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Gender based analysis Plus

Institutional GBA Plus Capacity

Gender, diversity and intersectionality are key considerations in the work of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), given its global mandate and its impact on newcomers, refugees and Canadians. IRCC’s Equity Policy and GBA Plus unit is the Department’s GBA Plus focal point, and is part of the Strategic Policy and Planning Branch. The team promotes and supports the Department’s application and implementation of GBA Plus.

The Director General of the Strategic Policy and Planning Branch is responsible for GBA Plus functional guidance to the Department. IRCC’s GBA Plus Departmental capacity is also supported by an Anti-Racism Task Force, as well as equity champions at the senior management level. The champions provide additional guidance and support on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility issues, and also represent and advocate for members of the Department’s employee networks.

Employee networks are critical for surfacing GBA Plus considerations. They represent diverse employees from across IRCC, and include Pride@IRCC, the Indigenous Peoples Circle, the Black Employees Network, the Racialized Employees and Allies Network, the Persons with Disabilities Network, and the Women’s Network. Employee networks are organized and chaired by volunteer employees who do this work as part of a personal commitment to improving equity within the public service, based on their own lived experiences.

Since 2001, IRCC has had a legislative requirement under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) to report on GBA in the Annual Report to Parliament on Immigration. The Department has extensive data that is disaggregated by gender, as well as other intersectional factors such as age and country of citizenship in order to better support the evidence-based analysis that underpins GBA Plus. In addition, IRCC is working to further incorporate GBA Plus into performance measurement and evaluation processes to ensure that IRCC programs address GBA Plus considerations.

Highlights for 2023–24:

In 2023–24, IRCC will continue to advance the implementation of GBA Plus governance. Further embedding consideration of gender, diversity, inclusion and accessibility in policies, programs, and operations will be achieved by:

Highlights of GBA Plus Results Reporting Capacity by Program

Core Responsibility 1: Visitors, International Students and Temporary Workers

Visitor

IRCC’s Visitors Program seeks to achieve a balance between facilitating the travel of foreign nationals while maintaining the integrity of the immigration and asylum system. Despite the shorter-term duration of stay in Canada facilitated by the program, the Visitors Program can support the Gender Results Framework’s pillars on education and skills development, economic participation, and eliminating Gender-based Violence (GBV), and promoting access to justice.

There are several notable ongoing initiatives that will help to improve and expand the Visitors Program’s capacity to report and monitor impacts based on gender and diversity factors.

For example, the Visitors Program currently collects gender, age, and language data through the annual Citizenship and Immigration Client Experience Survey and new data will be available mid-2023. In 2021, IRCC began the first update to the survey to collect data on additional intersectional factors (such as accessibility, disability and ethnicity) that will support better analysis on client satisfaction, including clients who applied to visit Canada. This initiative has ultimately expanded the Program’s capacity to report on impacts by gender and diversity. With respect to the Department’s efforts to modernize the Visitors Program, disaggregated data collection and GBA Plus will be key components for monitoring the program’s performance and modernization outcomes (e.g., client satisfaction and accessibility of new tools disaggregated based on gender and other key factors).

In 2022, the Visitors Program announced its commitment to conducting an internal review in order to examine its Performance Measurement Strategy Framework from a GBA Plus and Anti-Racism perspective. The review and a summary of findings report is expected to be complete in 2023. The overall goal of the review is to achieve a more equitable and inclusive Visitors Program in terms of who is facilitated and who is impacted by managed migration.

International Students

IRCC facilitates the entry of students who wish to study at a designated Canadian educational institutions through the International Student Program (ISP), which is a demand driven temporary residence program. The ISP contributes to the Gender Results Framework pillars on education, skills development and gender equality around the world. A review of the International Student Program is underway and GBA Plus considerations are being integrated into this work. The Department collects disaggregated data on study permit holders and Post-Graduate Work Permit (PGWP) holders that can be broken down by gender, age and country of origin. This data will be used to inform the ISP policy review throughout 2023–24. GBA Plus will continue to be integrated in the development and assessment of policy tools and options for the program (e.g., increasing acceptance rates in specific areas and dedicated pathways for underrepresented groups) that will help strengthen the diversification of the international student population.

This program currently collects gender, age, and language data through the annual Citizenship and Immigration Client Experience Survey. Current initiatives also expand the program’s capacity to report on impacts by gender and diversity, by collecting data on accessibility/disability and ethnicity. New data will be available mid-2023.

Temporary workers

IRCC facilitates the entry of foreign nationals who wish to work temporarily in Canada through two main streams: the Temporary Foreign Workers Program (employer-specific work permits), and the International Mobility Program (employer-specific work permits and open work permits). Through IRCC’s Global Case Management System, IRCC collects several socio-economic variables on work permit holders that allow for monitoring, reporting and analysis of program impacts by gender and diversity. These variables include gender, age, country of birth, country of residency, official language, language spoken at home, and family status.

This program currently collects gender, age, and language data through the annual Citizenship and Immigration Client Experience Survey. Current initiatives also expand the program’s capacity to report on impacts by gender and diversity, by collecting data on accessibility/disability and ethnicity. New data will be available mid-2023.

Open Work Permit for Vulnerable Workers

The Open Work Permit for Vulnerable Workers (OWP-V) program contributes to the Gender Results Framework pillar on eliminating Gender-based Violence (GBV) and access to justice. In particular, access to justice is a key point for OWP-V holders, as the work permit helps to facilitate Temporary Foreign Workers (TFWs) in leaving abusive employment and gives TFWs the ability to work for another employer, without compromising their authorization to work in Canada. Overall, the OWP-V program promotes the security of TFWs. In 2021, there were 589 vulnerable workers who were open work permit (OWP-V) holders.

