Resettlement: Refusing an application

Documenting refusals

The officer must enter notes in GCMS, or in a paper file if GCMS is not available. The notes must include a conclusion with a summary of the decision and a clear statement of how the applicant does not meet the relevant criteria.

Officers should keep detailed notes to support their decisions; these will be needed should the case be brought to the Federal Court for judicial review.

The refusal letter

Refusal letters are sent to:

• the applicant;
• the Resettlement Operations Centre in Ottawa (ROC-O) or the local Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) office in the case of PSR applications;
• the sponsoring group in the case of PSR applications; and
• UNHCR in the case of GAR or VOR referrals.

Refusing on eligibility

A refusal letter:

• must explain why the officer does not think an applicant is a Convention refugee abroad or a member of the country of asylum class;

  should refer to evidence provided by the applicant, and how and why this evidence does not meet the requirements for recognition as a Convention refugee abroad or a member of the country of asylum class.

• The letter should show also that the applicant had the opportunity to respond to concerns of the visa officer and whether or not those concerns were alleviated during the interview, and if not, the reasons those concerns were not alleviated.

Refusing on admissibility

The refusal letter must give clear and detailed reasons why the applicant and/or family members is/are inadmissible. The letter should indicate all the grounds that apply and state the reasons: A34, A35, A36(1), A36(2), A37, A38.

Note that refugees and protected persons are exempt from excessive demand on health or social services pursuant to A38(2) and the application of misrepresentation pursuant to A40(1) (a).

Informal review of refusals

Applicants whose cases have been refused often write to the visa office, the Department or the Minister requesting a review of the refusal decision.

The officer should enter such requests in GCMS or place them on file and may review the information. In some cases, the applicant may provide new information or claim now to be a victim of changed circumstances. This may change the final decision or cause the officer to request that the applicant submit a new application based on the new information.

On the other hand, the letter may contain no new information and the officer will decide to maintain the refusal. In either case, the officer should respond to the applicant or the sponsor and enter the response in GCMS. The onus, however, is on the applicant to provide all relevant evidence and information at their disposal in support of the application at the time of the initial interview.

Judicial review of refusals

The Act does not, in general, provide for a direct appeal of officer decisions, with the exception of the right of appeal granted to the sponsors of applications under the family class contained in A72 to A74.

As with most other decisions and orders made under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, a refugee class applicant who is refused abroad can seek leave for judicial review before the Federal Court of Canada (Trial Division).

See OP 22, Judicial Review for further guidance (PDF, 185.6KB).

Scenarios with specific refusal guidelines

Refusing an application without interview

To determine eligibility, an officer may assess the application without an interview.

Examples of when an officer might refuse an application without a personal interview include situations where:

• the visa officer has requested, via reasonable means, (i.e. e-mail, phone calls and letter),additional information or documentation that is relevant to forming an opinion on the application and the applicant has not complied within a reasonable time period of 90 days (ex. officer requests evidence that applicant has sought protection from the host country before approaching Canada and applicant does not comply or sends information indicating they are just about to seek protection);
• the visa officer has sufficient information that the individual is falsely representing themselves (ex. a new application that does not disclose relevant information provided on a previously refused application where such non-disclosure is clearly an attempt to circumvent the Act or Regulations and the applicant has not responded to requests for clarification);
• the applicant is clearly not a member of one of the refugee classes. (ex. applicant is still in their home country or country of habitual residence; is clearly not fleeing persecution based on any of the five grounds; or the refugee claim does not point to a gross violation of human rights that would have a serious and personal impact on the individual);
• documents provided to support the refugee claim are known to be fraudulent (ex. officer has determined that the documents are fraudulent based on evidence gathered in the course of data collection) and the applicant has not responded to the fairness letter or addressed the officer’s concerns;
• the applicant has a durable solution already (ex. applicant has been granted asylum in the host country and has the rights accorded to other foreign nationals).

Procedural guidelines when refusing an application without an interview

The officer must apply the principle of procedural fairness in all cases (refer to OP 1, Section 8, What is procedural fairness?).

