Details on transfer payment programs of $5 million or more

Resettlement Assistance Program

Name of transfer payment program:

Resettlement Assistance Program (RAP)

Start date:

1951 as the Adjustment Assistance Program (AAP). In its current form as the Resettlement Assistance Program, implemented in 1998.

End date:

Ongoing

Type of transfer payment:

Contributions

Type of appropriation:

Main Estimates (Vote 10)

Fiscal year for terms and conditions:

2017–18

Link to department’s Program Inventory:

Refugee Resettlement

Description:

The RAP’s primary objective is to meet the resettlement needs of clients after their arrival in Canada by providing direct financial support and funding the delivery of immediate and essential services. Eligible clients include government-assisted refugees (GARs) and certain persons in refugee-like situations admitted to Canada under a public policy consideration. The province of Quebec receives a separate funding allocation as part of the Canada-Quebec Accord to provide similar services to eligible refugees destined to that province.

Income support is administered directly by IRCC. It can be provided for up to 12 months if the RAP client’s income is insufficient to meet their own needs and the needs of any accompanying dependents. In most cases, RAP clients also receive start-up allowances for expenses related to furniture and other household supplies.

Immediate and essential services are delivered through contribution agreements with service provider organizations (SPOs). RAP services include, but are not limited to, port of entry services, temporary accommodation and assistance in securing permanent accommodation, assistance opening a bank account, life skills training, orientation sessions, and links to settlement programming and mandatory federal and provincial programs.

Limited services (port of entry services) are provided under RAP to all resettled refugees. Refugees resettled under the Blended Visa Office-Referred Program (BVOR) may receive up to 6 months of RAP income support.

RAP also funds certain in-Canada activities to support the private sponsorship of refugees (such as the Refugee Sponsorship Training Program), as well as overseas activities, such as the International Organization for Migration to support resettlement and RAP objectives.

Results achieved:

The expected results for RAP include meeting immediate and essential client needs and ensuring that services are timely, useful and accessible.

In 2019–20, a total of 24,444 clients received RAP services, including 9,712 government-assisted refugees. GARs are the primary RAP clients and typically receive the full suite of services. Other clients are privately supported refugees and BVOR refugees, who are provided with port of entry reception and short-term accommodation before reaching their final destination in Canada where their sponsors provide them with immediate and essential services.

In IRCC’s Newcomer Survey regarding newcomers’ resettlement and settlement experience, conducted in 2019, 64% of GAR respondents reported that most or all of their immediate needs were met, and 69% indicated that the financial support they received met most or all of their needs.

Findings of audits completed in 2019–20:

As per the Internal Audit of the Resettlement Assistance Program – Income Support (RAP-IS), elements of the RAP-IS management control framework require improvement. A governance structure is in place to support the oversight of RAP-IS, but it is not fully documented due to recent program changes. Similarly, the roles and responsibilities developed for program staff at National Headquarters and in the regions need to be updated. RAP-IS training, tools and guidance are available for RAP-IS officials, but improvements are needed to ensure that they are up-to-date and accessible. Finally, a RAP-IS Fraud Risk Management process, including the identification, assessment, and mitigation of fraud risks, has not yet been developed.

IRCC is taking steps to address a number of areas that require improvement as part of initiatives currently underway. Namely, the transition from paper-based files to the Global Case Management System, planned updates to the RAP-IS online training tool, and the initiation of the Director and Director General’s recurring meetings from all sectors involved in the governance of RAP-IS.

Finding of evaluations completed in 2019–20:

The next evaluation of the Refugee Resettlement Program will include the Resettlement Assistance Program and is planned for completion in 2021–22.

Engagement of applicants and recipients in 2019–20:

RAP targets three types of recipients: (1) refugee clients, (2) service providers that provide immediate and essential services to eligible clients, and (3) service providers engaged in activities that support the Refugee Resettlement Program more broadly (for instance, funding to international organizations to facilitate the overseas processing of refugees and to the Refugee Sponsorship Training Program to support private sponsors in Canada).

Refugee recipients undergo an intake assessment upon arrival in Canada to determine the level of support they need and the types of services they require.

IRCC proceeds through a call for proposals to award contribution agreements to RAP SPOs to deliver immediate and essential services to refugees and other clients. A national call for proposals was launched in early 2019, which resulted in five-year contribution agreements with 32 RAP SPOs in 34 communities across Canada (outside of Quebec), to start in April 2020. This includes the addition of one new Francophone RAP SPO in Cornwall, Ontario.

Explanation of variances

The difference between planned and actual spending for 2019–20 is mainly due to additional resources received through the 2019–20 Supplementary Estimates for the 2019 immigration levels plan.

