News & Insights

 

The College’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) was held on December 5, 2024, in Laval, Quebec.

The AGM included a Question and Answer session with President & CEO John Murray and Board of Directors Chair Stan Belevici, RCIC-IRB.

Questions that were not addressed at the AGM due to time constraints are included below:

Thank you to everyone who contributed to the Q&A session.

Q: In recent public statements, the Canadian Prime Minister and Immigration Minister, as well as the Ontario Immigration Minister, have referred to Immigration Consultants as "bad actors." I would appreciate it if the College could provide clarity on its position regarding this characterization and say whether the College intends to respond to the Ministry regarding this matter.

•  We responded to the Minister’s letter and to a large number of media inquiries received in the days after the Minister’s letter was made public.
• The College’s media statement and written reply to the Minister acknowledge that advising or assisting a client to misrepresent themself on an immigration application would be a breach of the Code of Conduct.
• As requested by the Minister, we communicated to all licensees and reiterated their obligations under the Code. The email sent to all licensees included a link to our reply to the Minister’s letter.
• We also made it clear that anyone who has any evidence of a licensee breaching the Code in this way should file a complaint with the College.
• Our Professional Conduct team has been monitoring websites and social media for evidence of any licensees encouraging clients to misrepresent themselves.
• Bad actors exist in all walks of life and the College’s purpose is to regulate licensed immigration consultants in the public interest and to protect the public.
• However, the majority of licensees conduct their work diligently and honestly. We have been very deliberate in our recent media statements to distinguish unauthorized practitioners (UAPs) from licensees and we will continue to warn the public of the dangers of working with UAPs and to promote the Public Register.

Q: Will the College consider requesting a language test and Canadian citizenship or Permanent Residence for licensing?

• To become a licensee, it is a mandatory for candidates to achieve at least the minimum required score on a College-approved English or French language ability test. This is required for all candidates except graduates from the Queen’s University and University of Montréal graduate diploma programs, as these 2 programs have integrated language ability requirements into their admission requirements.
• The College’s entry requirements to the profession no longer include Canadian citizenship or permanent residence (PR) to be licensed as an RCIC or RISIA. The requirement was not included in the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants Act (Canada) (College Act) and was removed by the College in November 2021. Recent court decisions involving professional regulators and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms have consistently struck down citizenship requirements imposed on licensees.
• However, College Board Members are required to be Canadian citizens or Permanent Residents. This requirement is set out in s. 20 of the College Act.

Q: Does the College allow our board members and the board chair to practise as RCICs?

• Yes. Pursuant to the College Act, the College is governed by a transitional Board of 9 Directors: 5 non-licensees appointed by the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, and 4 College licensees.
• The licensees on the Board are subject to the very same licensing obligations as every other licensee.

Q: Does the College have any plans to drastically reduce annual licensing fees?

• There are no current plans for a reduction in annual fees. The College does not receive any external funding. We are entirely funded by licensing fees.
• The current fee is required to maintain the College’s regulatory functions under the College Act, including efforts to combat UAPs, and also to maintain compliance with all applicable legislation, regulations and government directives. Fees are used to support the ongoing development of regulatory programs and support the College’s sustainability and compliance requirements. This is to protect the public interest and supports the profession.

Q: How is the College collaborating with other regulatory bodies, such as law societies, to better address the issue of UAPs? Given the College’s limited authority over UAPs, are there plans to work with governments to strengthen enforcement against unlicensed individuals practising immigration law?

• The College’s purpose is to regulate licensed immigration consultants in the public interest and to protect the public. We have no jurisdiction over the regulation of any other profession.
  
• However, we do work with other regulatory bodies (including provincial law societies), enforcement agencies and professionals to share learnings and improve regulation in our various fields. The College also collaborates closely with partners including IRCC, federal and provincial governments and law enforcement to combat UAPs.
• We have had some big successes in the last year in our efforts to combat UAPs. The College has carried out a number of blitzes on UAP social media pages and websites this year. To date, we have successfully shut down almost 4000 social media pages and websites. This work will continue.
• Our successful Fraud Prevention campaign has been running since March 2024, achieving unprecedented results. As of October 30, 2024, the College’s social media accounts have a total of 724,515 followers – a 332% increase year-on-year. And in 2024, there have been more than 5 million visits to the Public Register – a 181% annual increase.
• We are working on developing new content for the 2025 campaign to build on the successes of our 2024 campaign.
• We continue to take every opportunity to talk to multiple audiences about the value that licensees bring to the profession, about the dangers of UAPs, and about the importance of using our Public Register.
• We have built and continue to develop strong relationships with Federal stakeholders and have stepped up our communications with provincial governments.
• The College has a presence at relevant events, where our presentations always include the topic of UAPs, fraud prevention and using our Public Register.
• As the College is approached regularly for comment on media stories, we endeavour to include UAP messaging in every response and continue to strongly promote the Public Register.

