What is IRCC?

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) is the Canadian federal department responsible for:

• Citizenship — applications, ceremonies, certificates of citizenship, citizenship by descent.
• Immigration — permanent residence applications under Express Entry, PNP, family class, humanitarian categories, and economic programs.
• Refugee protection — refugee resettlement (Government-Assisted Refugees, Privately Sponsored Refugees) and refugee-protection claim coordination with the IRB.
• Temporary residents — visitor visas (TRVs), study permits, work permits, Temporary Resident Permits (TRPs).
• Passport issuance for Canadian citizens.
• Multiculturalism programs and integration support through the Settlement Program.

IRCC is led by the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship (a federal Cabinet minister). The department was previously called Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) until 2015.

IRCC vs. the IRB

These are commonly confused:

• IRCC processes applications and makes initial decisions on visas, permits, PR, citizenship.
• The Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) is a separate independent tribunal that decides specific matters: refugee-protection claims (RPD), refugee appeals (RAD), inadmissibility hearings (ID), and immigration appeals (IAD).

IRCC officers make most initial decisions; appeals from those decisions go to the IRB or the Federal Court depending on the matter type.

IRCC visa offices

IRCC operates visa offices and processing centres around the world (Manila, New Delhi, Beijing, Hong Kong, Islamabad, Ankara, Cairo, Lagos via Centralized Network, etc.). Each visa office handles applications from designated countries — typically based on the applicant's country of residence or nationality.

In addition to overseas offices, IRCC operates in-Canada offices in Toronto (downtown, Etobicoke), Ottawa, Montreal, Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver, and several smaller cities, handling in-Canada applications (PR card renewals, citizenship grants, certain refugee and sponsorship interviews).

Working with IRCC

• Online applications through the IRCC Secure Account or the Permanent Residence Portal (PRP).
• GCMS — the internal case management system that holds your file. You can request a copy of your GCMS notes through an ATIP request.
• Webforms for status updates and inquiries.
• Processing times published per program; actual times often exceed published targets, particularly for security-screening-heavy files.

Recent context

IRCC has gone through significant operational change in 2024-2026: introduction of category-based Express Entry draws (2023+), changes to PGWP eligibility, closure of the Student Direct Stream (SDS, November 2024), introduction of Iranian Special Measures (2022-2023), CUAET for Ukrainians (closed 2024), tightening of LMIA-based CRS points (March 2025), and ongoing changes to processing standards.

See also

• GCMS — IRCC's case management system.
• ATIP — how to request your IRCC notes.
• IRB — the separate tribunal.