Question Period Note: PASSPORT SERVICES

Passport Program Services

• The Passport Program is moving forward with its modernization agenda, including leveraging automation, which remains key for responding to volume fluctuations.
• The Government of Canada has started issuing the new Canadian passport, which has been redesigned with state-of-the-art security features, maintaining its status as one of the most secure and universally accepted travel documents in the world.

If pressed on redesign cost
• The budget for the ePassport Next Generation project is $161 million for the entire project. This is to develop and deploy new, more efficient printing equipment needed to accommodate the state-of-the-art security features, the entirety of the passport redesign, the infrastructure required to produce the new passport, as well as salaries, accommodation refits, and IT components.
• As of August 31, 2023, approximately $81.9 million has been spent and is well within budget.
If pressed on new passport durability
• The construction and redesign of the new passport, from cover to cover, meets the latest International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) durability standards.
• The passport cover is paper based and necessary precautions are required to safeguard it from potential damage, including the temporarily curling of the cover page when exposed to heat and humidity. When this occurs, the functionality and durability of the passport is not impacted.
If pressed on passport redesign theme
• The theme of the passport was first identified more than 10 years ago with the Minister approving the design in 2020, following consultations, including with the Government of Canada’s forensic specialists, Canadian Heritage, Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada (CIRNAC), and the Anti-Racism Secretariat.

• IRCC is mandated by the Canadian Passport Order to issue, cancel, revoke, withhold and recover Canadian passports. IRCC works closely with its service delivery partners, ESDC/Service Canada for in-Canada services and Global Affairs Canada (GAC) for services abroad. In addition, travel documents issued by the Program provide Canadians with a proof of identity, access to consular services abroad, confirmation of a right to enter Canada, and facilitated crossings at automated border gates around the world.
• The Program functions on a 100% cost-recovery basis over its 10-year business cycle, through the Passport Revolving Fund (PRF). The PRF is financed by the fees paid by Canadian passport applicants.
• The Service Canada network provides 90% of Canadians with access to passport services within 50 km from their home, this includes:
o 290 Service Canada Centres providing passport intake and 48 passport offices (including Service Canada Centres with 10-day processing).
o Overseas passport services are provided at 121 full service and 85 partial service missions, around the world. Service levels abroad continue to vary depending on the localized situation.
• Following operational pressures during the pandemic, applications received domestically on or after October 3, 2022 were processed within service standard. The backlog was eliminated in winter 2023.
• The Passport Program service standard adherence rate for mail-in and walk-in channels, both domestically and abroad, for this fiscal year to date is 95.48% (April 1, 2023 to August 31, 2023).
• Under the Service Fees Act, IRCC established a Remissions Policy to guide how and when refunds are issued when service standards are not met. Clients who applied on or after February 1, 2023, are eligible for a partial refund of the passport application fee when service standards are not met (i.e., 25% 1-10 days late and 50% if 11 or more days late).
• The new passport was unveiled on May 10, 2023.
o Passport holder’s personal information is laser-engraved on the page, instead of printed in ink, making the data page more durable and resistant to tampering and counterfeiting.
o New security features were added to make the passport more secure while remaining visually stunning, by celebrating Canada’s heritage and identity with iconic images of Canada's natural beauty throughout the four seasons. Under ultraviolet light, each page turns to life with images from Canada’s peoples, landscapes and wildlife.
• IRCC is preparing a new online passport application for adult simplified renewals. The new online application will allow Canadians to renew their passport, pay their fees, and upload a digital photo securely and conveniently online. More information on eligibility criteria and process will be made available to Canadians on our website at a later date.

None