Specifically for the OWP-V holders, qualitative and quantitative data on gender, age, country of citizenship, ability to speak in English/French, prior work permits, and location of work (in Canada) is collected. This information is used to inform program management and policy work. Significant data analysis continues to be conducted to better understand program barriers for clients and identify opportunities to improve the OWP-V program for clients. For example, the continued delivery of training provides support to immigration officers through the provision of a decision-making framework and procedures for following up with clients to address systemic barriers that prevent vulnerable TFWs from applying and being successful in obtaining an
OWP-V GBA Plus data collection plan.

Significant data analysis of anonymized data on gender, age, country of citizenship, ability to speak in English/French, and location of work (in Canada) has been conducted to better understand program barriers for clients. This analysis also helps to identify opportunities to improve the OWP-V program for clients, including the development of training to support immigration officers when assessing applications for the OWP-V.

International Experience Canada

International Experience Canada (IEC) offers Canadian citizens aged 18 to 35 the opportunity to work and travel abroad in one of 36 countries and territories through youth mobility arrangements. As these youth mobility arrangements are reciprocal, it also allows IEC to provide foreign youth with the opportunity to travel and work in Canada.

IRCC’s approach has been to focus on signing and maintaining youth mobility agreements with countries and territories that can typically promote equal opportunities for a diverse Canadian population. Going forward, IRCC will continue to include annual review mechanisms in new and existing agreements to provide officials with the opportunity to address issues, including those related to GBA Plus that could impact barriers to participation.

A key objective of IEC is to ensure that Canadians are aware of, and can benefit from, these international opportunities abroad. Past promotional and stakeholder engagement opportunities demonstrated the need to ensure that IEC’s engagement activities are as inclusive as possible. Promotional and engagement activities will continue to include initiatives and research directed at various communities of interest, including Indigenous youth, youth who identify as part of the 2SLGBTQI+ communities, young women, and disadvantaged youth.

IRCC collects disaggregated data on IEC participants to enable monitoring and reporting on the program’s impacts. In 2023–24, the Department will continue to review its research, metrics, and data to further expand on its reporting capabilities. The gender distribution of IEC work permit holders (i.e., inbound foreign youth) has been evenly split at 50/50 over the past decade. However, data on outbound Canadian youth is limited because Canada does not track Canadian youth going abroad as part of its youth mobility agreements and not all of Canada’s youth mobility partners have the systems in place to share the demographic characteristics of Canadian participants entering those countries.

Core Responsibility 2: Immigrant and Refugee Selection and Integration

Federal Economic Immigration

In accordance with Canada’s Immigration Levels Plan, IRCC facilitates the admission of a targeted number of permanent residents under the federal economic immigration programs. Federal economic immigrants seek to live and work permanently in Canada. IRCC selects candidates based on their ability to establish themselves in Canadian labour markets and contribute to Canada's economic growth and prosperity. Eligibility criteria consist of a combination of an applicant’s human capital characteristics (e.g., education, official language proficiency level, age), work experience, employer job offer, age, and/or other factors.

Data on permanent residents admitted under federal economic immigration programs is analyzed on a regular basis by various individual variables, such as age, gender, highest education level, official language (i.e., English, French, bilingual, or neither), country of citizenship, country of birth, country of residency, intended occupation, destination in Canada, family status (i.e., principal applicant, spouse, or dependent), and marital status (i.e., married/common-law union, single/separated/widowed, or unspecified) for each federal economic immigration program. 

Economic outcomes (e.g., wages, industry sector of employment) of federal economic immigrants may be analyzed by individual characteristics (e.g., age, gender, education, official language) for specific program evaluation or review purposes.

Most federal economic immigrants are facilitated through the Express Entry application management system. That system is mandatory for all applications made under the Federal Skilled Worker Program, the Federal Skilled Trades Program, the Canadian Experience Class, and a portion of the Provincial Nominee Program. Candidates must meet criteria for one of the three federal programs, and then are ranked according to their total score. Top ranked candidates are then invited to apply for permanent residence. The Express Entry Year-End Report is published annually, and provides an overview of Express Entry data from across all stages of the Express Entry continuum, including profile submissions, invitations to apply, applications, processing times, and admissions. Throughout the report, historical and gender-disaggregated data is presented alongside the reporting year figures to provide additional context.

This program currently collects gender, age, and language data through the annual Citizenship and Immigration Client Experience Survey. Current initiatives also expand the program’s capacity to report on impacts by gender and diversity, by collecting data on accessibility/disability and ethnicity. New data will be available mid-2023.

Regional Economic Immigration

Regional economic immigration programs, namely the Provincial Nominee Program, Atlantic Immigration Program, and Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot, are designed to allow delivery partners, (i.e., provinces, territories, and communities) to select immigrants with the skills and experience needed to fill labour market needs in local and regional labour markets. Additionally, regional programs support the full economic participation of women and diverse groups of people, which contributes to the Gender Results Framework, particularly the pillar on economic participation and prosperity.

Furthermore, the Atlantic Immigration Program and the Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot look beyond immigrant selection, to settlement of both the principal applicant and their family members in sponsoring regions and communities. For example, the Atlantic Immigration Program requires that Atlantic employers work with the program applicant to develop a settlement plan that captures the needs of the entire family, and not just the principal applicant.

When the usefulness of these settlement plans was assessed, respondents reported that they and their families felt supported using them. This demonstrates the value in these settlement plans as they support the Department’s efforts to fulfill commitments in the Gender Results Framework.

Building off this model, the Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot matches community partners and immigrants to ease the transition for the principal applicant and their family into their new community. By taking a whole-of-family approach to ensuring that newcomers have the support they need upon arrival, the potential for economic participation from accompanying spouses in these programs is maximized.

Through Ministerial Instruction amendments in September 2022, the Department introduced an exception to the work experience requirements for certain health-care occupations, specifically nurses, nurses’ aids, and home support workers, making it easier for candidates who worked overseas to have their work experience recognized and work within their health-care field in Canada. While this amendment will expand access to permanent residence within the Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot, it is expected to have disproportionately gendered impacts, as women who predominantly work within these health-care fields.

