Practice notice: Communicating by electronic mail at the Immigration Division (ID)

Effective April 6, 2020, the Immigration Division (ID) will allow parties to submit correspondence and other documents by email to the ID registry in each regional office. For the purpose of this Notice, a party includes counsel, unrepresented persons, bondspersons, and any designated representative.

This change in practice is provided for under Rule 29(b) of the ID Rules, which states that documents may be submitted by email if allowed by the Division.

This Notice sets out the circumstances when email communication is allowed, and the procedures parties must follow when providing documents by email.

Consent to communicate by email

On consent, the ID will communicate with a party by email. This will include all current and future proceedings at the ID. Unless consent is expressly revoked, the ID will consider a party to have consented to communicate by email if they have at any time provided the ID with their email address.

If a party has provided their email address to the ID, they also consent to receive correspondence related to their proceedings before the ID by email from any other party to the proceeding.

If you do not wish to receive correspondence by email from the ID, you must notify the ID and Minister’s Counsel in writing. Once notice is received, the ID will remove the email address from your contact information on file for all current and future proceedings at the ID.

Correspondence that can be submitted by email

The following types of documents can be sent to the ID by email:

  • ID forms
  • Applications
  • Disclosure of documents
  • Written submissions
  • Responses to any request from the ID or the other party to the proceeding

All documents should be submitted in the form of an attached document to the email, except for short applications which can be written within the body of the email. The ID does not accept hyperlinks unless the content of the hyperlinked document is included.

Documents that the ID will not send by email

For reasons of privacy and security, the ID will not send a document by email if it contains information classified as Protected B or higher or if it is subject to a confidentiality order or publication ban.

Instructions on submitting documents by email

Email content

  • You must include your name, the name of the person concerned, the applicable ID file number and Unique Client Identifier (UCI) in the subject line of your email. This information can be found at the top of any case-related correspondence you receive from the ID. If you are unable to find this information, please contact your local ID registry.
  • All emails must be addressed to the ID registry in the region where the hearing is taking place.
  • If your email is not also addressed to all the other parties to the proceeding, you must explain in your email how and when you have provided the submitted document to the other parties.

Attached documents

  • Effective March 11, 2021, the total file size of your email, including all attachments, must not exceed 20 megabytes (MB). Emails with a file size of more than 20 MB risk not being successfully transmitted to all recipients. Should you wish to submit a document that is larger than 20 MB, please contact your local ID registry for direction.
  • Documents must be submitted in Portable Document Format (PDF).
  • Documents must contain your name, the name of the person concerned, the ID File Number and UCI.
  • Documents must comply with the ID Rules for disclosure.
  • If a colour document is printed, it will be in black and white (grey scale) for the case file.
  • For documents requiring a signature, an electronic (i.e., typewritten) signature is generally acceptable. If the document legally requires a handwritten signature (such as an affidavit), a scanned copy of the document is acceptable provided the sender keeps the original.

After you send an email, you will not receive an automated reply indicating that your email was received by the ID’s email server. Unless you receive an error message from your email server, you can assume the ID has received your email. You are not required to mail a paper copy if you have submitted the document by email.

Non-conforming or inappropriate communications

Emails that do not comply with the above instructions may be returned to the party and the party will be directed to resubmit correctly. The ID may also refuse emails if the sender is misusing the service by sending emails that are excessively lengthy, repetitive or disrespectful to any other hearing participant or the ID.

Emails that are not related to ID cases will be deleted without being further processed.

When a document is considered received

When a document is provided by email that complies with the ID Rules and the instructions set out in this Practice Notice, the ID considers it received on the date and time the email message records it as having been received or sent, as the case may be.

How to get help

If you have questions about using email to submit documents, please contact the ID registry in your region.

ID registry email addresses

Please use the appropriate email address below when communicating by email with the ID.

ID Western Region (ID file numbers starting with 0001-)
IRB.Western_ID_detentions-ouest_SI_detention.CISR@irb-cisr.gc.ca

ID Central Region (ID file numbers starting with 0003-)
IRB.TorontoID-SIToronto.CISR@irb-cisr.gc.ca

ID Eastern Region (ID file numbers starting with 0018-)
Mtl.Fax606-SI@irb-cisr.gc.ca

Signed on April 7, 2020

Amended May 27, 2022

Greg Kipling
Deputy Chairperson, ID