IRCC Misconduct Report Exposes Privacy Breaches, Harassment, and Time Theft by Staff

Canada’s immigration system enjoys international respect because of its reputation for fairness, transparency, and integrity – qualities that depend on the ethical conduct of its employees. The 2023-2024 IRCC Report on Misconduct and Wrongdoing provides a comprehensive and transparent account of how Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) addressed proven cases of employee misconduct. Out of 76 investigations completed during the year, 62 cases were substantiated, with appropriate disciplinary and corrective measures applied to protect the integrity of Canada’s immigration system.

Proven Misconduct: Categories and Disciplinary Measures

The 62 founded cases fell into six categories, each addressed with proportionate and decisive action.

Harassment, violence and disrespectful behaviour (9 cases)

These included threats, racist remarks, and aggressive behaviour:

• A serious case involved an employee making a death threat to their supervisor and attempting to manipulate a performance review. IRCC applied branch-wide workplace safety training, leadership training for supervisors, and separated the individuals involved. The matter is now before the Federal Court.
• Another employee repeatedly displayed aggression and made inappropriate remarks about vulnerable clients. After two suspensions without pay, the employee was terminated.
  Sanctions: six suspensions without pay, one termination, one written reprimand, and branch-level training.

Breach of values and ethics code or IRCC’s code of conduct (3 cases)

• An employee referred to clients from certain countries as “pushy”, written reprimand.
• Cheating on a mandatory exam with help from a subordinate for a managerial secondment, suspension without pay.
• Forming a personal relationship with an asylum claimant, offering preferential treatment, and co-signing a loan , suspension without pay.

Administrative misconduct (37 cases)

The most common category included time theft, absenteeism, insubordination, and misuse of government property:

• Time theft, absenteeism, false overtime (27 cases): 19 suspensions without pay, five written reprimands, two terminations, cost recovery in some cases, and one resignation before measures could proceed.
• Insubordination or failure to follow directions (9 cases): six written reprimands, three suspensions without pay.
• Misuse of government assets (1 case): An employee misused a travel card for personal purchases under $1,000; funds were repaid and a written reprimand was issued.

Violations of IRCC network acceptable use policy (12 cases)

Employees accessed immigration files for personal, family, or curiosity reasons:

Sanctions included four suspensions without pay, two written reprimands, five unauthorized access letters, and one resignation before formal discipline.

Misconduct related to security clearance (1 case)

An employee solicited a bribe to approve a study permit and provided a false cover story. Their reliability status was revoked.

Fraud and financial misconduct (0 cases)

No fraud was proven, demonstrating the strength of IRCC’s fraud prevention systems.

Firm and Proportional Measures to Protect Integrity

IRCC applied actions aligned with the seriousness of the misconduct:

• Terminations for repeated or serious breaches
• Suspensions without pay for significant violations such as harassment, privacy breaches, or time theft
• Written reprimands for first-time or lower-level infractions
• Cost recovery where misuse of public funds occurred
• Mandatory training for individuals, teams, or branches
• Revocation of reliability status for security-related breaches
• Resignations where employees left before discipline was applied

From a professional standpoint, IRCC’s approach reflects global best practice for transparency, accountability, and ethical public service.

Why This Matters for Canada’s Immigration Integrity

While 62 proven cases represent a small share of IRCC’s nearly 14,000 employees, the strong response reinforces public confidence that Canada’s immigration system operates under robust ethical safeguards. However, with increased oversight, accurate, complete, and compliant applications are now more essential than ever.

Today’s immigration environment can be complex and demanding. Our firm offers expert preparation, compliance advice, and representation to help applicants meet Canada’s high standards and avoid unnecessary delays.