Quarterly Financial Report for the quarter ended June 30, 2017

​ISSN: 2564-355X

​Statement Outlining Results, Risks and Significant Changes in Operations, Personnel and Program

Introduction

This quarterly financial report has been prepared by management as required by section 65.1 of the Financial Administration Act and in the form and manner prescribed by the Treasury Board. The report should be read in conjunction with the Main Estimates and Supplementary Estimates (A) and the previous quarterly financial reports for the current year. The report has not been subject to an external audit or review.

The Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB) is an independent administrative tribunal that was created on January 1, 1989, by an amendment to the Immigration Act. In 2002, the Immigration Act was replaced by the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA), which was amended by the Balanced Refugee Reform Act (BRRA) in 2010 and by the Protecting Canada’s Immigration System Act (PCISA) in 2012.

The IRB has a single strategic outcome which is to resolve immigration and refugee cases before the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada efficiently, fairly and in accordance with the law.

The IRB has five programs: Refugee Protection, Refugee Appeals, Immigration Appeals, Admissibility Hearings and Detention Reviews and Internal Services. The Internal Services program supports the four other programs.

A summary description of the IRB’s programs can be found in the 2017-18 Departmental Plan.

Basis of Presentation

This quarterly report has been prepared by management using an expenditure basis of accounting. The accompanying Statement of Authorities includes the IRB’s spending authorities granted by Parliament and those used by the IRB in a manner consistent with the Main Estimates and Supplementary Estimates (A) for the 2017-18 fiscal year.

This quarterly report has been prepared using a special purpose financial reporting framework designed to meet financial information needs with respect to the use of spending authorities.

The authority of Parliament is required before money can be spent by the Government.

Approvals are given in the form of annually approved limits through appropriation acts or through legislation in the form of statutory spending authority for specific purposes.

The IRB uses the full accrual method of accounting to prepare and present its annual departmental financial statements that are part of the departmental performance reporting process. However, the spending authorities voted by Parliament remain on an expenditure basis.

Highlights of Fiscal Quarter and Fiscal Year-to-Date (YTD) Results

This section highlights the significant items that contributed to the net increase or decrease in resources available and actual expenditures for the quarter ended June 30, 2017 in comparison to the prior year.

The total budgetary authorities available for use, as at June 30, increased in 2017-18 from those in 2016-17 by $16.2M including EBP (14.2%). This increase was largely as a result of the funding received for operating expenditures arising from the impact of the Mexico visa lift, $14.9M, funding received to support an increase in number of appeal decisions arising from increased levels of immigration, $3.6M and collective agreement funding of $0.1M. These increases were offset by a reduction in the employee benefit plan authorities of $1.5M, and a budget reduction as per Budget 2016 in professional services, travel and government advertising of $0.9M.

Program expenditures in the first quarter of 2017-18 were $27.5M, higher by 4 percent or $1.1M, from the $26.4M in the same period last year, with the following major changes by standard object:

• an increase in personnel costs of $1.3M as a result of staffing temporary and permanent personnel, to respond to the increase in asylum seekers;
• a decrease in professional services of $0.3M largely as a result of decreased translation and transcription costs; and
• an increase in other subsidies payments of $0.2M due to outlay of temporary cash requirements as a result of the Government of Canada Pay transformation initiative.

Risks and Uncertainties

The IRB is funded through annual appropriations. As a result, its operations are affected by any changes in funding approved by Parliament. In addition, the IRB’s operations are affected by fluctuations in the intake of immigration and refugee cases, and by changes brought by legislation and/or Federal Court jurisprudence.

Significant changes related to operations, personnel and program

On April 28, 2017, the Chairperson of the Immigration and Refugee Board announced the creation of the Legacy Task Force and will be headed by Gaétan Cousineau who was a former Deputy Chairperson of the RPD. The Task Force’s mandate is to substantively eliminate the remaining backlog of legacy refugee claims (i.e. those referred prior to December 15, 2012) within two years. This will allow the Refugee Protection Division to continue to address, to the best of its ability, the new system caseload.

On June 9, 2017, the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship announced that he will be undertaking an independent review of the refugee determination process to determine possibilities for efficiencies and higher productivity. In addition, the review is to include a review of the IRB’s mandate as it relates to governance, structure and associated accountability mechanisms. The review will be led by the former Deputy Minister at Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada Neil Yeates, with oversight of the review being the joint responsibility of the IRB, IRCC and central agencies.

The following changes in senior personnel were made since the last report:

• The appointment of Holly Holtman as the IRB’s Senior General Counsel as of February 20, 2017;
• The appointment of Shereen Benzvy Miller as Deputy Chairperson (DC) of the Refugee Protection Division (RPD) as of May 8, 2017;
• The mandate of Ken Sandhu as the DC of the Refugee Appeal Division (RAD) ended on June 20, 2017; and
• Paul Aterman the DC of the Immigration and Appeal Division (IAD) will also perform the functions of the DC of RAD during the transition period.

Approval by Senior Officials

Ottawa, Canada
August 9, 2017