes the importance of digital/virtual service delivery as it fosters greater accessibility to eligible clients wherever they are.

Expected outcomes

IRCC expected immediate outcomes, as described in the (Re)Settlement Program Logic Model, are written to capture the overall results for all projects that deliver a particular line of service.

There are two IRCC expected immediate outcome related to information and orientation services:

1. Clients increase knowledge of life in Canada

If information and orientation activities are part of the proposal, describe how they will specifically contribute to this outcome, for example, how clients will develop knowledge about variety of topics to support their settlement in Canada quickly and easily through information provision. If you are focusing on specific places, topics or specific populations those may be included in the outcome story.

2. Non-settlement partners improve capacity to provide support to diverse groups of newcomers across all sectors, in large, medium and small communities, including Francophone minority communities.

If activities focused on improving non-settlement partners’ capacity to provide information and orientation supports is part of this application, clearly describe how it will specifically contribute to this outcome, for example, how access to settlement services will increase, in a cost-effective manner, by coordinating at the community level or with specific partners. This could involve working with other community partners to raise awareness of specific newcomer services available (e.g. sexual and gender-based violence; mental health, etc.).

Each eligible information and orientation activity must be associated with one of the two above IRCC expected immediate outcomes. When an information and orientation activity is selected in the application, the applicable IRCC expected immediate outcome will automatically populate.

For more information on outcomes please refer to the Outcomes Guidance.

Eligible activities

Description of eligible direct activities

Information activities: Port of entry reception

IRCC funds local service provider organizations to provide Information and Orientation reception services at entry points in Vancouver, Calgary, and Toronto.

At these ports of entries funded SPOs:

• Welcome and greet newcomers to Canada immediately upon arrival
• Discuss client needs such as Confirmation of Permanent Residence (landing) and other relevant settlement information
• Link newcomers to settlement and community resources and organizations
• Distribute written materials on available settlement services (housing, applying for Canadian documents, living in Canada, living in Francophone Minority Communities outside Quebec, employment, improving language skills, etc.) as well as the New to Canada? We can Help You Succeed (PDF, 915 KB) brochure, which provides recently-arrived newcomers with high-level settlement information and directs them to Start your life in Canada for additional IRCC resources

Information and Orientation is one single settlement activity. Information refers to national, regional, or local content that is relevant to a newcomer’s settlement journey. Orientation is the primary mechanism for delivering information to newcomers through sessions, in-person or virtual, given to individuals, families or groups.

Information activities: General

The collection and sharing of national and/or local information that is relevant to a newcomer's settlement journey through a variety of mediums, as is appropriate to the newcomer target audience. Information and orientation activities occur in three settings: one-on-one sessions, family sessions, and group sessions.

Local Information

Information that pertains to local contexts that do not relate to all of Canada equally. For example:

• local parks,
• local transportation,
• community bylaws,
• locally delivered services.

National Information

Information that is consistent and widely applicable at the national level. For example:

• federal law,
• human rights,
• nationally delivered services

Orientation activities

Orientation activities including group sessions, are designed to improve newcomer's understanding of unique or complex community/provincial/territorial/federal processes that are relevant to a newcomer's settlement journey.

Design and deliver general and custom-tailored orientation sessions for eligible clients. This includes the provision of information and awareness about topics such as housing, employment, healthcare, Canada’s legal system, Francophone Minority Communities, banking and financial management, becoming a Canadian citizen and the rights and responsibilities of citizenship, Truth and Reconciliation, and Indigenous Peoples, culture and history. Applicants should use Gender Based Analysis Plus (GBA Plus) to analyze their clients’ needs in the design of their information and orientation services.

Description of eligible Indirect activities for organizations delivering information and orientation services

Outreach

Promote and conduct outreach to eligible clients in an effort to increase accessibility, knowledge and uptake of settlement services, especially those services that are cost-effective, complementary, and coordinated at the community level. For example, this could involve working with other community partners to raise awareness of specific newcomer services available (e.g. sexual and gender-based violence; mental health, etc.).

