As required by the Treasury Board Directive on Travel, Hospitality, Conference and Event Expenditures, this report provides information on the total annual expenditures for each of travel, hospitality and conference fees for the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB) for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2017. It also provides the variance explanations from the previous fiscal year in each of these areas.
This information is updated annually and does not contain information withheld under the Access to Information Act or the Privacy Act.
Expenditures on travel, hospitality and conference fees incurred by federal departments and agencies are related to activities that support departmental or agency mandate and the government’s priorities.
The IRB is an independent administrative tribunal that was created on January 1, 1989, by an amendment to the Immigration Act. In 2002, the Immigration Act was replaced by the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA), which was amended by the Balanced Refugee Reform Act (BRRA) in 2010 and by the Protecting Canada’s Immigration System Act (PCISA) in 2012.
The IRB has a single strategic outcome which is to resolve immigration and refugee cases before the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada efficiently, fairly and in accordance with the law.
The IRB has five programs: Refugee Protection, Refugee Appeal, Immigration Appeal, Admissibility Hearings and Detention Reviews and Internal Services. The Internal Services program supports the four other programs.
The IRB carries out its work in four regional offices: Toronto, Montreal, Calgary and Vancouver. All three divisions hold hearings in these regions, supported by adjudicative and corporate support. Internal and support services are managed at IRB Headquarters, located in Ottawa.
Annual Expenditures for Travel, Hospitality and Conferences of the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (in thousands of dollars)| Expenditure Category |
Expenditures for the Year Ending March 31, 2017 |
Expenditures for the Previous Year Ending March 31, 2016 |
Variance |
|---|
| Travel – Public Servants |
1,298 |
1,130 |
168 |
| Travel – Non-Public Servants |
68 |
83 |
-15 |
| Total Travel |
1,366 |
1,213 |
153 |
| Hospitality |
40 |
33 |
7 |
| Conference Fees |
33 |
4 |
29 |
| Total |
1,439 |
1,250 |
189 |
| International Travel by Minister and Minister’s Staff |
Not Applicable |
Not Applicable |
0 |
Variances compared to the previous fiscal year
Travel
The IRB public servant travel expenditures increased by $168K or 14% compared to fiscal year 2015-16. This was mainly attributable to the training sessions held for new members of the Refugee Appeal Division as well as the National Training Seminar held for the Immigration Appeal Division members. The balance of the increase was mostly due to travel to the regional operations in the Tribunal Services Branch regarding business process mapping and standardization, form standardization and case management system improvements for the registry function.
Compared to fiscal year 2015-16, the IRB non-public servant travel expenditures decreased by $15K mainly due to the increased use of video conferencing for the GIC selection processes.
Hospitality and Conference Fees
Departmental hospitality expenditures increased by $7K or 21% compared to 2015-16. This was mainly due to the increased expenditures of hosting the Consultative Committee on Practices and Procedure (CCPP) meetings held with stakeholders and the National Training Seminar for the Immigration Appeal Division members. The CCPP provides a forum for consultation, advice, information-sharing and the discussion of issues of mutual concern regarding the Board's practices and procedures.
The conference fees increased in 2016-17 by $29K. This was mainly due to improved classification of expenditures and includes fees for conferences held by the Canadian Council for Refugees, the Council of Canadian Administrative Tribunals, and the Canadian Bar Association.