Who may charge to represent you
Under section 91 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA), only these people may represent or advise you for a fee:
- licensed consultants (RCICs) in good standing with the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants (CICC);
- members in good standing of a provincial or territorial law society, including lawyers and, in Ontario, paralegals;
- notaries in good standing with the Chambre des notaires du Québec.
To check, search the CICC public register by name or registration number, or your province's law society directory. IRCC's advice: if they are not members in good standing, do not use their services.
Family or friends can act as unpaid representatives. If you pay or compensate a representative in any way, IRCC treats them as paid, and they must be authorized.
Questions to ask before you sign
| Question | A compliant answer | Warning sign |
|---|---|---|
| Who is my representative, and who signs the agreement? | The licensed consultant or lawyer signs the service agreement and is named as your representative on form IMM 5476. | "You sign with our local company; our licensed team checks the work." |
| What is your registration number? | Given at once, written in the agreement, and checkable in the CICC register. | Evasion, or a foreign chamber of commerce card instead. |
| Where does my payment go? | Money paid in advance is held in a client account and used only for the agreed purpose. | Full payment into a business operating account or a personal account. |
| Will I get copies of what is submitted? | On request, copies of every document submitted or received, plus your acknowledgement of receipt (AOR) and UCI. | "The account and the files belong to the agency." |
| Where is the risk in my profile? | A frank answer: NOC duty mismatches, gaps in funds or language scores. | "Your profile has zero risk; approval is guaranteed." |
Three grey-market practices
- The figurehead licensee: an unlicensed agency has a licensee sign files that unlicensed staff actually write. Under the CICC Code of Professional Conduct, a licensee may delegate some work but must supervise it and take professional responsibility for it, and an assistant may not give representation or advice.
- Withheld accounts and files: the agency keeps the UCI, application number and submitted copies from the applicant, who does not know which NOC or work history was declared. Under the Code, a licensee must hand over documents and information about the application when the client asks.
- Guaranteed approval: only officers decide applications. The Code forbids a licensee to guarantee the success of an application in their marketing. IRCC states that using a representative will not draw special attention to your application and does not mean it will be approved.
You are responsible for your application
You are responsible for all the information in your application, even if your representative completes it. Under section 40 of IRPA, directly or indirectly misrepresenting or withholding material facts makes a person inadmissible, for a period of 5 years.
IRCC will not deal with representatives who charge a fee but are not authorized; if you use one, IRCC may return or refuse your application.
The service agreement, and changing representative
- Service agreement: a written agreement before any service, stating the licensee's name, registration number, address and contact details, and the official language of Canada (English or French) in which the services will be provided.
- Changing or cancelling a representative: use form IMM 5476; complete sections A, C and E to cancel, or A, B, C and E to cancel and appoint a new representative. For an application already in process, submit it through the IRCC web form.
- If an unlicensed agent submitted inaccurate documents: cancel their appointment, request your GCMS notes to see what was submitted, and have a licensed consultant draft a letter that sets out the facts to IRCC.