Biometrics – 1 in 10 expiry periods

This section contains policy, procedures and guidance used by IRCC staff. It is posted on the department’s website as a courtesy to stakeholders.

Known as “the 1 in 10 policy”, subsection 12.7(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (IRPR) provides a temporary exemption from the requirement to provide biometric information to support a subsequent application for temporary residence (including applications for the temporary resident visa, temporary resident status, work permit, study permit, or temporary resident permit). To be eligible for the temporary exemption, the applicant must have previously provided biometrics to support a temporary residence application or have a pending permanent residence application, and they must submit the new application within 10 years of the date of biometric enrolment.

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Temporary residence applicants

When biometrics are provided to support an application for temporary residence, the biometric enrolment may be reused under the 1 in 10 policy.

In the case of a partial biometric enrolment for a temporary reason, GCMS will automatically update the 1 in 10 expiry date to the application close date.

Biometric assessment and 1 in 10 expiry date

Biometric assessment and 1 in 10 expiry date
Biometric assessment in GCMS 1 in 10 policy applied to client 1 in 10 expiry date
Complete Yes Date of enrolment + 10 years
Exempt - Imp./NFFootnote * Permanent Yes Date of enrolment + 10 years
Exempt - Imp./NFFootnote * Temporary No Date of application close

Further guidance can be found in the Biometrics exemptions and Biometrics: Step-by-step collection procedures.

Foreign nationals who provided their biometrics under the Temporary Resident Biometric Program also benefit from the 1 in 10 policy, and the 10-year expiry date is applied to them retroactively in GCMS.

Permanent residence applicants

Temporary resident to permanent resident: Valid biometrics provided to support a temporary residence application cannot be reused to support a permanent residence application.

Permanent resident to permanent resident: Biometrics provided to support a permanent residence application cannot be reused to support a subsequent or new permanent residence application. Applicants applying for permanent residence are required to enrol their biometrics to support every permanent residence application.

Permanent residence applicant to temporary residence applicant

Permanent resident to temporary resident: The biometrics can be reused to support a temporary residence application in cases where a foreign national has already provided the biometrics to support a permanent residence application, asylum claim, or overseas refugee resettlement application and is waiting for a decision on that application or claim.

Note: The 1 in 10 expiry date will reflect the date the permanent residence application closed.

Immigration expiry date documents

According to section 24.6(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations, the expiry date of temporary residence documents for individuals who are required to provide biometrics to support their application cannot be more than 10 years from the date they last provided biometrics.

GCMS will validate that the expiry date or, where applicable, the must exit by date is not more than 10 years from the date of the most recent biometric enrolment associated with the application. If users attempt to issue a document more than 10 years from the date of the biometric enrolment, they will receive an error message and will be required to

  • shorten the period covered by the document
  • ensure that the correct biometrics are associated to the application or
  • request that the client provide new biometrics and pay the associated fee (if applicable)

An applicant with valid biometrics on file can voluntarily re-enrol their biometrics within the 10 year period if they wish to receive a visa or permit that covers a longer period.

For example, a person who wants to apply for a new 10-year visa and who last enrolled their biometric information 8 years ago could receive only a 2-year visa. To receive a 10-year visa, they would have to voluntarily re-enrol their biometric information (and pay the associated fee).

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