In addition, the difference between planned spending and actual spending is due to internal reallocations from the Settlement Program to respond to the increased demand for immediate and essential services provided through service providers. The increase in funding was partially off-set by a small lapse identified in the Income Support Program, stemming from lower landings than anticipated for the GAR Program at year-end, combined with other demographic variances, such as family size and composition.

Settlement Program

Name of transfer payment program:

Settlement Program: Voted

Start date:

May 15, 2008

End date:

Ongoing

Type of transfer payment:

Contributions

Type of appropriation:

Main Estimates

Fiscal year for terms and conditions:

Updated 2019–20

Link to department’s Program Inventory:

Settlement

Description:

Settlement refers to a period of settlement and adaptation by newcomers, during which the government provides support and services. Services are provided until newcomers become Canadian citizens. Ultimately, the goal of integration is for newcomers to be fully engaged in Canada’s economic, social, political and cultural life. The IRCC Settlement Program assists immigrants and refugees to overcome barriers specific to the newcomer experience. The program provides pre-arrival services, assessments of needs and referrals, information and orientation, language assessment and training services, employment-related services, community connections and support services that facilitate access to settlement programming. Most services are delivered by SPOs funded by IRCC. However, certain services are delivered directly by the department in Canada and overseas. At the same time, IRCC works with mainstream organizations, municipalities, employer associations and Francophone organizations to involve them in providing other services to newcomers and ensure that both Canadians and newcomers are engaged.

Results achieved:

In 2019–20, to successfully facilitate settlement, as well as economic, social and cultural integration of newcomers in Canada, IRCC funded over 500 organizations to provide a variety of services to almost 550,000 unique clients, representing a 5% increase over 2018–19.

Almost 253,000 clients received comprehensive needs assessments to guide their settlement journey. Data shows that most of these clients received referrals to various IRCC-funded services and other community services, including mental health and legal services.

Information and orientation services were provided to more than 448,000 clients, up by 6% compared to 2018–19, to increase their knowledge of life in Canada and enable independent decision-making on topics such as community resources, community engagement, education opportunities and employment and income.

Approximately 105,000 newcomers participated in IRCC-funded language training to improve their knowledge and use of Canada’s official languages. Training is provided based on levels of knowledge and schedules to accommodate client needs.

Over 87,000 clients accessed services, including cultural and community events, networking and individual and family matches to increase their community participation and connection.

Clients improved connections to labour market through participation in employment-related services, such as mentorship, temporary work placement and employment counselling. More than 62,000 clients received employment related services. The findings of the Newcomer Survey conducted in 2019 indicated that 50% of respondents improved their knowledge of the labour market during their first year of service.

To ensure a welcoming environment for newcomers, IRCC supported almost 80 Local Immigration Partnerships, which create partnerships locally to improve engagement and integration of newcomers. IRCC also supported 15 Francophone communities outside of Quebec, as well as 13 Réseaux en immigration francophones to support the integration of French-speaking newcomers.

Finding of audits completed in 2019–20:

An audit was not completed in 2019–20.

Finding of evaluations completed in 2019–20:

No evaluation was completed for the Settlement Program as a whole in 2019-20.

An evaluation of the language training component of the Settlement Program was conducted during 2019–20. It has an anticipated completion date of October 2020.

Although not exclusive to the Settlement Program, the Syrian Outcomes Report was completed in 2019–20. Overall, the results indicated that many initial settlement outcomes for Syrian refugees are positive or show positive trends (i.e., sense of belonging, labour market participation, language usage and language training uptake, accessing settlement services, having a doctor, kindergarten to grade 12 enrolment).

Engagement of applicants and recipients in 2019–20:

The terms and conditions for the Settlement Program describe eligible recipients of contribution funding. Eligible recipients (often referred to as service providers) for settlement services include:

• provincial, territorial or municipal governments;
• international organizations (providing pre-arrival settlement services);
• not-for-profit organizations, including non-governmental organizations, non-profit corporations, community groups and umbrella organizations, and regulatory and apprenticeship authorities;
• businesses, including those that provide indirect services (such as employers hiring newcomers, private language schools, conference organizers, web development firms or production firms for tool development); and
• educational institutions (including school boards, districts and divisions) and individuals.

