CIMM - Enhancing the Integrity of Canada’s Borders and Asylum System – Information Technology Systems Interoperability

Key messages

• Budget 2019 announced funding to enhance the integrity of Canada’s borders and asylum system, which included Information Technology System Interoperability.
• New funding is allocated to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, the Canada Border Services Agency and Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada to enhance the integrity of the asylum system through increased and improved data sharing, and improve client service by reducing processing times for claims and reducing manual processing of forms, including the electronic submission of forms and supporting materials.

Supporting facts and figures

• Planned expenditures and associated funding sought by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada for the Information Technology System Interoperability (known as the Asylum Interoperability Project) are as follows:

  ($millions)	2019-20 Budget Implementation Vote	2020-21 Supplementary Estimates (A)	2021-22	Total	Ongoing
  Vote 1 – Operating Expenditures	0.8	9.2	6.6	16.5	-
  Vote 5 – Capital Expenditures	0.2	11.1	7.4	18.7	-
  Statutory – EBP	0.1	1.0	0.9	2.1	-
  Funding Profile	1.1	21.3	14.9	37.3	-

• In total, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada would spend requested incremental funding of $37.3M over three years for this initiative.
• Funding in the amount of $21.3M is being sought through the 2020-2021 Supplementary Estimates (A). Future year’s funding will be sought via the Main Estimates process.
• In total, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada’s funding of $37.3M includes personnel resources peaking at 43 full time equivalents (FTEs) in 2020-2021 to complete this project.

Background

• The project will be fully implemented by June 2022 with the objective of enhancing the integrity of the asylum system through increased and improved data sharing, and improving client service by reducing processing times for claims and reducing manual processing of forms, including the electronic submission of forms and supporting materials.
• Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada is the lead department in managing this project, in collaboration with primary delivery partners, the Canada Border Services Agency and Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, with support from Shared Services Canada.