IRCC, Deputy Minister, Transition Binder, 2024 - Passport Modernization and Sustainability of the Passport Revolving Fund

Issue

• The Passport Program has been subject to public scrutiny over the past two years, for reasons including the service delivery challenges and application backlogs that occurred between spring and fall 2022, the unveiling of the new passport design in May 2023, and the simultaneous ministerial announcement of an online passport application channel to be launched in the near future.
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• Meanwhile, important modernization initiatives are being rolled out at different speeds, with the full benefits in terms of client service, processing efficiency, and integrity not expected to be realized for a few more years.

State of Play

Modernization

• The Passport Program, led by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) in partnership with Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) and Global Affairs Canada (GAC), is moving away from a largely paper-based model and advancing its modernization/transformation agenda. This includes improving the service experience for Canadians and reducing delivery costs by leveraging digital solutions.
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• The Passport Program Modernization Initiative migrates the Program from the legacy issuance system onto Global Case Management System, including an intake tool and automation for processing. These changes will permit officers to focus on higher-risk priority cases and allow more applications to be processed with minimal staff intervention. Deployment began in July 2023, had reached 11% of offices as of the end of 2023, and is planned to be fully rolled out to additional locations by the end of August 2024.
• The ePassport Next Generation provides Canada with a new passport design featuring state-of-the-art security features, as well as modern laser-engraving printers with increased capacity. Domestic deployment began on June 16, 2023, and is 87% complete as of the end of 2023, and is on track to finish in April 2024. [Redacted].

Financial sustainability

• The Passport Program operates on a full cost-recovery basis supported by revenues from client fees, over a 10-year business cycle. The first 10-year cycle ran from 2013 to 2023. By early 2020, the PRF had a large surplus, which was considered more than sufficient to cover costs for the remainder of that cycle and into the next cycle (2023-2033). However, due the cumulative effects of disruptions to revenue and processing capacity during the pandemic (particularly when global travel was severely restricted) and the rapid increase in operating costs during the 2022 return in demand, the balance was drawn down faster than planned.
• As a result of previous and ongoing challenges, [Redacted]. IRCC worked with its service delivery partners (particularly ESDC) to contain Program costs as much as possible. Despite these efforts, a one-time funding injection was sought and provided by the Government for $25M in fiscal year 2023-2024 to ensure the continuity of passport services to Canadians. In order to access the funding through Supplementary Estimates C, the Department has submitted a Treasury Board Submission that will be considered by the Board on January 29.
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Key Messages

• The Government is committed to ensuring that Canadians can obtain passport services in a timely and cost-effective manner. Work is ongoing to review the Passport Program, with the view to ensure its long-term financial sustainability.
• Advancing the Passport Program’s modernization agenda continues to be a priority as it offers the most concrete solutions to stabilizing the program and responding to future fluctuations in client demand.

Next Steps

• You will be briefed on the status of modernization projects with a focus on online passport renewal given the high public and Minister Beech interest. The program will continue to monitor integrated project timelines.
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Background

• A backlog was created when passport demand returned in spring 2022 with travel restrictions being lifted following the pandemic. IRCC developed and implemented policy and program guidance measures to provide support. ESDC returned to service standard for new applications in October 2022 and eliminated the backlog in January 2023.
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