When you see a blank page or pages, or when some information on a page is retracted in your GCMS notes with s15 or s16 at the right top corner, a lot of applicants are puzzled as to what it means. s.15 and s.16 are sections that correspond to section 15 and 16 of the Access to Information Act, the act under which the GCMS notes were requested.
Section 15 pertains to “International affairs and defence;” and
Section 16 pertains to “Law enforcement and investigations”
IRCC can refuse to disclose specific information under any of these two sections.
What does refusal to disclose information under these sections mean and how it impacts the application?
1. Section 15–
The information not disclosed will be under a specific subsection of section 15. Section 15(1) states:
The head of a government institution may refuse to disclose any record requested under this Act that contains information the disclosure of which could reasonably be expected to be injurious to the conduct of international affairs, the defence of Canada or any state allied or associated with Canada or the detection, prevention or suppression of subversive or hostile activities, including, without restricting the generality of the foregoing, any such information (a) relating to military tactics or strategy, or relating to military exercises or operations undertaken in preparation for hostilities or in connection with the detection, prevention or suppression of subversive or hostile activities; (b) relating to the quantity, characteristics, capabilities or deployment of weapons or other defence equipment or of anything being designed, developed, produced or considered for use as weapons or other defence equipment; (c) relating to the characteristics, capabilities, performance, potential, deployment, functions or role of any defence establishment, of any military force, unit or personnel or of any organization or person responsible for the detection, prevention or suppression of subversive or hostile activities; (d) obtained or prepared for the purpose of intelligence relating to (i) the defence of Canada or any state allied or associated with Canada, or (ii) the detection, prevention or suppression of subversive or hostile activities; (e) obtained or prepared for the purpose of intelligence respecting foreign states, international organizations of states or citizens of foreign states used by the Government of Canada in the process of deliberation and consultation or in the conduct of international affairs; (f) on methods of, and scientific or technical equipment for, collecting, assessing or handling information referred to in paragraph (d) or (e) or on sources of such information; (g) on the positions adopted or to be adopted by the Government of Canada, governments of foreign states or international organizations of states for the purpose of present or future international negotiations; (h) that constitutes diplomatic correspondence exchanged with foreign states or international organizations of states or official correspondence exchanged with Canadian diplomatic missions or consular posts abroad; or (i) relating to the communications or cryptographic systems of Canada or foreign states used(i) for the conduct of international affairs,(ii) for the defence of Canada or any state allied or associated with Canada, or(iii) in relation to the detection, prevention or suppression of subversive or hostile activities.Information under this section is hidden when IRCC or a Canadian agency has requested information from a foreign government or agency. It could be anything from checking your record in a foreign country to verifying the information you have supplied in your application. Canadian Security Intelligence Service or IRCC may also request information on your criminality or association with any organization, if they suspect any. This could also be seen when an applicant may have worked for a foreign government. Most of the applicants who see this on the GCMS notes, need not worry, as this is a routine check and does not impact the application. It is not harmful, unless IRCC finds something seriously wrong or something is discovered which would make the applicant inadmissible.
2. Section 16 –
The information not disclosed will be under a specific subsection of section 16. Section 16 states:
16(1) The head of a government institution may refuse to disclose any record requested under this Act that contains(a) information obtained or prepared by any government institution, or part of any government institution, that is an investigative body specified in the regulations in the course of lawful investigations pertaining to(i) the detection, prevention or suppression of crime,(ii) the enforcement of any law of Canada or a province, or(iii) activities suspected of constituting threats to the security of Canada within the meaning of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service Act,if the record came into existence less than twenty years prior to the request;(b) information relating to investigative techniques or plans for specific lawful investigations;(c) information the disclosure of which could reasonably be expected to be injurious to the enforcement of any law of Canada or a province or the conduct of lawful investigations, including, without restricting the generality of the foregoing, any such information(i) relating to the existence or nature of a particular investigation,(ii) that would reveal the identity of a confidential source of information, or(iii) that was obtained or prepared in the course of an investigation; or(d) information the disclosure of which could reasonably be expected to be injurious to the security of penal institutions.Marginal note:Security(2) The head of a government institution may refuse to disclose any record requested under this Act that contains information that could reasonably be expected to facilitate the commission of an offence, including, without restricting the generality of the foregoing, any such information(a) on criminal methods or techniques;(b) that is technical information relating to weapons or potential weapons; or(c) on the vulnerability of particular buildings or other structures or systems, including computer or communication systems, or methods employed to protect such buildings or other structures or systems.Marginal note:Policing services for provinces or municipalities(3) The head of a government institution shall refuse to disclose any record requested under this Act that contains information that was obtained or prepared by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police while performing policing services for a province or municipality pursuant to an arrangement made under section 20 of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Act, where the Government of Canada has, on the request of the province or municipality agreed not to disclose such information.This refers to refusal to disclose based on information prepared by a government institution which investigates to detect crime, threats to Canada, investigation reports by federal and provincial agencies. When an applicant has information retracted under this section, it usually refers to information sought from investigation agencies about the applicant. This could range from verification of the RCMP reports, or verify all places an applicant has lived in Canada and ensuring that he has no pending cases or arrests pending.
Why only some applicants have this and others don’t.
All applications are verified on a large database through a complex undisclosed process. Some applicants with former military service, service with a foreign government, or who come from specific ‘to watch’ countries, or have travelled to countries which have civil unrest, or may have adverse human rights record, human trafficking, etc, are scrutinized.
Should an applicant be concerned when information under these sections is retracted in the GCMS notes.
The answer is No. Unless, an applicant is aware of something which should have been disclosed, but was not. In most cases, retracted information is not harmful and does not have any bearing on your application. It is an internal process of IRCC and cannot be disclosed. Only in cases where seeking information from foreign governments and agencies too long, will the application processing be delayed.
Usually information retracted under these sections is application specific and will differ from application to application.