CIMM – Citizenship and Passport – November 29, 2022
Key Messages
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has innovated significantly over the past two years and modernized citizenship processes towards virtual and online services.
Modernization has included the implementation of video citizenship oath ceremonies, the online citizenship knowledge test, the electronic citizenship grant and proof applications and the self-serve citizenship application status tracker, as well as piloting an online passport intake solution for Canadians to securely access passport services online.
From April 1, 2021 to October 31, 2022, more than 399,000 clients have taken the online citizenship test, exceeding pre-COVID-19 levels and over 441,000 clients have become citizens achieving 71% of the target for fiscal year 2022-2023.
IRCC is responsible for the issuance of Canadian travel documents to facilitate travel for Canadians, stateless permanent residents and protected persons. IRCC is also responsible for refusal, cancellation and revocation of passports on all grounds except for terrorism and national security.
IRCC works with its service delivery partners, Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC)/Service Canada (SC) in Canada and Global Affairs Canada (GAC) abroad in order to deliver passport services to Canadians.
In 2022, demand for passports returned to pre-pandemic levels. The Government is committed to client service excellence and has implemented measures to support client service and return to service standards, while maintaining the integrity and security of the Passport Program.
Supplementary Messages
Citizenship Application Status Tracker
On May 10, 2021, the Department launched a new online tool enabling citizenship clients to check the status of their grant application as it moves through the application process to the citizenship ceremony.
To date, over 98% of Citizenship applicants have activated Citizenship Tracker accounts.
On October 13, 2022, IRCC made enhancements to the tracker by amalgamating with the immigration status tracker eliminating the need for clients to create additional accounts. Functionality has also been introduced allowing representatives to access application updates on behalf of their clients.
Citizenship Backlog And Processing Times
Due to interruptions in processing at the beginning of the pandemic, the grant inventory had grown from around 211,000 pre-pandemic to 429,000 as of March 31, 2022. Processing times had increased from 15 months pre-pandemic to 26 months.
To mitigate backlog growth, the Department has implemented and expanded several measures, including the online test in November 2020, video oath ceremonies in May 2020, and further initiatives to streamline processes. The grant e-application was also expanded on August 11, 2021 to all adult clients applying individually in order to minimize growth of the paper inventory, and facilitate remote processing and work-sharing. Development on the further expansion to minors and group applicants is currently underway.
We have made progress, processing more applications and moving people through the system faster. The Department continues to invite over 5,000 clients per week to complete the online citizenship test, which continues to exceed pre-COVID-19 in-person testing rates.
Considerable progress has been achieved with the inventory, as of October 31, 2022, having been reduced to just over 358,000 with 28% of applications exceeding 12 months.
Citizenship Events
Between April 1, 2021 and October 31, 2022, more than 441,000 applicants have attended ceremonies. Between April 1, 2022 and October 31, 2022, on average nearly 31,000 applicants took the oath of citizenship each month.
The online citizenship test has allowed aspiring Canadians to continue on their path to citizenship despite the challenges presented by the pandemic. From the launch of online testing in November 2020, more than 430,000 tests have been completed as of October 31, 2022.
In response to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s Call to Action 94, Bill C-8 was introduced and received Royal Assent on June 21, 2021. Canada’s Oath of Citizenship now recognizes the rights of First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples.
Additional Citizenship Innovations
On June 27, 2022 the Department launched a pilot introducing an electronic Citizenship Certificate solution and work continues to expand its availability.
Passport Services
Approximately 68% of all Canadians hold a valid passport and approximately 45 million passports were issued over the last ten years.
IRCC continues to support ESDC/SC and GAC to enable more efficient passport service delivery, while maintaining the integrity and security of the Passport Program. Facilitative measures since April 2022 have included the expansion of client eligibility for simplified adult renewals, streamlining operational procedures, enabling additional funding to increase resources for backlog reduction, supporting with processing efforts and advancing modernization.
For fiscal year 2022-23 to date (i.e. from April 2022 to end of October 2022) in-person service standards in Canada were met 92% of the time. ESDC/SC is actively working to eliminate the mail-in backlog that has accumulated since Spring 2022. Applications that were received in Fall 2022 are increasingly meeting service standards.
Global Affairs Canada’s (GAC) network abroad are at times limited due to local public health restrictions. An online appointment booking system helps some offices abroad effectively manage capacity limits while continuing to deliver services. For fiscal year 2022-23 to date (i.e. from April 2022 to end of October 2022) service standards abroad were met 93% of the time.
For Certificate of Identity, in fiscal year 2022-23 to date (i.e. from April 2022 to October 2022) 13% of applications were processed within service standards. For Refugee Travel Document, in fiscal year 2022-23 to date (i.e. from April 2022 to October 2022) 20% of applications were processed within service standards. The IRCC office processing these applications experienced multiple lockdowns and office capacity was limited due to health measures put in place during the pandemic, which led to a backlog of applications. Additional resources have been assigned to reduce the backlog, and performance has begun to improve. Priority is given to urgent cases which are processed in a timely manner (90% adherence to service standards for urgent).
Moving forward with the modernization agenda continues to be a priority for the Passport Program. The Passport Program Modernization Initiative (PPMI) continues to roll out a new issuance platform which leverages automation.
The first stage of a small-scale controlled pilot began in 2021 for online applications and is open to a select group of passport renewal applicants. The pilot tests the solution with a small known client group to perfect it before expanding to a wider audience.
Application processing will continue to be done in the departmental passport issuance system where all existing checks and verifications are conducted on a client’s eligibility, identity and entitlement to a Canadian passport. The privacy of Canadians and the security of their personal information is a top priority.
A mechanism to reimburse a portion of fees when service standards are not met exists under the Service Fees Act. In accordance with policies set under this Act, the Program must reimburse clients a portion of the passport fee paid when service standards are not met. Given the COVID-19 pandemic’s impacts on volumes and operations, the Program had leveraged the exceptional circumstances clause, thereby exempting it from having to issue such refunds. This exemption is expected to end on January 15, 2023.
Background
Call To Action 93 – Revision Of Information Kit For Newcomers And Its Citizenship Test
The Department continues to work on updates to the citizenship study guide and knowledge test, in response to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Call to Action #93 to be more inclusive of the perspectives and history of the Indigenous peoples of Canada.
To better reflect Canada’s diversity in the guide and test, the Department consulted over 90 stakeholders from national Indigenous organizations, academia, settlement service providers, interest groups and communities.
A suite of learning materials will also be provided to better support Canadians and prospective Canadians to access required citizenship knowledge. Educational tools including workbooks, web-based practice tests, games, and learning resources have been designed with second language learners, teachers, and settlement providers in mind, as well as several web-based practice tests, games, and learning resources.
At this time, a launch date for the revised guide and test has not yet been determined.
Call To Action 17 – Replacement Citizenship Certificates And Passports
In response to Call to Action (CTA) 17, since May 30, 2021, IRCC allows clients to obtain a free replacement of an existing permanent resident cards, citizenship certificate and passport in order to reclaim their Indigenous name. As of March 31, 2022, approximately 65 passports have been replaced through this initiative.
To date, there are no confirmed requests for replacement citizenship certificates in response to CTA 17.
