What is a Procedural Fairness Letter?

A procedural fairness letter is an email or letter electronically sent by an immigration officer. The officer sends that letter to allow a visa applicant to respond to a concern about the documents that have been submitted.

What should I do if I receive a Procedural Fairness Letter?

First of all, don’t panic if you receive a Procedural Fairness Letter, but do take the matter seriously.

The whole reason for having PFLs is to allow the applicant to clear up any issues and give them the chance to correct or provide the information or proof required.

If you receive a PFL, deal with it as a matter of urgency. Provide the information you need to provide or address the matter being raised in the Letter. The PFL will include information on the matter at hand and what the officer needs you to do to rectify the situation.

It is usually a gap in documentation or some kind of further documentation to support your application that is required. This documentation will most likely be instructed to be uploaded to the portal. You may need to make a statement as well explaining the situation further which could be done on a Letter of Explanation (LOE) or in another format as instructed on your PFL.

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Why would I have received a Procedural Fairness Letter?

You could receive a PFL for a number of reasons, some of these include:

• Missing or incomplete information in your application
• The officer has uncovered some information that does not match the information you have provided
• Errors might have been found in your application that impacts the points you had within the Express Entry and CRS system that would now mean you would not have received an offer
• They need clarification on a serious aspect of your application.

What happens if the immigration officer does not feel my response was enough to satisfy them?

If you supply more information or can’t supply information on the matter that the Immigration officer has raised in their PFL, your application may be rejected. If you respond and they need a bit more information they may send you another PFL asking for more specific information to help them ensure you can qualify for Permanent Residency.

Unless the immigration officer has uncovered something that will disqualify you from being granted Canadian Permanent Residency, the PFL will come down to further explanation and further provision of proof.

Again, don’t panic. This is the system they have built to give you every chance possible to prove your case.

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