Q: How does the College ensure that the out-of-country RCICs are properly regulated and monitored and what steps is the College taking to expand its regulatory reach and oversight of consultants practising outside Canada to prevent exploitation of the public?

• Of the College’s 12,264 licensees, the overwhelming majority are based in Canada. Only 265 are based elsewhere.
• But wherever they are based, all licensees are held to the same standards. The College’s powers to impose penalties up to and including suspension or revocation are not impacted by a licensee’s location.
• The College is actively pursuing relationships with foreign governments to promote public protection.

Q: Are there any ongoing discussions or initiatives to enhance the College's authority to better protect members of the public from UAPs?

• Our best way of protecting the public from the dangers of UAPs is through public awareness. We are working on the next Fraud Prevention campaign and once again this will reach a global audience with a simple main message promoting the Public Register and encouraging anyone who chooses to work with an immigration consultant to make sure they are working with a College licensee.
• We will also continue our action to shut down UAP social media pages and websites and to build on the recent success we have had on this front.

Q: What steps is the College taking to improve the public perception of RCICs and ensure that the profession is seen as credible and professional?

• We are committed to working with the profession as part of our purpose to regulate licensed immigration consultants in the public interest and to protect the public.
• Our Fraud Prevention campaign strongly promotes the Public Register and encourages anyone who chooses to work with an immigration consultant to make sure they are working with a College licensee.
• The College establishes and administers qualification standards, standards of practice, continuing education and education programs for licensees. These standards have been significantly strengthened since the College was continued from ICCRC. We have built on the Essential Competencies and Code of Professional Conduct already in place and aligned its standards, education and policies accordingly. The Entry-to-Practice Exam has transitioned from knowledge-based to competency-based, assuring the public that licensee candidates have the required knowledge, skills and judgment to provide competent and ethical immigration consulting services. All of this work helps the profession to be seen as credible.

Q: How does the College plan to counter any negative narratives that may arise in the media or public discourse about immigration consultants, especially in the face of legal or regulatory challenges? What advocacy efforts is the College currently engaged in to influence legislative changes that would benefit both the public and immigration consultants?

• The College is regularly approached by media for comment. Our responses distinguish UAPs from licensees and promote the Public Register.
• We regularly advise the media of our desire to reserve the term “consultant” exclusively for licensees of the College. Commonly used terminology like “ghost consultants” can be confusing to the public. We prefer that media and all stakeholders, including licensees, use the term Unauthorized Practitioner (or UAP) to clearly separate them from licensees.
• College staff meet with government partners at the federal and provincial levels regularly to discuss the legislative changes that relate to the work of licensees and combating of UAPs.

Q: What is being done to advise licensees of lodged complaints and outcomes?

• The College carefully reviews and assesses the risk associated with every complaint it receives.
• As would be the case with any formal investigation, procedural fairness requires due diligence.
• The College addresses every complaint in a manner that is fair, efficient, and in the public interest.
• This rigorous process allows the College to assess all complaints about licensees and take appropriate regulatory action to protect the public.
• Most complaints do not require a full investigation to be resolved in the public interest.
• All Discipline Committee decisions are published in the College’s Monthly Bulletin.
• Each complaint that ends in a discipline action is listed on our website, along with the details of the allegations and the consequences. In current practice, we contact licensees in order to properly identify regulatory issues and determine the appropriate stream to address those.

Q: What efforts are being made by the College to develop a resource between members and IRCC, that a dedicated team is available to handle our queries and complaints about applications, delays, unfair decisions, etc. it is becoming extremely hard to communicate with IRCC currently, only to get textbook responses.

• The College’s purpose is to regulate licensed immigration consultants in the public interest and to protect the public. It is not the College’s role to advocate for licensees in the way that a member organization such as the Canadian Association of Professional Immigration Consultants (CAPIC) does.
• The College has no influence over any government department’s processes or services.

Q: The transition to the new College Portal has been difficult for some licensees. It was advertised as a system that would make things simpler but that has not always been the case. Why were there problems and what is being done to fix those problems?

