February 21, 2017

Federal Court of Appeal Finds an Incomplete Application is Not an Application!

In a recent decision of the Federal Court of Appeal, Gennai v. Canada (Citizenship and Immigration) – 2017 FCA 29, the Honourable Mr. Appellate Justice Near writing for an unanimous Court held that an incomplete application is not an application within the meaning of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations.  Specifically the Court found an incomplete application can no longer exist because the text of section 12 of the Regulations provides that the entirety of an application that has failed to meet the requirements under section 10 of the Regulations is returned to the applicant.  This is all the more reason for immigration applicants to ensure that complete applications are filed to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC).  Despite directions on the IRCC website that applicants can file without the assistance of counsel, keep in mind that if there is an error the system can at times be unforgiving.

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