The Economic Mobility Pathways Pilot (EMPP) combines refugee resettlement and economic immigration. It is a pathway that helps skilled refugees immigrate to Canada through existing economic programs, and gives employers access to a new pool of qualified candidates to fill job opening. The EMPP provides refugees with alternate avenues to immigration to support them with some of the barriers they may face as they apply to existing economic programs such as the Provincial Nominee Program, the Atlantic Immigration Program and the Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot.

IRCC collects data showing the gender breakdown of the primary applicants (male/female) who apply to and land in Canada using the EMPP, as well as their dependants. However, since the pilot started in April 2018, the number of admissions have been low, and the number of female primary applicants even lower. Of the 43 primary applicants who have landed in Canada under the EMPP, 8 have been female, which is just under 19%. The number of female dependents is higher than the number of male dependents for those who have been admitted under the EMPP. Of the 73 total spouses and dependents, 50 are female (68%).

We are closely tracking this gender breakdown and expect to have ongoing discussions with the UNHCR and other partners to identify potential systemic barriers should the female-to-male ratio continue to be low. We have seen applications and landings from female primary applicants increase in phase 2 of the pilot, and expect these numbers to continue to grow over time.

IRCC is currently developing a holistic methodology to report on all regional economic programs, which will allow the Department to better understand the outcomes of these programs by gender, enhance its reporting on GBA Plus results, and ensure that future policy development is inclusive and intersectional.

Family Reunification

IRCC facilitates the admission of a targeted number of permanent residents under the family reunification category. Candidates include spouses, partners and dependent children, parents, grandparents, and certain other relatives (e.g., an orphaned relative) wishing to join their family in Canada.

Having family members already in Canada assists the sponsored newcomers (spouses/partners) with initial settlement, helping them to successfully integrate into society as well as the labour market. Similarly, sponsored parents and grandparents also provide emotional support, in addition to providing childcare in many cases. Their presence often allows their sponsor to pursue further education or labour market participation which supports the family’s economic success. As most Family Class immigrants are female, Family Class immigration also supports the economic integration, potential educational development, and well-being of women specifically (i.e., pillars of the Gender Results Framework).

For the Family Reunification Program as a whole, IRCC collects disaggregated data on the gender of sponsors, co-signers (when applicable), and applicants (i.e., principal applicants and accompanying family members). The Department also collects data on the age and country of citizenship of applicants.

In addition, IRCC will finalize an evaluation of the Family Reunification Program in 2023. This evaluation will take into account various GBA Plus considerations for the program in accordance with the Treasury Board Secretariat Directive on Results.

On-going implementation of mandatory electronic applications across the Department includes Family Class. This allows IRCC to ensure that alternative formats are made available to foreign nationals, sponsors, and their representatives who, for a reason such as a disability, are unable to apply online, ensuring equal access.

This program currently collects gender, age, and language data through the annual Citizenship and Immigration Client Experience Survey. Current initiatives also expand the program’s capacity to report on impacts by gender and diversity, by collecting data on accessibility/disability and ethnicity. New data will be available mid-2023.

Humanitarian/Compassionate and Discretionary Immigration

In accordance with Canada’s Immigration Levels Plan, IRCC facilitates the admission of a targeted number of permanent residents based on humanitarian and compassionate grounds or public policy considerations. These provisions allow the Minister to address exceptional circumstances by granting an exemption from certain criteria or obligations of IRPA or by granting permanent or temporary residence.

Many humanitarian-based public policies are used to facilitate immigration for at-risk populations with protection needs. These provisions allow IRCC to grant permanent residence or exemptions to certain immigration program requirements in exceptional circumstances. They have been used to uphold Canada’s humanitarian tradition and can respond to a myriad of situations for which gender and diversity considerations are a factor.

With regard to humanitarian and compassionate consideration, this tool provides the ability to address exceptional situations where a foreign national does not qualify for other immigration programs, on a case-by-case basis, based on unique circumstances and factors provided by the applicant. Factors that can be considered vary depending on personal circumstances and may include (but are not limited to) a person’s establishment or ties to Canada, the best interest of children directly affected, and country conditions in their country of origin.

The public policy provisions provide the IRCC Minister with the authority to grant permanent resident status to a foreign national or an exemption from any criteria or obligations of IRPA or the accompanying Regulations, if the Minister is of the opinion that it is justified by public policy considerations. While each public policy has distinct conditions and eligibility criteria, they usually target a group of foreign nationals in similar circumstances.

Public policy has been used, and continues to be used to address multiple situations, such as: facilitating administrative processes during the COVID-19 pandemic; addressing a short-term disaster or crisis situations; facilitating immigration for at-risk populations with protection needs; and helping to support family reunification goals by providing access to the Family Class program to out-of-status spouses or partners.

Gender and diversity perspectives will continue to be considered in IRCC’s discretionary program as part of the development of these tools and monitoring their results, including the use of disaggregated data such as gender, age, and country of origin.

This program currently collects gender, age, and language data through the annual Citizenship and Immigration Client Experience Survey. Current initiatives also expand the program’s capacity to report on impacts by gender and diversity, by collecting data on accessibility/disability and ethnicity. New data will be available mid-2023.

Refugee Resettlement

IRCC facilitates the admission of a targeted number of permanent residents under the refugee resettlement category. Refugees are individuals residing outside of their home country who are unable to return for fear of persecution based on race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular group. Refugees are also admitted through the Country of Asylum class, which recognizes individuals in refugee-like situations, fleeing armed conflict or massive violations of human rights.

Refugee resettlement impacts every pillar in the Gender Results Framework: education and skills development; economic participation and prosperity; leadership and democratic participation; elimination of gender-based violence and promoting access to justice; and poverty reduction, health, and well-being. It does so by protecting those refugees who are most in need, such as persons who are disproportionately facing difficulty related to their gender, race, ethnicity, religion, age, sexual orientation or gender identity, and mental or physical disability. By resettling these persons to Canada, where the rights of refugees are protected by law, the indicators under these pillars of the Gender Results Framework are ameliorated.

