Migratio Canada · Guides · Find consultants · For consultants

How to Complain About an Immigration Consultant in Canada

Complaints about an RCIC or RISIA go to the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants through its online portal. The College looks at conduct and competence, not fee disputes; refunds usually need a court. Lawyers and paralegals are complained about to their law society.

If an immigration consultant missed a deadline, stopped answering, filed something you didn't approve or took money and disappeared, there is a formal route. Which one depends on who they are: a College licensee (RCIC or RISIA), a lawyer or paralegal, or someone with no licence at all.

This guide covers each route, what the regulator can actually do, how long it takes, and where money fits in. Read it alongside your own documents; the regulator will ask for them.

First, work out who you're complaining about

IRCC's "File a complaint" page (page date 11 May 2026) splits complaints by the type of representative:

  • Immigration or citizenship consultant (RCIC or RISIA): the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants.
  • Lawyer or notary: the provincial or territorial law society, or the Chambre des notaires du Québec.
  • Paralegal (Ontario): the Law Society of Ontario.
  • An employee of an authorized representative: IRCC suggests raising it first with the person they work for, then with that person's regulator.
  • An unpaid representative: the same steps as above apply. IRCC says "It doesn't matter whether your representative is compensated or uncompensated."
  • An unauthorized representative: report them to IRCC through its web form and to the Canada Border Services Agency.

To check which group someone belongs to, search the College register at https://register.college-ic.ca/. If they're not there, check the law society register in their province.

What the law says about College complaints

The College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants Act sets out the process:

  • s.45: "Any person may, in accordance with the by-laws, make a complaint to the College in respect of a licensee or former licensee."
  • s.46: the College may refer a complaint to its Complaints Committee if it relates to professional misconduct or incompetence.
  • s.48: the Complaints Committee must consider every complaint referred to it, and may investigate if it has reasonable grounds to suspect misconduct or incompetence.
  • s.57: the Committee can refer the complaint to the Discipline Committee. If it doesn't, it must give reasons, can call the licensee in to be cautioned, or can send the complaint to dispute resolution if the licensee consents.
  • s.69: after a hearing, the Discipline Committee can impose conditions on the licence, suspend it, revoke it, or order a penalty. Its decision and reasons are in writing and, subject to the regulations, published on the College's website.

The College also keeps jurisdiction over former licensees (s.49 and s.65). Its complaints page says a complaint about a former licensee for conduct while licensed can still be dealt with; minor matters are kept on file and reopened if the person reapplies.

How to file with the College, step by step

The College's "Make a Complaint" page says complaints are filed online only: "The College does not accept complaints through email, on paper or by phone."

  1. Create an account on the College Portal (portal.college-ic.ca) and open the My Complaints tab.
  2. Give your contact details and preferred language.
  3. Identify the licensee: name, employer name and College ID, taken from the public register.
  4. Describe what happened.
  5. Upload documents. The College lists service or retainer agreements, texts and emails, receipts and proof of payment, invoices, and applications and correspondence sent to and received from the consultant.

You can't complain anonymously. The College says it needs to know who you are, may ask for government ID, and will share the details of your complaint, including your name, with the licensee so they can respond. If you're worried about that, it asks you to tell it so it can work with you on privacy.

You get an acknowledgement and a complaint file number, and updates through the portal.

What happens next and how long it takes

The College screens every complaint. It checks that the person is a licensee and that the complaint is about professionalism or competence. It then either refers the complaint to the Complaints Committee, closes it (for example, if it was filed for an improper purpose or the issue was already dealt with), or sends it to another process such as action by the Registrar.

The Complaints Committee sits in panels of three, with at least one licensee and one member of the public. It can close the complaint, resolve it with both sides through dispute resolution, caution the licensee, recommend remedial training, or refer the matter onward for a disciplinary hearing.

On timing, the College says some complaints resolve early, in roughly three months, while serious matters that go to a disciplinary hearing can take up to three years.

If the College closes your complaint without sending it to the Tribunal and you disagree with how it was handled, you can ask the Independent Complaints Review Officer to review it. The College says the request form must be submitted within 30 calendar days of receiving notice of the decision, by email to icro@college-ic.ca.