IRCC uses an open and fair call for proposals process to engage applicants and establish contribution agreements with service providers to deliver IRCC programming priorities. A national call for proposals was launched in February 2019 to solicit new projects for funding and ensure the continuation of settlement service delivery beyond March 31, 2020 (the date at which majority of agreements were set to expire). Proposals were reviewed, assessed and recommended for approval in 2019–20. Approved proposals were negotiated over the summer and winter of 2020. The majority of new agreements with a start date of April 1, 2020 were finalized and in place by March 31, 2020. A small proportion of agreements with a later start date are set to be finalized in early 2020–21.

IRCC also used an expression of interest process to solicit proposals for several initiatives, the results of which were finalized in 2019–20. This included funding for activities under the Government of Canada’s Action Plan for Official Languages (2018–23) and the Visible Minority Newcomer Women Pilot.

Communication continued with the National Settlement and Integration Council (NSIC), with one meeting held in 2019–20 that focused on improving economic and social outcomes for immigrants and refugees and the exchange of promising initiatives showcasing the Prairie Region. NSIC membership includes provincial and territorial governments, settlement SPOs, umbrella organizations that represent SPO interests and other settlement stakeholders. NSIC membership was expanded in 2019–20 to include more expertise in innovation and client-centred programming.

In March 2019, IRCC initiated intensive engagement with NSIC members regarding the impacts of COVID-19 on settlement providers and clients.

Explanation of variances

The difference between planned and actual spending for 2019–20 is mainly due to additional resources received through Budget 2019 to support enhancing the integrity of Canada's borders and asylum system, and the 2019–20 Supplementary Estimates for the 2019 immigration levels plan.

Decreased spending within the Settlement Program can be attributed to a transfer of $3 million to Global Affairs Canada to support a payment to the United Nations Refugee Agency and a transfer to the RAP of $1 million, for a payment to the International Organization for Migration both to address increased global refugee needs.

Actual spending was also lower than planned due to activities not materializing as planned during the fiscal year due to COVID-19 and other internal reallocation of funds to RAP in order to respond to the increased demand for immediate and essential services provided through service providers.

Canada-Quebec Accord Grant

Name of transfer payment program:

Canada-Quebec Accord Grant/Subvention versée en vertu de l'Accord Canada-Québec

Start date:

Financial compensation to the province (in the form of a grant) is based on the Canada-Québec Accord relating to Immigration and Temporary Admission of Aliens, which came into force on April 1, 1991.

End date:

Ongoing

Type of transfer payment:

Grant

Type of appropriation:

The program uses transfer payment funding from the grant for the Canada-Quebec on Immigration

Fiscal year for terms and conditions:

1991–92

Link to department’s Program Inventory:

Settlement

Description:

Under the Canada-Quebec Accord, signed in 1991, Canada has devolved settlement and resettlement responsibility to Quebec with a grant that includes reasonable compensation for costs. The grant to Quebec covers reception services and linguistic, cultural and economic integration services, as long as they are comparable to federally funded services in other parts of the country. One objective of the Accord is the preservation of Quebec’s demographic importance within Canada and the integration of immigrants into that province in a manner that respects the distinct identity of Quebec. The Accord provides Quebec with exclusive responsibility for the selection of immigrants destined to the province (except for family reunification and protected persons in Canada), as well as the reception and linguistic and cultural integration of these immigrants (including resettlement of refugees). Under the Accord, Canada is responsible for defining overall immigration objectives, national levels, and admissibility. Canada is also responsible for selecting family category and protected persons in Canada, and citizenship. This program uses transfer payment funding from the grant for the Canada-Quebec Accord.

Activities: Quebec is responsible for selecting immigrants and for their reception to, and integration into, the province. In accordance with section 26 and Annex B of the Canada-Quebec Accord, Canada is required to pay compensation to Quebec for reception and integration services, where it is established that:

• the reception and integration services (referred to in sections 24 and 25 of the Accord) offered by Quebec, when considered in their entirety, correspond to those offered by Canada in the rest of the country; and
• these services are offered without discrimination to any permanent resident in the province, whether or not that permanent resident has been selected by Quebec.

Results achieved:

The Government of Quebec is responsible for developing and publishing its own expected results related to immigration and integration. It is accountable to the provincial National Assembly with respect to spending under the grant.

Under the Accord, the Comité mixte is mandated to “study, at least once a year, reception and integration services provided by Canada and Quebec” and to “re-examine, as often as it wishes but no less than once a year the list of services.” The comparison of services therefore fulfills the obligation under the Accord that requires reception and integration services offered to immigrants in Canada and Quebec to be comparable across the country.

Given the consistent similarity between services offered in Quebec and in Canada compared to the previous year, at the November 2017 Comité mixte meeting, the Assistant Deputy Minister co-chairs advised that the frequency of the comparative study be changed to every two years.