• The launch of any new system on the scale of the College Portal typically comes with some issues. We anticipated this and worked quickly to resolve issues.
• We will continue to quickly respond to any reported bugs and are always focused on the external users’ experience.
• The College Portal serves as a one-stop source where licensees can easily access the information, tools, and resources they need. It also serves candidates, applicants and members of the public who wish to file a complaint.
• While there have been some issues, we have also received some very positive feedback from licensees about the Portal and the ease with which they were able to complete tasks.
• The Annual Renewal process was completed through the new College Portal in 2024 and 97% of licensees were able to do so without any review required from College staff.

Q: Would you consider running a satisfaction survey for licensees, for licensees to give feedback on the services offered by the College?

• Yes, a licensee engagement survey is planned for 2025.
• We regularly seek licensee feedback around the launch and updating of standards and to get feedback on things like how we communicate with licensees. Our communications team carried out such a survey in 2024 and our PREP department engaged with licensees directly when updating the Essential Competencies.
• We are always open to hearing feedback from licensees on the College’s procedures and systems, and the AGM Q&A session is one such example of this.

Q: What is the College doing to improve response time to emails from licensees?

• The latest statistics show that over the last few months, the College has responded to emails in under 12 business hours on average.
• We are committed to responding within 48 hours on average and are consistently hitting this target.

Q: For the past few years, the College has organized a 1-hour CPD session for attendees related to professionalism and/or the Code of Professional Conduct as per the CPD Regulation. Other CPD providers did not so commonly organize this kind of session. Is there any specific reason why you did not organize it in 2024?

• The College is a regulatory organization and is not in the business of providing Continuing Professional Development (CPD). From time to time, when we have something specific to communicate to licensees – such as the Code of Professional Conduct Interpretation Guide – we will hold information sessions and give CPD credit if those sessions meet CPD requirements.
• Many providers are offering CPD sessions that meet the professionalism or Code of Conduct requirement. Check under the ‘Upcoming CPD Events’ tab and select the ‘Professionalism’ option to find the relevant upcoming courses available.

Q: Multiple part question.
1. Why does IRCC accept files from people other than College licensees?
2. Are agents allowed to provide legal assistance?
3. Are licensees allowed to sign the client’s name on paperwork with the permission of the client?

1. That is a question for IRCC rather than for the College, but people do not need to work with a licensee or with any representative unless they choose to do so, and so they are free to submit their own paperwork.
2. Assuming the question is whether agents can provide immigration advice, the answer is simple. According to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, Agents are not permitted to provide immigration advice for a fee or other consideration. And as per the Citizenship Act, Agents may not provide citizenship advice. Please familiarize yourself with the College’s Agents Regulation. If the question is about providing legal assistance, it is best to contact the relevant regulatory body for this answer.
3. RCICs cannot sign immigration applications on behalf of their clients, even if clients have given their consent. According to most immigration regulations, the applicant themself must sign their application forms to confirm the accuracy and authenticity of the information provided.

Q: What action does the College intend to take against the Canadian Immigration Lawyers Association (CILA) regarding the frequent blatant attacks on the College and its licensees and advising the public of their efforts to have the College shut down?

• We take every opportunity to promote the work of the College and the importance of checking the Public Register when we speak to media, government officials, elected representatives, the wider public and to a wide range of other stakeholders. We will continue to do this and to counteract factually inaccurate statements about the College and licensees.
• CAPIC, the licensee member organization, may also be best placed to answer this question.

Q: There have been rumours regarding potential limitations on RCICs, including suggestions that RCICs be required to work under the supervision of lawyers. These rumours are causing anxiety and uncertainty within the profession. Could you please provide clarification on the College's stance on these matters and any actions being taken to safeguard the interests of RCICs? Are there any proactive steps that RCICs themselves should be taking to contribute to the profession's stability and ensure its continued recognition as a valuable and independent service?

• This suggestion comes from CILA’s recent letter to the Minister that was published on their website. It reflects the position of some immigration lawyers going back to the foundation of the immigration consulting profession.
• Governments, including the current and previous governments and the multi-party Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration (CIMM Committee), have uniformly rejected it and have, instead, chosen to support the profession through creation of the College.
• Any suggestion that College licensees would have to work under the supervision of a lawyer is not based in any fact. There are no moves in place for that to happen and the College would, of course, firmly reject any such move.
• College licensees have the required knowledge, skills and judgment to provide competent and ethical immigration consulting services and adhere to rigorous standards before becoming licensed and after becoming licensed to remain in good standing. As we have noted, we take every opportunity to promote the work of the College and the importance of checking the Public Register.
• The best way for licensees to protect and enhance the reputation of the profession is to continue to carry out their work professionally and diligently while complying always with the Code of Professional Conduct and completing all of the required steps to remain in good standing.