Through the Resettlement Assistance Program, IRCC funds Service Provider Organizations (SPOs) to provide immediate and essential settlement services (such as, airport reception, provision of temporary accommodation, assistance in locating permanent accommodation, information and orientation services, etc.) to government-assisted refugees and other eligible clients in the first four to six weeks after their arrival to Canada. These services take into account the gender and diversity of refugees by providing female staff and interpreters, ensuring that appropriate accommodations are made for single mothers, and by conducting a targeted needs assessment. Through this assessment, refugee women may be referred to particular services offered in the community or by the settlement provider, which may include women’s support groups and workshops that help refugee women find employment.

Refugees resettled to Canada land as permanent residents, with all of the rights and freedoms that entails, including access to the entire suite of Settlement Program services to assist in their integration journey. They have access to educational opportunities, may freely participate in economic life, have access to avenues to citizenship that allow for full participation in Canadian democracy, benefit from the full protection of Canadian law from gender-based violence and its assistance in access to justice, and gain access to health services. The act of resettlement in itself, by moving persons from places where they may face persecution to a society where they are protected from it by law, is significant; the growth of the Refugee Resettlement Program over the past five years allows these positive and wide-ranging impacts to reach a greater number of beneficiaries.

In addition to the effects of the resettlement program writ large, several of its specific aspects also carry benefits to diverse groups facing persecution.

Persecution on the basis of gender is one of the grounds upon which a person may be granted Canada’s refugee protection. Within Canada’s Government-Assisted Refugee stream, officers have the ability to tag cases as “Assistance to Women at Risk” recognizing that women and girls are often particularly vulnerable in refugee situations where they are not part of a conventional family unit. Applications may be prioritized on the basis of risk and vulnerability faced, and gender is one of a number of factors taken into account. Cases tagged with “Assistance to Women at Risk” may also be provided with additional settlement support services once in Canada through the Joint Assistance Sponsorship Program or through gender-specific settlement services and supports.

The Joint-Assistance Sponsorship program provides additional settlement support to refugees with exceptional needs, including individuals with disabilities. Under this program, eligible refugees receive up to two years of income support through the Resettlement Assistance Program as well as being matched with a private sponsorship group who provides additional settlement assistance, emotional support, and help with adjusting to life in Canada.

Refugees are exempt from the requirement that individuals not place excessive demand on medical services, which means that Canada can resettle refugees with disabilities or medical concerns that would otherwise be inadmissible in other immigration categories. Refugees still undergo a medical examination overseas and must meet the remaining admissibility criteria related to health.

Canada’s Urgent Protection Program provides protection to persecuted persons who are facing immediate threats to their life, liberty, or physical safety. The expedited processing provided under the Urgent Protection Program helps refugees find safety when they would otherwise be likely to be killed, subjected to violence, sexual assault, or arbitrary imprisonment, or returned to their country of nationality or former habitual residence.

Resettled refugees are also eligible for the Interim Federal Health Program (IFHP). IRCC collects and analyzes gender and age disaggregated IFHP data on a quarterly basis to identify any changing patterns in claims, access, and usage, and monitors GBA Plus impacts that the Program may have on eligible beneficiaries.

Through the Human Rights Defenders (HRD) stream, Canada aims to resettle human rights defenders who are most at risk around the world, regardless of where they come from or their profession. Particular attention is being placed on those who are less visible or marginalized, including women and 2SLGBTQI+ human rights defenders.

IRCC’s humanitarian commitment to welcome at least 40,000 Afghan refugees and those in refugee-like situations by December 2023 includes a focus on diverse priority populations that have experienced increased marginalization and discrimination, including women and girls, religious and ethnic minorities, and 2SLGBTQI+ people. The Afghan resettlement initiative advances GBA Plus goals for Canada overall by offering protection and support to these vulnerable Afghans and settling them in Canada permanently.

Gender is tracked for each arrival, and some sponsoring groups in Canada focus exclusively on resettling vulnerable 2SLGBTQI+ refugees. Canada does not collect immigration data disaggregated by race when refugees apply overseas, but using newcomers’ original country of nationality as a proxy suggests that the majority of refugee newcomers are racialized individuals. The Department will work with internal research and evaluation partners to ensure relevant data is collected in regular performance monitoring and evaluation cycles, including an upcoming Gender Based Analysis Plus of the resettlement program. The Newcomer Outcomes Survey collects outcome information from permanent residents who arrived in Canada as refugees and covers collection of additional data elements to enable analysis of outcome of refugees depending on race, gender, membership in the 2SLGBTQI+ community, disabilities, family status, and income.

In addition, program data is collected from commissioned survey data obtained from Sponsorship Agreement Holders HoldersFootnote1 (SAHs)—the Canadian Council for Refugees position papers and surveys, as well as international sources such as the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) issue papers and UNHCR and International Organization for Migration annual reports on resettlement.

Asylum

IRCC is accountable for the overall delivery of the in-Canada asylum system by which foreign nationals may seek refugee protection from within Canada — either at a port of entry or at an inland office. An individual can make a claim for protection to either the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) at the border or to IRCC at an inland office. Officers determine whether a claimant is eligible to make a claim; if so, the file is referred to the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB), which is an independent administrative tribunal that adjudicates claims. GBA Plus considerations at each step on the asylum continuum include the individual’s sex, gender and sexual orientation but also extend to their language, economic status, education, geography, race/ethnicity, religion, disability and age.

The Asylum Program contributes to the Gender Results Framework pillar of poverty reduction, health, and well-being, and the pillar on gender-based violence and access to justice. By providing fair and fast decisions on asylum claims, the Program contributes to fewer vulnerable individuals lacking stable, safe, and permanent housing; support for victims of intimate partner violence, sexual assault, human trafficking and child maltreatment– leading to improved overall health outcomes (including mental health) and well-being.

