Temporary resident permits (TRPs): Considerations specific to foreign nationals who were in state care

These instructions aim to provide guidance to IRCC officers on the issuance of a temporary resident permit (TRP) to foreign nationals who were in state care (and their eligible family members in Canada). These instructions are effective on September 29, 2023.

The Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship has issued ministerial instructions (MIs) regarding the issuance of temporary resident permits (TRPs) to support certain individuals who came to Canada under the age of 19 and were under the legal responsibility of the child protection system but never obtained citizenship. In some cases, provincial and territorial child welfare agencies did not apply for permanent residence or citizenship on their behalf when they were eligible and in their care, while others subsequently lost their permanent resident or temporary resident status. Some of these individuals are now at risk of removal.

The intention is for these TRP applications to be assessed as expeditiously as possible using the criteria outlined below. These TRPs are to be issued in accordance with the existing instructions for the issuance of TRPs under subsection 24(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA), as well as the corresponding ministerial instructions (MI) established in subsection 24(3) of the IRPA.

On this page

• Eligibility
• Balancing and TRP issuance
• Where the TRP application is processed
• Individuals subject to a removal order
• Assessing evidence of state care
• Interview considerations
• Work permit and study permit issuance
• Public policy – Fees
• Cost recovery
• Collection of biometrics

Eligibility

To be eligible for these measures, principal applicants must

• not have valid status in Canada at time of application
• be physically present in Canada at time of application
• have come to Canada before they were 19 years of age
• have continuously resided in Canada for at least 3 years at the time of application
• have continuously resided in Canada since the age of 19, if over the age of 19
• have been under the legal responsibility of a child and family services provider under a provincial or territorial government’s designated ministry for at least 1 year (cumulative)
• only be inadmissible pursuant to any of the following:
  • subsection 36(1) of the Act on serious criminality grounds
  • subsection 36(2) of the Act on criminality grounds
  • paragraph 38(1)(c) of the Act on health grounds for a health condition that might reasonably be expected to cause excessive demand on health or social services
  • section 39 of the Act on financial reasons
  • paragraph 40(1)(a) of the Act for no other reasons than related to their entry to Canada or overstaying their temporary resident status and working or studying without authorization
  • paragraph 40(1)(b) of the Act for being or having been sponsored by a person who is determined to be inadmissible for misrepresentation
  • subsection 41(a) of the Act for non-compliance
  • section 42 of the Act where the family member is inadmissible, except where the family member is inadmissible under subsections 34(1), 35(1) or 37(1) of the Act

To be eligible for these measures, family members must

• not have valid status in Canada at time of application
• be physically present in Canada at time of application
• be the family member of an individual who meets the criteria outlined for principal applicants above and was issued a TRP
• meet the definition of a “family member” in subsection 1(3) of the Regulations
• be inadmissible only pursuant to any of the following:
  • paragraph 40(1)(a) of the Act for no other reasons than related to their entry to Canada or overstaying their temporary resident status and working or studying without authorization
  • subsection 41(a) of the Act for no other reasons than overstaying their temporary resident status and working or studying without authorization
  • section 42 of the Act where the family member is inadmissible, except where the family member is inadmissible under subsections 34(1), 35(1) or 37(1) of the Act

Balancing and TRP issuance

Once an officer is satisfied that an applicant meets the eligibility criteria to be issued a TRP (as per A24(1)) and also meets the criteria for their TRP application to be processed under the MIs (as per A24(3)), then the designated decision maker must determine if issuing a TRP is justified under this applicant’s specific circumstances. To do so, the designated decision maker must analyze the applicant’s situation to determine if 1) The applicant’s purpose to remain in Canada is balanced when the objectives of the IRPA are considered, and 2) The issuance outweighs any risks that might exist and is compelling and sufficient to overcome any risks that the applicant might pose.

If the designated decision maker determines that issuing a TRP is justified in the circumstances, the officer may issue a TRP with a validity of a minimum of 1 year.

Depending on the circumstances, and at the officer’s discretion, a subsequent TRP may also be justified. In determining the need for a subsequent TRP, officers should consider the same factors listed in the MIs.

If applicants do not hold a document referred to in subsection 52(1) of the Regulations or if they are unable to obtain a document enumerated at subsection 52(1), officers may accept other documents to substantiate the identity of an applicant, such as, but not limited to, those documents described in subsections 178(1) and 178(2) of the Regulations.

Where the TRP application is processed

These TRP applications must be submitted to the Humanitarian Migration Office in Vancouver, while the Humanitarian Migration Office in Toronto will be responsible for processing these applications as a priority.

These applications must not be directed to CPC-Edmonton. If an application is identified at a Case Processing Centre, it should be transferred to HM-Toronto as expeditiously as possible. Org IDs will be used to identify those applications and facilitate transfer to HM-Toronto.

Applications for a subsequent TRP under these MIs must also be submitted to HM-Vancouver and processed at HM-Toronto.

Individuals subject to a removal order

If a removal order is in place for an individual applying for this TRP, an IRCC manager or supervisor must advise the CBSA of the situation in writing. The notification email should be sent to the CBSA officer in carriage of the removals file and copied to the CBSA Removals Operations.

As these applications must be processed as a priority, the CBSA can be contacted once the decision has been made, except if more information or an interview is required before an application can be finalized. In such cases, the following steps must be followed:

1. The CBSA must be contacted upon receipt of the application.
2. A note must be made on the individual’s UCI stating that TRP issuance is being considered and requesting that the CBSA consult IRCC before taking further action.
3. Once the decision has been made, an IRCC manager or supervisor must contact the CBSA directly, in writing, to confirm whether the TRP was issued.

Assessing evidence of state care

For the purposes of these instructions, “under the legal responsibility of a child and family services provider” refers only to situations where the responsible provincial or territorial authorities obtained full legal “parental” responsibilities for the child by court order.

In order to demonstrate the period(s) of time they were in state care, applicants may submit documents such as, but not limited to, the following:

• court documents
• an attestation letter from a provincial or territorial child welfare agency who was granted legal responsibility for the child
• an attestation letter from a child service institution, confirming the child’s attendance during a specific period
• attendance records from a child service institution

Interview considerations

The officer may render a decision based on the documentation received. If the officer is not satisfied with the documentation provided, a procedural fairness letter or an interview (in person or telephone) may be warranted.

If an IRCC officer is unable to contact an individual after 1 attempt (with lag time at the officer’s discretion) the officer should render a decision based on the available information.

It is highly recommended that all processing steps are thoroughly captured in GCMS, including but not limited to telephone calls, emails and letters).

Work permit and study permit issuance

A TRP that is valid for at least 6 months makes the holder eligible to apply for an open work permit and a study permit. If a foreign national who was in state care (or the dependent of a foreign national who was in state care) wants to apply for a work or study permit, the application should be submitted and processed by the HM office at the same time as the TRP application, if the TRP application is going to be approved.

Public policy – Fees

A public policy is in effect to exempt the payment of application fees for the TRP and the open work or study permit when issued for at least 6 months. The fee for the collection of biometrics information is also exempted under this public policy.

Cost recovery

The open work permit privilege fee does not apply to work permits issued with a TRP under paragraph R208(b), and should not be charged.

For fee purposes, the TRP, work permit and study permit should be coded as 999 in GCMS. Exemption code B12 should be used for the biometrics (if no valid biometrics results already exist).

Collection of biometrics

Upon receipt of an application under these MIs, an officer will verify if valid biometrics results exist for the applicant and, if not, they will send a BIL letter to the applicant.