Q: Does the College have plans to establish a compensation fund to safeguard the public in cases where they suffer financial losses due to the actions of unethical consultants?

• Yes. The College Act requires that the College “must establish a fund to compensate persons who have been adversely affected by the conduct or activities of a licensee.”
• Details on eligibility and the process for making a claim to the Fund will be released once the Compensation Fund is operational.

Q: Will the College consider implementing stricter qualifications to ensure that only highly competent and ethical professionals can be members of the regulated profession, thereby enhancing public protection and the integrity of our profession?

• The College establishes and administers qualification standards, standards of practice, continuing education and education programs for licensees. These standards have been significantly strengthened since the College was continued from ICCRC.
• We have built on the Essential Competencies and Code of Professional Conduct already in place and aligned its standards, education and policies accordingly.
• The Entry-to-Practice Exam has transitioned from knowledge-based to competency-based, assuring the public that licensee candidates have the required knowledge, skills and judgment to provide competent and ethical immigration consulting services.
• Our New-Licensee Mentoring Program addresses the gap in practical experience and CPD activities have been assessed to enable licensees to meet new standards in their ongoing learning and provide licensees with abundant options to continue their learning and meet their annual CPD hour requirements.
• Also, Practice Management Education (PME) courses and materials are continually enhanced to meet the changing competency requirements.
• All these rigorous standards are in addition to the recent change that requires new licensees to successfully complete the Graduate Diploma Program through Queen’s University or the University of Montréal.

Q: Does the College have a plan to open a help line so RCICs and RISIAs can resolve questions about practice management and ethics and obtain advisory support?

• The College responds to emails from licensees in under 12 business hours on average.
• We are committed to responding within 48 hours on average and are consistently hitting this target.
• The College’s purpose is to regulate licensed immigration consultants in the public interest and to protect the public. Currently, we don’t provide advisory services for licensees.

Q: What measures are being implemented to protect vulnerable individuals, particularly international students, from unscrupulous registered consultants (RCICs, RISIAs) who encourage them to apply for refugee status under false pretenses?

• Advising or assisting a client to misrepresent themself on an immigration application would be a breach of the Code of Professional Conduct.
• While licensees should, of course, be fully aware of this, the College recently communicated to all and reminded licensees of their obligations under the Code. This reminder was sent to licensees at the request of the Minister in his letter to the College.
• Anyone who has any evidence of a licensee breaching the Code in this way should file a complaint with the College.
• Our Professional Conduct team has been closely monitoring websites and social media for evidence of any licensees encouraging clients to misrepresent themselves.

Q: The College’s 2024 financial report shows $18 million in GICs. What is the purpose of these GICs? Why aren’t more funds being used toward improving the services provided by the College to the public?

• Guaranteed Investment Certificates (GICs) are safe, low-risk investments in which the principal investment is secure.
• The purpose of the funds is to support the continuing development of the College. This includes the new Regulations requirements, the Compensation Fund (which is a statutory requirement), the College Portal, new programs to increase professional competencies, combating UAPs, investigating and disciplining bad actors within the profession, compliance with a variety of federal legislation, regulation and Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat policies, and building sustainable operations.

Q: What are the By-laws that regulate the identification, selection, and approval of Board Members? What is the operational mechanism, in detail, which was followed to determine the latest group of Board members?

• The Board is currently a “transitional Board” as per the College Act. The organization of the transitional Board is prescribed in s. 85 of the College Act.
• The transitional period will run until the Minister fixes the number of Directors under subsection 17(2) of the College Act, which is expected to happen once the new College Act Regulations are introduced – sometime in or after June of 2025.
• Currently, the 9 Board members are made up of 5 non-licensees appointed by the Minister and 4 licensees selected by the Chair from among licensees who were members of the ICCRC Board.
• The composition of the Board once the transitional period is ended will be at the discretion of the Minister.

Q: Section 44 of the By-laws indicates that after each annual meeting, the Board should hold elections. However, the elections were held earlier this year instead. Section 5 of the College Act states that the remaining directors are to be licensees elected in accordance with the By-laws. Why did the College Board not wait until the annual meeting to run elections of Board members as regulated by the By-laws?

• This information is incorrect. The current By-laws indicate that a Board election will be held at an AGM once the transitional period is over. We are still in the transitional period and will remain so until the new College Act Regulations are introduced and the Minister issues an order under s. 17 of the College Act.
• As noted above, the composition of the transitional Board of Directors is fixed in s. 85 of the College Act. There has not been any Board election conducted by the College.