The Asylum Program provides protection to persons fleeing persecution and/or risk of torture, risk to life, or risk of cruel and unusual treatment or punishment. The in-Canada Asylum System provides gender-specific protection to in-Canada refugee claimants fleeing gender-based conflicts or fragile states. This is supported by the IRB Chairperson’s Guidelines on women refugee claimants fearing persecution on the grounds of sexual orientation, gender identity and expression. Moreover, IRCC has developed specific program delivery instructions when processing the asylum claims of minors and other vulnerable persons.

Asylum claimants are eligible for the Interim Federal Health Program (IFHP) for the full duration of the refugee determination process. IRCC collects and analyzes gender and age disaggregated IFHP data for this population on a quarterly basis to identify any changing patterns in claims, access, and usage, and monitors GBA Plus impacts that the Program may have on eligible beneficiaries.

While IRCC collects data that is disaggregated by sex, country of origin, and other key indicators, it continuously strives to find ways to measure GBA Plus performance and progress.

The In-Canada Asylum Program also advances GBA Plus analysis by regularly monitoring countries around the world through a human rights perspective to identify populations experiencing individualized risks based on gender identity, sex, sexual orientation, or other intersectional identity factors. In the past, this country monitoring has led to the implementation of a Pre-Removal Risk Assessment Bar Exemption for nationals of Brunei and Russia on the basis of individualized risks to members of the 2SLGBTQI+ population.

Settlement

GBA Plus is an important lens for the Settlement Program, which benefits from data collected by the Department on all clients during their immigration process. In 2019, in addition to the sex-at-birth options of identifying as female or male, IRCC provided the option of identifying one’s gender as another. Therefore, the data collected through the Immigration Contribution Agreement Reporting Environment (iCARE) on clients and services can be disaggregated by sex-at-birth, and partially for gender. Data for additional intersecting characteristics such as age, immigration category, education levels, and family status, are available for those clients accessing specific settlement services, including language classes, short-term counselling, or community connections.

To understand the effects of the Settlement Program for newcomers, IRCC will continue to conduct its annual survey of newcomers, clients and non-clients of the Settlement Program. In 2023–24, IRCC will collect outcome information to inform reporting as well as program development and design. In addition, collecting race, community level responses, sexual orientation and additional gender and sex identifiers will allow for in-depth analysis of intersectional outcomes and barriers to settlement. The Settlement Program also collects activity and output data on funded activities targeting the needs of specific populations with intersecting characteristics, such as refugees, racialized women, members of the 2SLGBTQI+ community, persons with disabilities, and seniors.

To deepen our understanding of the differences in settlement outcomes among newcomers, IRCC will continue to conduct its annual outcomes survey of newcomers, clients and non-clients of the Settlement Program, while enhancing data analysis. Collecting race, community-level responses, sexual orientation and additional gender identifiers as well as disability, family composition and income information will allow for in depth analysis of intersectional outcomes and barriers to settlement. In 2023–24, IRCC will use outcome findings from the survey to inform reporting on results as well as future program development and design, priority setting and preparations for the next program intake.

Welcoming Communities

Community Connections are services that help to connect clients with the broader community, public institutions, and community organizations. These services also provide opportunities for partners, volunteers, and local community members to be actively engaged in settlement programming. Data on the use of eligible services under Community Connections, such as peer-to-peer support and family matching, informal language learning, and group events and activities, can be disaggregated based on a variety of intersectional characteristics of clients. Information is collected through iCARE, the Newcomer Outcomes Survey, and through the Longitudinal Immigration Database, which links immigration information (client characteristics such as sex, gender, age, etc.) with settlement service and income tax information.

Education and Skills Development

Language training and the development of essential skills are primary settlement services. Data on access to language training can be disaggregated according to immigration characteristics, such as sex at birth, gender, age, education, and other intersectional characteristics. Data on learning outcomes can be disaggregated by race. Similarly, data on access to essential skills development activities is also being collected and can be disaggregated by a variety of intersectional characteristics.  

Economic Participation

As a core component of the Settlement Program, employment-related services support clients in acquiring knowledge and skills to help them to overcome barriers in accessing the labour market. Data on access to employment-related services, as well as data to enable the analysis of employment outcomes (working, looking for work, income sources and amount, social assistance rates), can be disaggregated. This information is collected through various sources, including iCARE, the Newcomer Outcomes Survey, and the Longitudinal Immigration Database.

Poverty Reduction, Health, and Well-being 

While services that address health and well-being fall mainly under provincial jurisdiction, the Settlement Program collects data on the number of individuals receiving short-term counselling, mental health and well-being supports, and referrals to health and mental health services. However, given obvious privacy concerns, there are challenges with collecting this data.

In terms of poverty reduction, IRCC has the ability to track the use and duration of social assistance. This information is available through the Longitudinal Immigration Database.

IRCC is committed to strengthening the ongoing collection of disaggregated data used to inform policies and programs. This includes, for example:

Gender

The Settlement Outcomes Highlights Report (2021) (PDF, 4.2 MB) shows that settlement programming design, such as when and where service delivery is provided, can have an impact on the ability of newcomer women to access services. A shortage of available childcare services can have gendered effects, for example, as women are typically the primary childcare providers.

Data from iCARE show that, in 2021–22, women participated in employment activities at a higher percentage than men. Research, including lessons learned from the Racialized Newcomer Women Pilot, will garner insight on effective approaches for helping this newcomer population gain meaningful employment.

Immigrant and refugee women contribute greatly to Canadian communities, but they often face systemic and institutional barriers to their full participation in Canadian society. Challenges confronting newcomer women can include family and gender-based violence; lower levels of official language proficiency and varying levels of literacy; unequal access to socio-economic opportunities; dependency on family members; family-related responsibilities including caregiving for children and the elderly; social isolation; and health and mental health challenges with less access to mainstream services. The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated gender inequalities for women, including racialized newcomer women in Canada. Economic gender disparities had been identified as particularly notable for immigrant women prior to the pandemic, irrespective of how long they have been in the country, and immigrant women are often concentrated in labour market sectors that saw significant job loss during the pandemic. As part of Canada’s pandemic recovery, settlement services will continue to play an important role in helping to ensure that all newcomers, including newcomer women, have the supports they need to successfully integrate both socially and economically into their new communities.

