Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada

What Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada does

The Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB) is an independent quasi-judicial administrative tribunal established by the Parliament of Canada in 1989 under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. Operating at arm's length from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) and the Minister, the IRB is Canada's largest independent administrative tribunal and renders approximately 70,000 decisions annually. It serves three primary constituencies: refugee claimants, immigration appellants, and detained foreign nationals, with no fees charged for its quasi-judicial services.

The IRB's core platform is organized into four divisions: the Refugee Protection Division (RPD), which hears and decides claims for refugee protection under the Geneva Convention; the Refugee Appeal Division (RAD), which decides appeals of RPD decisions; the Immigration Division (ID), which conducts admissibility hearings and detention reviews for individuals detained by the Canada Border Services Agency; and the Immigration Appeal Division (IAD), which hears immigration-related appeals such as sponsorship refusals, removal orders, and residency obligation appeals. Supporting these divisions is the My Case secure online portal for document exchange, Microsoft Teams-based virtual hearings with options for in-person attendance, a comprehensive Forms Library, and a publicly accessible Decisions Database published on CanLII. The technology stack is built on standard enterprise tools rather than proprietary AI; notably, the IRB issued a Practice Notice on the Use of AI in IRB Proceedings coming into force September 7, 2026, indicating governance-level engagement with AI rather than AI deployment.

The IRB's business model is fully government-funded through federal appropriations, with no revenue model, pricing structure, or GTM motion typical of a private enterprise. It operates through three regional offices — Western (Vancouver), Central (Toronto), and Eastern (Ottawa) — covering all Canadian provinces and territories. Leadership includes Manon Brassard as Chairperson and Roger Ermuth as Executive Director and Chief Financial Officer, with Deputy Chairpersons overseeing each of the four divisions. The organization has no parent company, no equity investors, no subsidiaries, and no M&A activity, consistent with its role as a statutory Crown tribunal reporting to Parliament through the Minister of IRCC.

Name

Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada

Legal name

Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada

Website

https://irb-cisr.gc.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

1989

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

The Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada is an independent federal quasi-judicial tribunal that adjudicates refugee protection claims, immigration appeals, detention reviews, and admissibility hearings across Canada through four divisions, serving refugee claimants, appellants, and detained foreign nationals.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Administrative Tribunal Services

NAICS

National Security and International Affairs (928)

SIC

Services-Legal Services (8111)

akta.pro primary industry

Dispute Resolution, Appeals & Tax Tribunals (BPAIADAK)

akta.pro secondary industry

Immigration Legal Advisory & Representation (Student Visas) (EDAIADAB)

Keywords

• Immigration adjudication
• Refugee protection
• Administrative tribunal
• Immigration appeals
• Detention reviews

Headquarters

HQ city

Ottawa

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB) is Canada's largest independent administrative tribunal. It adjudicates refugee protection claims, hears refugee and immigration appeals, and conducts detention reviews and admissibility hearings through four statutory divisions (Refugee Protection Division, Refugee Appeal Division, Immigration Division, and Immigration Appeal Division). Services are supported by a secure online document exchange portal (My Case) and virtual hearings conducted via Microsoft Teams.

Product overview

The Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB) is Canada's largest independent administrative tribunal offering a multi-division platform for immigration and refugee adjudication. The core platform consists of four divisions: the Refugee Protection Division (RPD) for processing refugee claims, the Refugee Appeal Division (RAD) for appeals of RPD decisions, the Immigration Division (ID) for admissibility hearings and detention reviews, and the Immigration Appeal Division (IAD) for immigration-related appeals. These divisions are supported by the My Case secure document exchange portal, a comprehensive Forms Library, a Decisions Database accessible via CanLII, and Virtual Hearing capabilities using Microsoft Teams. The 7-step Refugee Protection Claim Process provides the procedural framework for claimants, while additional resources include Country of Origin information, statistics, and legal resources.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Refugee Protection Division (RPD) Hears and decides claims for refugee protection made in Canada in keeping with the international Geneva Convention and the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. Processes claims from claimants at ports of entry or inland offices.
• Refugee Appeal Division (RAD) Decides appeals from decisions of the Refugee Protection Division to allow or reject claims for refugee protection. May confirm, change, or send cases back to the RPD.
• Immigration Division (ID)
• Immigration Appeal Division (IAD) Hears appeals on immigration-related matters including family class sponsorship refusals, removal orders, and residency obligation appeals.
• My Case Portal

Quantifiable outcome

• Approximately 70,000 decisions rendered annually

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature4 records

Scale indicators2 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Regional players

• Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC): The federal department that processes visa and citizenship applications and from which the IRB is operationally independent. Operates alongside the IRB as the policy and front-line processing arm of Canada's immigration system, sharing institutional subject-matter overlap.
• Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA): The Canadian federal agency that detains foreign nationals and refers cases to the IRB's Immigration Division for detention reviews and admissibility hearings. A key institutional counterpart whose enforcement decisions directly drive IRB caseload.

Broad incumbents

• Canadian Human Rights Tribunal: An independent Canadian quasi-judicial tribunal that adjudicates human rights complaints under the Canadian Human Rights Act. Comparable as a Canadian federal administrative tribunal with similar procedural and statutory structures to the IRB.
• Federal Court of Canada: Canada's federal superior court that hears judicial reviews of IRB decisions on immigration and refugee matters. Functions as the IRB's appellate review body and is a key institutional counterparty in the immigration adjudication system.

Direct peers

• UK First-tier Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber): United Kingdom's independent judicial body that handles immigration and asylum appeals and decisions. Comparable to the IRB as a government tribunal with statutory authority to adjudicate immigration, refugee, and protection matters within its jurisdiction.
• Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR): The U.S. federal immigration court system that adjudicates immigration cases, including removal proceedings, asylum hearings, and appeals. Directly comparable to the IRB as both are quasi-judicial government tribunals responsible for deciding immigration and refugee protection claims under statutory authority.
• Refugee Status Appeals Authority (New Zealand): New Zealand's specialist tribunal that determines refugee and protection status claims and hears related appeals. Directly comparable to the IRB as a Commonwealth tribunal dedicated to refugee protection adjudication.
• Administrative Appeals Tribunal (Australia): Australia's independent merits review tribunal that reviews administrative decisions across a wide range of areas including immigration and refugee matters. Comparable to the IRB as a Commonwealth-style independent tribunal hearing immigration and protection cases.

Others

• UNHCR (UN Refugee Agency): The UN agency mandated to protect refugees worldwide, whose 1951 Convention and 1967 Protocol underpin the IRB's refugee status determination framework. Indirect but foundational comparator given the IRB's application of international refugee law standards.

Emerging players

• Immigration Appeal Tribunal (Ireland): An Irish statutory tribunal hearing appeals against decisions in immigration, asylum, and related protection matters. Comparable as a smaller jurisdiction specialist tribunal applying similar international refugee law frameworks as the IRB.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/IRB_Canada
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCYoiGrja0ZwLNhzhqjgZIEw
• Facebookfacebook.com/IRBCanada
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/irb-cisr

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada