The Increases to the International Organisation for Migration Services Fees for Services Provided to People Resettled in Canada Under the Refugee Protection Classes
The Issue
This Operational Bulletin (OB) serves to notify the following organisations about the increase in the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) service fee:
- The International Network
- The Settlement Network
- The In-Canada call centres
- The Communications Branch
- The Refugee Affairs Branch and,
- The Finance Accounts Receivable & Collection Office
The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) levies this fee on the following categories of people who utilise the assistance provided by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) for relocating to Canada:
- Foreign nationals
- Convention refugees and,
- Members of the humanitarian and protected persons abroad classes
The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) has increased the fee from $180 per person to $240 per person, with effect from March 01, 2017.
The authorities have passed this service charge on to the refugees. As such, there is no limit on the number of service fees per loan. In addition, the $10,000 loan cap continues to remain in place. This means that the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) will continue to pay any transportation loan amount in excess of $10,000 rather than billing it to the refugees.
The Background
It is worth mentioning that Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) are parties to a Memorandum of Understanding on Migration Programs. This Memorandum of Understanding serves to outline the services that the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) will provide for assisting in the movement of refugees. In addition, the Memorandum of Understanding also serves to outline the process for reimbursement to the International Organisation for Migration (IOM).
The services that the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) typically provides includes:
- Booking transportation for refugees
- Obtaining travel documents
- Conducting medical exams and,
- Providing a variety of other services as and when required
The authorities add a service fee to each family’s transportation loan for covering the International Organisation for Migration’s (IOM’s) administrative costs associated with the delivery of its services. This service fee is typically payable by the refugee.
The Role of the Visa Officers
Visa officers will need to communicate these changes with resettled refugees. The authorities expect the visa officers to communicate these changes with resettled refugees when they discuss the immigration loan program at the time of the selection interviews. In some cases, the resettled refugees will agree and sign up for the immigration loans. In this scenario, the visa officers will need to ensure that these resettled refugees understand that the authorities will add these service fees to their loan, in addition to all the other costs related to travelling to Canada. Such additional costs could typically include the fees for medical examinations and travel costs to Canada. The authorities require the family to repay the loan over time, once they settle in Canada.
Source: Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC)