Sexual and Gender Minority Communities

Members of the 2SLGBTQI+ community experienced socio-economic inequities during the COVID-19 pandemic and may continue to face barriers in successfully integrating to Canada due to discrimination. These barriers can include mental health issues and social isolation because of stigmatization within their ethnic community or family; challenges securing affordable housing; and difficulties accessing economic opportunities, health care, and other relevant community resources. This population is also at a higher risk of experiencing loss of employment during the pandemic, such as lay-offs or reduced employment hours.

While IRCC collects information on participation in activities geared towards the 2SLGBTQI+ population, the most recent version of the Newcomer Outcomes Survey asks clients to voluntarily identify as belonging to this particular social group. This new data will be available in the 2023–24 to inform the analysis of outcomes for this group of respondents.

Seniors

Some senior newcomers continue to face settlement and integration challenges and are often less visible within Canadian society. Although senior newcomers often play key roles within their families, providing care for their grandchildren and allowing one or both parents to work, the support they provide may complicate their settlement trajectories. Seniors over the age of 60 are not generally in the labour market and may have experienced little economic disruption throughout the pandemic. However, in the post-pandemic context and in the face of current strains on the health-care system, they may experience impacts to their health and life expectancy, well-being, and quality of life. Immigrant seniors have reported lower levels of social support than Canadian-born seniors.

A small portion of Settlement Program clients are seniors. For example, in 2021–22, only 5% of clients were aged 60 years and older. IRCC will use the Newcomer Outcomes Survey results to examine the outcomes of newcomers by age, including seniors.

Youth

Settlement barriers for youth include lower levels of proficiency in Canada’s official languages, intergenerational and cultural integration challenges, and difficulties navigating the school system or finding employment. Immigrant youth in Canada are more susceptible to unemployment than Canadian-born youth, particularly racialized female youth, due to persistent gender inequalities. In 2021–22, 35% of Settlement Program clients were under 30 years of age. IRCC will continue disaggregation of data by age at the service level. However, examination of outcomes is limited to those who were age 18 and over when they responded to the survey. This may prevent in-depth analysis of outcomes of services provided to younger populations.

The Settlement Workers in Schools (SWIS) initiative and similar programming assists newcomer youth and families by addressing “newness to Canada” as a barrier to school success. SWIS workers act as cultural liaisons and system navigators between the school and newcomer families. SWIS promotes student achievement by enabling youth to integrate more easily while supporting families and school staff. It is a cross-stream initiative that is tracked in iCARE under Needs and Assets Assessment and Referral Services, Information and Orientation, Community Connections, and Employment-Related Services.

The first formal evaluation of the SWIS initiative was released in February 2022. The primary focus of this evaluation, covering fiscal years 2017–18 to 2020–21, was to assess the design, implementation and effectiveness of SWIS, including how SWIS is delivered across regions in terms of activity types and delivery models. The evaluation also included a GBA Plus lens, as well as considerations of COVID-19 impacts on SWIS design and delivery. Findings and recommendations from the evaluation will pave the way for improved data collection on priority populations, including youth.

As a partner department under the ESDC-led Youth Employment and Skills Strategy, IRCC will continue to support employment-related services tailored to newcomer youth.

Racialized Newcomer Women Pilot

Racialized newcomer women often face multiple barriers when accessing the Canadian labour market, including gender and race-based discrimination, precarious or low-income employment, and lack of affordable childcare. To address these challenges, IRCC launched the Racialized Newcomer Women Pilot in December 2018 to support the employment and career advancement of racialized newcomer women.

In 2023–24, IRCC will continue to support employment-related services tailored to racialized newcomer women, while also integrating the learnings from the Racialized Newcomer Women Pilot into the upcoming Settlement and Resettlement Program’s intake process.

This initiative supports the overall objective under Canada’s Gender Results Framework on economic participation and prosperity by increasing labour market opportunities and participation for racialized newcomer women.

Addressing Gender-based Violence

Under Canada’s Strategy to Prevent and Address Gender-based Violence (GBV), announced in 2017, IRCC continues to fund a unique, first-time collaborative partnership between the settlement and anti-violence sectors to support newcomers in situations of gender-based violence. This work has included the establishment of a common base of knowledge on GBV and training for front-line settlement workers to assist with identifying abuse.

These efforts continue through funding of $2 million for 5 years, provided under Budget 2021, to extend the GBV Partnership and continue building the capacity of the sector through additional training, resources, and strengthened cross-sector collaboration.

This initiative continues to support the overall objective under Canada’s Gender Results Framework on GBV and access to justice by providing supports and resources to newcomers experiencing violence and abuse.

Core Responsibility 3: Citizenship and Passport

Citizenship

Consolidating data within IRCC

In 2022–23, the Citizenship Program worked with departmental partners to better consolidate citizenship data in order to support GBA Plus and Anti-Racism research priorities. Using this disaggregated data, the Program will continue to identify potential barriers to citizenship in 2023–24, and work with partners to address existing data gaps and further develop its data infrastructure.

Accessing data from Statistics Canada

In 2022–23, the Citizenship Program worked with Statistics Canada to obtain citizenship uptake data by various metrics, including place of birth, age, sex, and visible minority status. This data has expanded the program’s capacity to report on outcomes disaggregated by these identity factors, and in 2023–24 will support review of program performance indicators.

Client Experience Survey

The Citizenship Program currently collects gender, age, and language data through IRCC’s annual Client Experience Survey. In 2022–23, client experience data was further disaggregated by accessibility and whether clients experienced discrimination. In 2023–24, the Program will examine new and complementary measures to include in the Client Experience Survey in an effort to expand its capacity to report on impacts based on disaggregated data analysis.

