CIMM – Actions Taken in Response to the 2017 CIMM Report on Consultants – June 14, 2023

Date: June 14, 2023
Classification:
Department: IRCC

Issue: 

CIMM Ministerial Appearance on the Exploitation Scheme Targeting Certain International Students

Proposed Response:

• In response to the 2017 CIMM report, Starting Again: Improving Government Oversight of Immigration Consultants, Canada has taken decisive action to hold immigration and citizenship consultants to account by investing $48.3M over four years and $9.8M ongoing to 1) improve oversight of immigration and citizenship consultants, 2) to strengthen compliance and enforcement measures, and 3) to support public awareness activities to protect newcomers against fraudulent consultants. Specifically, the Government has:
  • Created the College of Immigration and Citizenship consultants, which regulates the profession to the highest standards and disciplines consultants who engage in exploitative activities.
  • Through the Budget Implementation Act 2023, amended the College Act and IRPA to even further strengthen the College’s complaints and discipline processes and to improve oversight of consultants.
  • Amended IRPA and the Citizenship Act to double the maximum criminal fines for the provision of advice or representation without authorization, as well as permit the establishment by regulation of an administrative penalties and consequences regime through which IRCC will sanction those who commit violations. The regime is anticipated to take effect in 2024.
  • Hired dozens of FTEs within IRCC and CBSA, and provided over $8 million to improve detection of fraud, as well as pursue investigations and enforcement.
  • Established 5 overseas positions to undertake targeted outreach to potential clients regarding the risks of using an unauthorized representative. The positions are located in Bogota, Colombia; Lagos, Nigeria; Abu Dhabi, UAE; New Delhi, India and Beijing, China.
• While prospective newcomers are not required to seek support on their applications, should theychoose to, they should only use a lawyer in good standing with their law society or a consultant that is licensed by the College.

If pressed on whether the College can regulate student recruitment:

• While the College has the authority to regulate licensed immigration consultants, education recruitment services are separate from immigration consulting and fall under provincial/territorial jurisdiction.

If pressed on whether the investments have gone to the College:

• No government funding has gone or will go to the College. Instead, the College will be entirely funded through licensee fees set by the College

Contact:
Alexis Graham
Director General, Social Immigration Policy and Programs
Tel. No.: 613-796-5463

Approved by:
Marian Campbell Jarvis
Sous-ministre adjointe, Politiques stratégiques et de programmes
No de tél. : 613-437-6752

Background:

The 2017 CIMM Report

In its June 2017 report, Starting Again: Improving Government Oversight of Immigration Consultants, the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration provided recommendations for fundamental change in three main areas:

• The legislative framework for the body responsible for governing immigration and citizenship consultants (Recommendations 1 to 9, 11, 20)
• Investigations and enforcement concerning the offence of practicing while not authorized and other offences (Recommendations 17 to 19, 21)
• Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada procedures for processing applications and for communicating with clients and with prospective applicants (Recommendations 10, 12 to 17)

In response, the Government has been taking decisive action to protect the public from dishonest actors who are taking advantage of vulnerable people by investing $48.3M over four years and $9.8M ongoing. These investments will help to ensure that applicants have access to quality immigration and citizenship advice; that those who are providing the services operate in a professional and ethical manner; and that those who would seek to circumvent the regulatory regime are deterred from doing so.

Actions Taken – Legislative Framework

In 2019, legislative amendments were made under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) and the Citizenship Act to double the maximum criminal fines for those providing advice or representation without authorization; and to provide regulatory authority for the establishment of an administrative penalties and consequences regime to be administered by IRCC for the purposes of ensuring compliance with the legislation.

Also in 2019, the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants Act (College Act) received Royal Assent, serving as a statutory framework for the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants to govern the profession and hold licensed consultants to high standards of professional and ethical conduct. The College opened as the regulator for consultants in November 2021.

The College is an arm’s-length institution mandated to regulate the profession in the public interest. It has strengthened tools to investigate professional misconduct and discipline its licensees, including the ability to:

• enter the premises of a consultant for the purpose of gathering information to support an investigation when it suspects wrongdoing;
• summon and compel witnesses to appear and testify before the Discipline Committee;
• suspend a consultant as a provisional measure prior to a finding of professional misconduct or incompetence – in situations where protection of the public is at risk; and
• suspend and/or revoke licenses to practice as part of disciplinary decisions.

With respect to unlicensed actors providing immigration advice without authorization, the College has new tools at its disposal, including the power to:

• send cease and desist letters; and
• request court injunctions.

The Government also has strengthened oversight and day-to-day functioning of the College. In this vein, it:

• established a code of professional conduct for licensees in June 2022;
• appointed 5 of the 9 Directors to the College’s Board in spring 2022;
• designated a civil servant observer to the Board in spring 2022
• is developing an additional package of Governor-in-Council regulations. This includes a wide range of regulation topics such as a victim compensation fund; function and powers of the Registrar; functioning of the complaints and discipline process; Ministerial powers with respect to the College, including circumstances for appointing a temporary administrator; and governance topics such as conflict of interest of board and committee members, eligibility criteria of board members, and College reporting requirements. These regulations are anticipated in 2024.

Actions Taken – Investigations and Enforcement

The Government has enacted a number of measures in this area including:

• Legislative amendments made under IRPA and the Citizenship Act in 2019 to double the maximum amount of the criminal fines under those Acts for the provision of advice or representation without authorization.
• Legislative amendments to IRPA and the Citizenship Act in 2019 to provide regulation-making authority for a new regime of administrative penalties and consequences, applicable to those who provide immigration advice and/or representation. This new regime is intended to ensure compliance to these Acts and will be administered by IRCC. It is anticipated to take effect in 2024
• New investments in IRCC have had a positive effect in many areas, including:
  • 5 FTE ongoing to establish an operational hub for immigration representative issues has led to improved coordination and liaison with operational stakeholders
  • 9.5 FTE ongoing for operational investigations has already led to an increase in investigations and will be used to issue future administrative penalties
  • 19 FTE ongoing to deliver IT tools to improve fraud detection will be used to improve how the Department conducts investigations and will enable the Department to issue administrative penalties and consequences to immigration consultants that are not complying IRPA or the Citizenship Act.
• New investments to provide more resources for the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) to pursue criminal investigations of complex cases related to immigration consultants.

CBSA is responsible for investigation of consultant-related offences under IRPA. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) is responsible investigation of offences under the Citizenship Act. IRCC does not have a role in enforcement, it is under the purview of Public Safety Canada.

Actions Taken –Communicating with Applicants and Potential Applicants

New investments stemming from Budget 2019 have provided IRCC with resources for public education activities and targeted outreach, including to diaspora communities in Canada. Five dedicated outreach positions have been established internationally to ensure that information is disseminated within those countries regarding the legal requirement to use an authorized representative if using the services of a third party, and the consequences of using an unauthorized representative or “ghost” actor. The positions are located in: Bogota, Colombia; Lagos, Nigeria; Abu Dhabi, UAE; New Delhi, India and Beijing, China.