Operational bulletins and manuals
Subscribe via RSSImmigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) and Canada Border Services Agency employees consult operational bulletins (OBs) and manuals for guidance in the exercise of their functions and in applying the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, the Citizenship Act and their Regulations.
IRCC is changing the way program delivery information is presented. The modernized format combines the latest operational guidance and policy—including OBs—into one place.
This new web-friendly format (now called Program Delivery Instructions) is being developed in phases, by business line. This page will be updated as new business lines become available.
Program Delivery Instructions: Modernized format
To date, instructions available in the new format includes:
- Refugee Protection
- Temporary Resident Program
- Citizenship
- Permanent Residence
- Guidance that applies to many business lines:
Operational manuals: previous format
Operational manuals are divided into different categories. Each manual, in turn, is divided into specific chapters and assigned a chapter number.
Citizenship Policy (CP)
Enforcement (ENF)
- ENF 1 – Inadmissibility
- ENF 3 – Admissibility Hearings and Detention Review Proceedings
- ENF 4 – Port of Entry Examinations
- ENF 5 – Writing 44(1) Reports
- ENF 6 – Review of reports under subsection A44(1)
- ENF 7 – Investigation and Arrests
- ENF 8 – Deposits and Guarantees
- ENF 9 – Judicial Reviews
- ENF 10 – Removals
- ENF 12 – Search, Seizure, Fingerprinting and Photography
- ENF 15 – Obligations of transporters
- ENF 16 – Reserved for future use
- ENF 17 – Maritimes Procedures
- ENF 18 – War Crimes and Crimes Against Humanity
- ENF 19 – IAD Appeal Hearings
- ENF 20 – Detention
- ENF 21 – Recovering Missing, Abducted and Exploited Children
- ENF 22 – Persons Serving Sentences
- ENF 23 – Loss of Permanent Resident Status
- ENF 24 – Ministerial Interventions
- ENF 25 – Reserved for future use
- ENF 26 – Appeals at the Refugee Appeal Division of the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada
- ENF 27 – Permanent Resident Card
- ENF 28 – Ministerial opinions on danger to the public, nature and severity of the acts committed and danger to the security of Canada
- ENF 29 – Alternative Means of Examination Programs
Temporary Foreign Worker Guidelines (FW)
Immigration Legislation (IL)
- IL 1 – Immigration and Refugee Protection Act
- IL 2 – Immigration Regulations
- IL 3 – Designation of Officers and Delegation of Authority
- IL 4 – Reserved for future use
- IL 5 – Immigration Rules
- IL 6 – Reserved for future use
- IL 7 – Reserved for future use
- IL 8 – Reserved for future use
- IL 9 – Official Languages Act
- IL 10 – Reserved for future use
Information Sharing (IN)
Inland Processing (IP)
- IP 1 – Temporary Resident Permits
- IP 2 – Processing Applications to Sponsor Members of the Family Class
- IP 3 – In Canada Processing of Convention Refugees Abroad and Members of the Humanitarian Protected Persons Abroad Classes
- Part 1 (General)
- Part 2 (Resettlement Assistance Program)
- Part 3 (Private Sponsorship of Refugees Program)
(temporarily unavailable) - Part 4 (Joint Assistance Sponsorship Program)
- Appendices
- IP 4 – Processing Live-in Caregivers in Canada
- IP 5 – See Humanitarian and compassionate
- IP 6 – See Processing Temporary Resident Extensions
- IP 7 – Entrepreneur Program
- IP 8 – Spouse or Common-law Partner in Canada
- IP 9 – see Use of Representatives
- IP 10 – Refusal of National Security Cases / Processing of National Interest Requests
- IP 13 – See Start-up Business Class
Reference (IR)
- IR 1 – See Visitors
- IR 3 – See Medical Requirements
- IR 5 – See Fees and cost recovery
Overseas Processing (OP)
- OP 1 – Procedures
- OP 2 – Processing Members of the Family Class
- OP 3 – Adoptions
- OP 4 – See Humanitarian and compassionate
- OP 5 – See Resettlement from overseas.
- OP 6, 6a, 6b, 6c – See Federal Skilled Workers
- OP 7a – Quebec Skilled Workers
- OP 7b – See Provincial Nominees
- OP 8 – Entrepreneur and Self-Employed
- OP 9 – Investors
- OP 10 – Permanent Residency Status Determination
- OP 11 – See Temporary Residents
- OP 12 – See Students
- OP 14 – Processing Applicants for the Live-in Caregiver Program
- OP 15 – See Medical Requirements
- OP 17 – Loans
- OP 20 – Temporary Resident Permits
- OP 21 – Appeals
- OP 22 – Judicial Review
- OP 24 – Overseas Processing of Family Members
- OP 25, 25a – Canadian Experience Class
- OP 26 – See Federal Skilled Trades Class
- OP 27 – See Start-up Business Class
Protected Persons (PP)
- PP 1 – See In-Canada claims.
- PP 3 – See Pre-removal risk assessment.
- PP 4 – See Applications for permanent residence from protected persons.
Identity Management (IM)
Operational bulletins
In exceptional circumstances, OBs may be issued for one-time-only instructions or to provide urgent instructions to staff for a brief period while the operational manuals are being updated.