Assessment of Racism Equity Diversity and Inclusion (REDI)

In 2022–23 the Citizenship Program launched a Racism Equity Diversity and Inclusion (REDI) assessment of the citizenship grants line of business. The assessment aimed to identify any barriers to accessing citizenship faced by racialized people and equity seeking groups and to assess the current status of any systemic racism and or biases within the Program. In 2023–24 the Citizenship Program will develop and begin implementing an action plan for the program to address barriers and support opportunities identified in the REDI assessment and identify any further areas for evaluation.

Passport

IRCC collaborates with Service Canada and Global Affairs Canada to facilitate travel for Canadians and contribute to a safe and secure travel regime by issuing Canadian travel documents that are internationally recognized and respected.

The Passport Program contributes to the Gender Results Framework pillar on eliminating GBV and promoting access to justice. In accordance with the Canadian Passport Order and agreements with enforcement and security agencies and other levels of government, individuals that are convicted of the maltreatment of children (transnational sex offenders, child-related sex offenders, facilitating human smuggling or trafficking) may be subject to sanctions or to provisions under the Family Orders and Agreements Enforcement Assistance Act, resulting in the refusal, revocation or cancellation of their passport.

The Passport Program collects disaggregated data on gender, age, etc., as well as data on the number of refusals/revocations/cancellations related to cases where individuals engage in child maltreatment (i.e., transnational sex offenders, child-related sex offenders). It also collects data on the number of travel documents where the status is changed to suspended and where the passport issuance is refused pursuant to the Family Orders and Agreements Enforcement Assistance Act. Actions to enable monitoring, reporting and capacity to assess impacts of policies are currently underway, which include modernization initiatives to change to a new passport issuance platform that should enable the Passport Program to better use the data it collects.

In addition, the Passport Program developed operational policies that support gender diversity, equality, and inclusiveness. Examples include operational policies and guidance that support the issuance of passports or other travel documents printed with an ‘X’ gender identifier. Since June 2019, the Program has offered ‘X’ (another gender) as an identifier option to better accommodate those who do not identify exclusively as female or male.

The Passport Program collects several key data elements through the application form, such as sex, date of birth (age), and place of birth. Additional client demographics are collected through the annual client experience survey. This enables GBA Plus analysis through various stages of client interactions with the Program.

The collected data shows that applicants come from diverse family structures, which highlights the need to carefully consider inclusive data collection methods. For example, a recent policy change recognized that requiring data on an applicant’s “mother’s maiden name” is not inclusive terminology, as some families are made up of same-sex male parents. Another analysis found that asking for “parents’ surname at birth” better represents a diverse population and uses modern language that is acceptable to more people.

The Program has developed a risk-based operational policy plan with the following GBA Plus related objectives:

In 2021, IRCC responded to Call to Action 17 (CTA-17) from the final report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, in an effort to redress the legacy of residential schools and advance the reconciliation process in Canada. Our response will enable survivors of residential schools and their family members to replace existing valid IRCC-issued identity documents — including passports — with their reclaimed Indigenous name, free of charge. This client-centric process will waive associated fees for passports, permanent resident cards, and proof of Canadian citizenship certificates, from May 31, 2021, until May 30, 2026. CTA-17 will be monitored to allow ongoing analysis of this initiative, including work to further integrate non-Latin characters into IRCC systems and programs, with the view to further support Indigenous persons in reclaiming their name and identity.

In 2023–24, the Passport Program will apply a Racial Impact Assessment ToolHoldersFootnote2 to all of its existing operational policies. This initiative will complement the Department’s broader intersectional GBA Plus commitments by taking concrete actions to address any issues of systemic racism and racial inequality in Passport Program policies and procedures.

In addition, the Passport Program is building up internal capacity for facial recognition system research and development. One of the key research priorities will be taking a closer look at potential impacts of bias from an input perspective (photo quality), a system perspective (algorithm accuracy), and a user perspective (manual system output review). Research results will be leveraged to inform procedural, policy and system changes. Research in this area will align with biometric industry standards and best practices.

Facial Recognition Solution

IRCC uses the photo provided by travel document applicants to conduct facial biometric comparisons using its Facial Recognition Solution (FRS), which helps to screen and validate their identity as part of the Passport Program’s identity management framework.

The program has always mitigated against risks stemming from algorithmic bias by having a human operator review the system’s finding for further analysis. Only designated employees of IRCC, formally trained to conduct facial comparison analysis, can make a determination on whether a potential match from FRS consists of two identities bearing the same photo. IRCC will leverage an anticipated upgrade of the algorithm that supports FRS to replicate portions of the GBA Plus research project to assess this new version’s ability to further reduce bias.

IRCC has started the process of building a Research and Development environment that may be used to research industry trends in facial recognition and test continuous FRS enhancements. This will lead to improved integrity, identity management, and client service. One of the key research priorities will be taking a closer look at potential impacts of bias from an input perspective (photo quality), a system perspective (algorithm accuracy), and a user perspective (manual system output review). Research results will be leveraged to inform procedural, policy and system changes. Research in this area will align with biometric industry standards and best practices.

The Department strives to have more control over the scope, research methodology, and testing ability as well as the monitoring of the Passport Program’s FRS algorithm. Key conclusions will then be drawn from data obtained from its own system and clients rather than extrapolating from third-party reports.

Research and development will be integral to providing data-driven, evidence-based answers to inquiries regarding the use and efficacy of facial recognition technology on demographic equity/bias. Evidence-based analysis and the use of facial recognition technology is required to meet the Department’s call to incorporate GBA Plus into daily work to produce better outcomes and help mitigate any unintended potential concerns for IRCC clients.

Internal Services

Engagement in international fora

IRCC continues to engage with international partners to advance Canada’s international protection obligations, which includes the protection of refugees, particularly vulnerable women and children. This includes advocating for the implementation of the gender responsive Global Compact on Refugees (GCR) that better protects and empowers vulnerable refugees, affirms international legal obligations, and increases international cooperation to better enable comprehensive refugee responses, as well as bilateral, regional, and multilateral discussions.

