The Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB) is Canada's largest independent administrative tribunal. Every year, the Board renders more than 40,000 decisions on refugee protection and immigration matters.
About Board Decisions
Under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, hearings before the IRB are generally held in public. A case may be heard in private when there is a serious possibility that the life, liberty and security of a person will be endangered if the proceeding is held in public, or for reasons of fairness or public security, as set out in section 166 of the Act.
When a case is heard in private, the decision and reasons are "sanitized". That is, all the information that could identify the person who is the subject of the proceedings is replaced by "XXX".
A selection of decisions rendered by the IRB are available on the Canadian Legal Information Institute's (CanLII) website.
Three-Member Panel Decisions
Under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, proceedings are normally conducted by a single member of the Refugee Appeal Division (RAD). However, the Chairperson has the authority to direct that an appeal be conducted before a panel composed of three members. A decision of a three-member panel is binding on the Refugee Protection Division (RPD) and on a single-member panel of the RAD. Through the use of a dedicated Three-Member Panel News Feed, the RAD may give notice of the designation of a three-member panel, including the issue(s) to be determined. This will provide persons with the opportunity to make an application to the RAD to participate in the appeal.
Refugee Appeal Division
Decision No. TB6-03419/20/21/22 (May 2017)
The decision further defines the role of the RAD in an appeal. It provides guidance to RAD members as to when the RPD is in a better position to make findings with respect to the credibility of oral testimony.
Decisions of Public Interest