Mode of delivery

The possible modes of delivery for the eligible activities described above are as follows:

• Port of entry reception
  • Local service provider organizations funded by IRCC provide information and distribute written materials, such as the New to Canada? We can Help You Succeed (PDF, 915 KB) settlement brochure, in person and in hard copy at certain ports of entry (Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto). This brochure is available in print and digital format.
• Settlement information products and publications may be delivered:
  • In person (i.e. physical copy handouts)
  • Remotely (online/digital) – self-directed (i.e. online publications)
  • Remotely via email/text/phone (i.e. online publications)
• Orientation sessions may be delivered:
  • In person
  • Remotely (online/digital) – staff led
  • In hybrid fashion
• Outreach activities may be delivered:
  • In person
  • Remotely (online/digital) – staff led
  • Remotely via email/text/phone

Applicants will also need to consider who the client audience will be for each of the project activities being proposed (more than one audience may be selected per activity):

• For Direct Services: Group, Individual, or family
• For Indirect Services: Individual organizations, local non-settlement service delivery partners(s), entire sector, or community or service area

Eligible clients

As per section 3.7 of the Settlement Program Terms and Conditions, only the following persons are eligible to receive settlement services:

• Permanent residents of Canada;
• Protected persons as defined in Section 95 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA);
• Individuals who have been selected, inside or outside Canada, to become permanent residents (pending verifications) and who have been informed by a letter from IRCC;
• Convention refugees and protected persons outside Canada who have been selected for resettlement in Canada by IRCC; and
• Temporary foreign workers who hold or received approval of a work permit under section 112 or received initial approval for permanent residence under section 113 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations.
• Temporary residents and foreign nationals who have been selected by employers under the Atlantic Immigration Program (and their dependents) are deemed eligible persons for needs and assets assessment and referrals and information and orientation program components [3.3 b) and c)].
• Temporary residents (and their dependents) who have received confirmation of a complete Application for Permanent Residence under the Atlantic Immigration Program are deemed eligible to receive support services that enable clients to access services, needs and assets assessment and referrals, information and orientation and community connections program components [3.3 a), b), c) and f)].
• Temporary residents who have received confirmation of a complete Application for Permanent Residence under the Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot (and their dependents) are deemed eligible to receive support services that enable clients to access services, needs and assets assessment and referrals, information and orientation, and community connections program components [3.3 a), b), c) and f)], as authorized by Ministerial Instructions [14.1 IRPA] for the duration of the pilot.

Additional Information

• Eligible persons include both the principal applicant and eligible dependants (spouse and children).

Eligible applicants for funding

Eligible applicants for funding for settlement services are:

• municipal governments;
• not for profit organizations including non-governmental organizations, non-profit corporations, community groups, umbrella organizations, regulatory bodies and apprenticeship authorities;
• businesses, including those that provide indirect services (e.g., employers hiring newcomers, private language schools, conference organizers, web or production firms for tool development); and
• educational institutions (including school boards, districts and divisions).

Organizational capacity

Organizations should have the capacity to support the delivery of information and orientation products and services online/digitally (e.g. self-directed online websites or modules, staff-led virtual one-on-one meetings or orientation sessions).

How we assess applications for this service

Mandatory and asset criteria

All applications

All applications will be assessed according to the CORE criteria

• Client-centered;
• Outcomes-driven;
• Responsive to needs; and
• Effective use of resources

Applications will also be assessed against Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) criteria. More information about the CORE and EDI criteria.

Mandatory criteria

In addition to meeting the CORE and EDI criteria, applicants for these services must:

• Include a plan to use national-level information developed by IRCC as a baseline to support standardization of information and services being delivered, including fact sheets, web content, videos, and Orientation to Canada materials, to ensure products can be trusted as a consistent and reliable source. Note that Orientation to Canada resource sheets are not used in Ontario. IRCC funds settlement organizations to manage and deliver the Orientation to Ontario initiative in Ontario.

Asset criteria

Proposals demonstrating the following may be prioritized for funding. Applicants for this service should include a description of the following experience or capacity, as applicable:

• Demonstrate plans to include content that increases the understanding and awareness of Indigenous-related topics (e.g. Truth and Reconciliation, Indigenous Peoples, culture and history) among newcomers.
• cross-sector partnerships, including with Indigenous Peoples and communities, organizations that provide a capacity-building and professional development role within the settlement sector (e.g. Umbrella Organizations), organizations with expertise working with specific populations (e.g. racialized populations) or on specific issues (e.g. advancing substantive gender equality and women’s empowerment).
• Demonstrate plans to use one of the settlement platforms funded by IRCC (e.g. Settlenet.org, Pre-Arrival Portal) in order to foster collaboration and partnership (e.g. to share best practices, tools, and resources for newcomers) among settlement organizations.
• GBA Plus in the design, implementation and evaluation of the project(s).Please refer back to the overview of funding guidelines for more information on GBA Plus.

References for applicants

• Settlement Program Terms and Conditions
• Other applicant resources