IRCC Begins Selecting Reviewers for Planned Penalties Against Paid Representatives
News date: July 28, 2026. Prepared September 6, 2026; official instructions checked on that date.
IRCC’s July 28 notice opened a selection process for two independent reviewers connected to its planned administrative penalties system for paid immigration and citizenship representatives.
A step toward a planned system
The notice says the penalties and consequences regime is planned for later in 2026. The reviewers would assess challenges to administrative decisions and could maintain, change or remove the penalty or consequence under review.
The recruitment announcement should not be described as proof that every part of the system is already operating. It concerns the review of measures against representatives, not a general new appeal mechanism for immigration applicants.
A complaint and an application refusal are different problems
A client who is concerned about a representative may also have an urgent immigration issue. Resolving one does not necessarily resolve the other. If an application has been refused, obtain the decision, the submitted materials and the relevant correspondence promptly.
The immediate assessment should identify what happened in the immigration file and what steps remain available. Waiting for a complaint or enforcement process can distract from that separate task.
What employers can do now
Businesses should know who is responsible for their immigration work and retain copies of instructions, signed forms, submissions and government communications. A clear engagement arrangement and accessible records are useful regardless of how a future enforcement system develops.
When an employee’s work authorization or a proposed start date is affected, review that issue directly rather than treating a dispute with a representative as a status solution. Our work permit services address the immigration position itself.
Official source: IRCC’s July 28 reviewer selection notice.
General information, not legal advice. Requirements depend on the facts and may change.
About the author
Miguel Martins Pereirinha is a Canadian immigration lawyer and partner at Slayen Immigration Law in Vancouver, British Columbia. He practises Canadian immigration law exclusively — work permits, permanent residence, family sponsorship, citizenship and inadmissibility — and works with clients in English and Portuguese.