Canada has continued to demonstrate its commitment to a feminist assistance policy through its tenure as Chair of the Comprehensive Regional Protection and Solutions Framework (MIRPS by it’s Spanish acronym) Support Platform. During Canada’s tenure as Chair, the identified theme was the “Protection and Empowerment of Women and Girls on the Move.” Gender considerations and topics drawing attention to the international protection needs of women and girls were integrated in the activities implemented throughout Canada’s tenure as Chair, such as technical workshops. In addition, during its tenure, Canada increased visibility and awareness of the forced displacement situation in the Central American region, with a focus on women and girls on the move during a high-level event organized in December 2021. With this event, the Platform joined the UN Refugee Agency’s 16 days of activism against gender-based violence, to draw attention to the international protection needs and the importance of empowering refugee women and girls in the region, as well as the need to protect the human rights of migrant women, girls, and 2SLGBTQI+ individuals in vulnerable situations.

IRCC will continue some of those efforts in our current role as past-chair of the MIRPS support platform as well as in other forums. IRCC also continues to support a gender-responsive approach to the implementation of the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration, including integrating and highlighting gender considerations.

Global Compact for Migration

Canada continues to support a gender-responsive approach to international migration management and refugee protection by integrating and highlighting gender considerations in bilateral, regional, and multilateral discussions.

The Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM) is the main intergovernmentally negotiated agreement on common approaches to international migration in all their dimensions. The GCM identifies gender-responsiveness as a crosscutting and guiding principle in migration.

As the department that leads Canada’s participation in the GCM Champion Countries initiative, IRCC has identified a number of priorities to guide its GCM engagements internationally, including the promotion of gender responsive migration programs and policies. IRCC will continue building on its 2022–23 efforts to promote an inclusive approach to migration. These past efforts included hosting a side event to encourage the gender-responsive implementation of the Global Compact for Migration at the Spring 2022 International Migration Review Forum (IMRF), where Canada showcased the work of Gender + Migration Hub by the International Migration Research Centre, migrant women voices, and took on an informal rapporteur role on gender-responsiveness at the IMRF.

IRCC also continues to actively invest in capacity building activities through the International Migration Capacity Building Program (IMCBP) as a way to support the development of well-managed migration systems that facilitate safe, orderly and regular migration globally. The program application process requires applicants to provide a GBA Plus assessment of their proposed interventions to ensure that project development takes into account gender considerations.

Additionally, some of IRCC capacity building projects actively seek to contribute to gender equality. In March 2022, through the IMCBP Migration Cooperation and Engagement Envelope, Canada started funding a two-year capacity building project with the International Organization for Migration to enhance the capacities of the Government of Bangladesh to deliver gender-responsive integrated services for safe and regular migration, and welfare of migrants, returnees and communities, especially women.

While seeking to improve service delivery throughout the migration cycle in Bangladesh, the project encompasses a gender perspective to promote equitable access to services to all, with a focus on women migrant workers and other vulnerable migrants and returnees. IRCC’s funding will support a pilot roadmap for a gender-responsive service delivery mechanism, including redesigning service centres with gender-sensitive spaces, counselling services, sensitization and training.

Additionally, IRCC funding is supporting the validation of the all-inclusive, gender-sensitive National Reintegration Policy, including sessions on the gender dimensions of this policy and its impact on women migrant workers and other vulnerable groups. The initiative will be measured by mid and final reports that will include disaggregated data and gender-specific indicators.

Evaluation and performance measurement

IRCC developed an Evaluation and Performance Measurement GBA Plus Protocol. It contains a series of considerations, key questions, and guiding principles to apply to the planning, conduct and reporting phases of program evaluations and in support of performance monitoring.

The protocol is applied to current evaluations, which bolsters the GBA Plus analysis and information in the final reports, supporting the collection and reporting of evidence to contribute to program improvements.

GBA Plus considerations are also applied to Performance Information Profiles of IRCC’s programs, including indicators, as applicable.

IRCC Workforce – Future IRCC Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI)-related Initiatives

The Department will continue to honour its commitments aimed at building a more diverse workforce, at all levels, that is representative of the Canadian population through several initiatives including the implementation of a plan that will enable IRCC to achieve its Employment Equity (EE) Representation Baseline objectives by 2024. This plan will focus on providing key stakeholders with access to disaggregated summary EE data to support a more effective action plan and better people management decision-making related to recruitment, promotion, learning and development. The plan will also focus on the development of an accountability model and customized training and tools for managers and human resources professionals.

EE self-identification data is voluntary and has been managed by IRCC to-date. However, to align with the launch of the modernized self-identification questionnaire by the Treasury Board Secretariat, IRCC will be implementing its own comprehensive engagement strategy in 2023 to increase awareness about the importance of self-identification and promoting culture change in support of a more inclusive workplace.

As part of IRCC’s Anti-Racism Strategy 2.0, systemic biases in employment systems will continue to be addressed for improving the representation of Indigenous, Black and other racialized employees at all levels of the organization through targeted recruitment, retention and talent management of equity-deserving groups. Engagement sessions, town halls, targeted workshops and focus groups will continue to be held to deepen the awareness and understanding of racism at all levels, and equip employees with enhanced tools and mechanisms to prevent, respond to and address incidences of racism and discrimination

In addition, IRCC will be conducting a review of existing developmental pilot programs (e.g. Mentorship Plus Program) that support the career development of EE groups in support of increasing their representation in the middle and senior career levels; increasing the Department’s visibility at career fairs, events, and within various communities; as well as exploring partnership opportunities with stakeholders within the public and private sector to leverage various innovative recruitment and development initiatives.

Furthermore, IRCC will undertake an Employment Systems Review (ESR) in 2023 which will enable the department to better understand the reasons for major gaps in representation, and to serve as the basis for developing a multi-year Anti-Racism, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (ARDEI) Plan that will address barriers faced by employment equity groups. In addition, following the approval of IRCC’s Accessibility Strategy, in accordance with the new Accessibility Canada Act, IRCC will make public its multi-year plan in order to identify, prevent, and remove barriers for persons with disabilities.

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