The officer must:

• Send a letter to the applicant which explains the officer’s concerns and gives the applicant an opportunity to provide an explanation or any additional information before a final decision is made within a reasonable timeframe;
• Consider any explanation or additional information provided by the applicant within the specified timeframe and document in case notes the consideration given;
• Document the decision and reasons for the decision in case notes;
• Include in the refusal letter a detailed explanation as to why the applicant does not meet program requirements;
• Give due consideration to any information an applicant provides in response to the refusal that may change the material facts of the application; and
• Keep a copy of the refusal letter, the applicant’s response or any additional information in the applicant’s permanent file.

If a person was not found to be a member of any of Canada’s refugee classes, officers should not refuse the application on the basis of their having another durable solution, but rather, the person should be refused because they are not a member of a prescribed class.

When refusing based on the availability of a durable solution

If the applicant has not applied for protection in the host country AND the host country respects the right of non-refoulement and the refugee’s physical security is not at risk

The officer may refuse the application for resettlement in Canada on the basis that the individual has not sought the protection of the host country. Refusals based on non-compliance with R139(1)(d): visa officer unable to rule out the possibility of another durable solution.

If the applicant has applied for protection in the host country, but the application is still in process AND the host country respects the right of non-refoulement and the refugee’s physical security is not at risk.

The officer may refuse the application for resettlement on the basis that there is a possibility for protection from the host country. Refusal is based on non-compliance with R139(1)(d): visa officer unable to rule out possibility of another durable solution.

If the applicant has applied for protection in the host country but the application was withdrawn AND the host country respects the right of non-refoulement and the refugee’s physical security is not at risk

The officer may refuse the application on the basis that the applicant has not sought the protection of the host country. Refusals are based on non-compliance with R139(1)(d): visa officer is unable to rule out possibility of another durable solution.

If the applicant has applied for protection in the host country but the application was refused AND all meaningful avenues of appeal have been exhausted

In situations such as this, an interview may be necessary. Before proceeding to interview, the visa officer may request that the applicant present a copy of the application submitted to the host country, or a copy of the reasons for refusal by the host country, to ensure consistency in the applicant’s story. Once this has been provided and if the evidence in the new application does not add any new information, the officer may choose to make a final determination without an interview, based on the evidence submitted. Refer to OP 1, Section 8: Procedural fairness if refusing without an interview (PDF, 597.29KB).

Where after interview, the officer determines that the applicant is a member of one of the Canadian program refugee classes and meets program criteria, the officer will complete processing as for any other application.

If the applicant has applied for protection in the host country AND the application was accepted

In most instances, this means a durable solution is available because the person has been granted asylum. The application for resettlement in Canada should be refused under R139(1)(d).

Refusing an application following a no-show for interview

Under specific circumstances, an officer may refuse an application if after an attempt to convoke the applicant to an interview, the applicant has not presented himself or herself to the interview, and has provided no explanation. To refuse an application following a no-show, an interview convocation letter to the applicant must clearly communicate that:

• a decision on the application will be made following the interview, even if the client chooses not to attend;
• the applicants (or their sponsors) are to advise the mission if the applicant can not attend the interview and how to contact the mission;
• the interview convocation notice was sent at least 60 days in advance of the interview; and
• the notice was sent to both the applicant and sponsor.

If the applicant does not attend the interview and (or his or her sponsor) does not explain why, no final decision is taken until at least 30 days have passed since the missed appointment to allow for mailing delays.

Refer to procedural guidelines for refusing an applicant without interview.

Refusing an application following the loss of contact with a privately sponsored refugee

If the visa office loses contact with a privately sponsored refugee, the sponsoring group should be notified. The visa office, via e-mail, should contact the Resettlement Operations Centre - Ottawa (ROC-O) to contact the sponsoring group when there has been no further contact by the refugee with the visa office or the sponsoring group.

If the sponsor wishes to continue with the sponsorship, they must provide the visa office with updated and correct contact information for the refugee within 30 days. Otherwise, the visa office should:

• Send a procedural fairness letter to the applicant indicating that they have 90 days to provide the required information before their case will be refused.
• At the end of 90 days, the visa officer will send a refusal letter to the applicant, code the case as withdrawn, and close the case in CAIPS/GCMS. They should also inform the local office via e-mail that the case has been closed.