Openness, transparency and accountability… The Canadian government guidelines

Openness, transparency and accountability are guiding principles of the Government of Canada. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) is incorporating these principles as we improve and modernize our systems, processes and digital infrastructure to better serve our clients. IRCC takes its responsibilities and obligations under the Access to Information Act and Privacy Act very seriously. The annual number of access to information and privacy (ATIP) requests made to IRCC has increased dramatically in recent years, going from 63,333 in 2016–2017 to 132,891 in 2019–2020. IRCC now receives more requests than all other federal institutions combined, the majority of which are linked to individual case files. In the interest of openness and transparency, IRCC is adapting to these recent increases and providing an overall improved ATIP client experience by enhancing readily accessible information, offering faster response times and streamlined systems. To that end, we are announcing IRCC’s ATIP Management Action Plan.