As a result, the 2018–19 comparative study of reception and integration services between Canada and Quebec was tabled by IRCC and Quebec’s Ministère de l’immigration, francisation et intégration (MIFI) at the Comité mixte meeting on February 10, 2020. The Assistant Deputy Minister co-chairs requested that the subsequent study be tabled in the fall of 2021–22. The established IRCC-MIFI working group on the comparative study began collecting information in preparation of the next study in the summer of 2020.

Finding of audits completed in 2019–20:

An audit was not completed in 2019–20.

Finding of evaluations completed in 2019–20:

An evaluation of the Grant to Quebec was completed in 2019-20. Overall, the results showed that the reception and integration services offered to newcomers in Quebec meet the requirements of the Grant as mandated in the Accord. It found that the types of reception and integration services in Quebec are generally similar to those offered in the rest of Canada. The evaluation also confirmed that these services are also available to permanent residents who were not selected by the province of Quebec.

Engagement of applicants and recipients in 2019–20:

To fulfill the obligations under the Accord, the Comité mixte, co-chaired by assistant deputy ministers of IRCC and Quebec’s MIFI, convenes an annual face-to-face meeting. The Comité has an overall mandate to promote harmonization of immigration and integration objectives and coordinate policies between the two levels of government. More specifically, in the area of integration services, the Comité ensures that reception and integration services offered by Canada and Quebec are comparable. The assistant deputy ministers approve the scope, key areas of examination and schedule for the comparison. The Comité delegates the development of the comparison to the director-level joint working group.

Explanation of variances

Actual spending was higher than planned due to an adjustment in the final payment. The final payment is based on a formula in the Canada-Quebec Accord.

Interim Housing Assistance Program

Name of transfer payment program:

Interim Housing Assistance Program (IHAP)

Start date:

March 21, 2019

End date:

March 31, 2021

Type of transfer payment:

Grants

Type of appropriation:

Main Estimates

Fiscal year for terms and conditions:

2019–20 and 2020–21

Link to department’s Program Inventory:

Asylum

Description

Canada has experienced an increase in asylum claims since 2017, both with respect to arrivals through ports of entry and at locations that were not designated land ports of entry but where irregular migrants were intercepted crossing the border. Provinces have called for support in managing the downstream impact of asylum flows, including interim housing pressures. The Government of Canada has committed to provide funding to help alleviate the pressures that provinces are facing in providing services to asylum claimants.

IHAP contributes to the government’s commitment to provide financial support to provinces and municipalities to address extraordinary interim housing pressures resulting from increased volumes of asylum claimants entering Canada.

Grants provided through the program are anticipated to enable provinces and municipal governments to deliver effective interim housing solutions for asylum claimants, and strengthen their interim housing capacities.

Results achieved:

Program results to date have been positive, as IHAP has enabled provinces and municipalities to continue to provide interim housing to asylum claimants without impacting services available to other vulnerable Canadians, despite increased volumes and pressures, by increasing the capacity of shelters. IHAP has also facilitated cooperation with provincial partners to help manage flows away from the border by transitioning claimants into temporary housing and reducing homelessness among this population. However, provinces and municipalities continue to face pressures related to interim housing for asylum claimants, especially in the context of asylum volumes continuing to increase and the need to respond to COVID-19.

The 2019–20 fiscal year covered costs incurred by provinces and municipalities from 2017 to 2019. A total of 11 grants were provided to 3 provinces and 4 Ontario municipalities. The average grant amount was $33.8 million. A breakdown of the number of claims per province is included below:

Findings of audits completed in 2019–20:

Not applicable.

Findings of evaluations completed in 2019–20:

Not applicable.

The achievement of expected results are tracked as part of IRCC’s ongoing departmental performance monitoring and reporting exercises. An evaluation of this initiative will be considered as part of IRCC’s annual departmental evaluation planning exercise. The timing and scope of any planned evaluation being considered for this initiative would be assessed against departmental and program risks, government and departmental priorities, and the needs of senior management and major stakeholders.

Engagement of applicants and recipients in 2019–20:

Following written requests from provinces and municipalities demonstrating that they have incurred interim housing costs as a result of increased asylum claim volumes, departmental officials engaged applicants to assess the claim and support negotiations on the final amounts. IRCC received at least 18 written requests from provinces and municipalities. Discussions on cost-sharing agreements were held at various levels.

Explanation of variances

A Resettlement Assistance Program re-profile of $121,000,000 from 2018–19 was not included in the 2019–20 planned spending. Actual spending was also lower due to delays in negotiations with provinces, with a re-profile request of $102,480,000 to 2020–21.