Fees and refunds: what the College can't do

This is where most complaints go wrong. The College says its process "focuses on RCICs' or RISIAs' professional conduct, not on their fees". It does not deal with complaints "that are only about a request for a refund or return of fees because an immigration application was refused." If the fees were reasonable and there's no evidence of unprofessional conduct, it closes the complaint.

For a fee dispute, the College points you to "a local court that has the authority to resolve your dispute", and says civil action can run at the same time as a complaint.

A refused application is not, by itself, evidence of misconduct. A missed deadline, work that was never filed, a false statement put in your application, or money not accounted for are conduct questions.

The College compensation fund (from 15 July 2026)

The College Act s.13 requires the College to keep a fund to compensate people "adversely affected by the conduct or activities of a licensee". The College's page says that from 15 July 2026, new regulations let eligible people claim for "a proven financial loss because of the dishonest act of a licensee."

Dishonest acts, per the College, include theft, fraud, misappropriation of funds, misrepresentation or counselling misrepresentation, and knowingly failing to report a claim to or cooperate with professional liability insurance.

The College's criteria include: you used a College licensee; you filed a complaint; the Discipline Committee found a financial loss from a dishonest act on or after 23 November 2021; the final decision was made on or after 15 July 2026; and you did not take part in the dishonest act. Complaints closed before 15 July 2026 are not eligible. The maximum payout is $7,000 per successful claim, and claims are only considered after disciplinary proceedings finish. The fund doesn't replace a court claim.

Complaining about a lawyer or paralegal

The College doesn't regulate lawyers, paralegals or Quebec notaries. Each law society runs its own process. As one example, the Law Society of Ontario's complaints page says:

  • Complaints are filed through LSO Connects, its online portal.
  • It will generally acknowledge a complaint within 48 hours.
  • It may not deal with conduct that happened, or that you learned about, more than three years ago.
  • It "does not set fees for legal services and cannot reduce a lawyer or paralegal bill"; it may refer fee questions to the Assessment Office of the Superior Court of Justice.
  • People who lost money through a lawyer's or paralegal's dishonesty may be able to apply to the Law Society's Compensation Fund.

Other provinces have their own rules and time limits. Check the law society where the lawyer is licensed.

If the person had no licence

If your "consultant" isn't on the College register or a law society register, the College can't discipline them. It can ask the courts to stop them (College Act s.78) and work with other agencies. Report them through the College's unauthorized practitioner form, the CBSA Border Watch Line and, if you have an open application, IRCC's online form. IRCC also tells applicants to remove that person from the file, using the Use of a Representative form (IMM 5476).

A scam involving money can also be reported to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre, and possible criminal conduct to the police.

Your application while a complaint is open

A complaint doesn't pause or change your IRCC file. If a deadline is running, such as a request for documents, a procedural fairness letter, or a 15-day or 60-day judicial review window, it keeps running. Many people in this position change representative first, then complain. A new RCIC or lawyer will work under a fresh written agreement.

Migratio's directory lists only advisers who signed up with us and show "Entitled to Practise: Yes" on the live CICC register, or who are in good standing with a law society, with a link to each register so you can check before you book. Migratio is not an immigration consultant and doesn't give immigration advice.

Questions people ask

How do I file a complaint against an RCIC?

Create an account on the College Portal and use the My Complaints tab. The College doesn't accept complaints by email, paper or phone. Include the licensee's name and College ID from the register, a description, and documents such as the service agreement, receipts and messages.

Can the CICC make my consultant give me a refund?

Generally no. The College says its process covers conduct, not fees, and that a dispute only about fees belongs in a local court. A separate compensation fund (up to $7,000 per claim) covers proven losses from a licensee's dishonest act, after a discipline finding.

How long does a complaint to the College take?

The College says some complaints resolve early, in about three months, while serious matters that go to a disciplinary hearing can take up to three years.

Can I complain anonymously?

No. The College needs to know who you are, may ask for ID, and will share the complaint, including your name, with the licensee so they can respond.

My immigration lawyer made a mistake. Who do I complain to?

The law society of the province where the lawyer is licensed, not the College. In Ontario that is the Law Society of Ontario, through its LSO Connects portal.

What if the College closes my complaint?

If it closes the complaint without referral to the Tribunal, you can ask the Independent Complaints Review Officer to review how it was handled. The College says the request form must be submitted within 30 calendar days of the decision notice.

Sources

Last checked 2026-10-09.

Related guides

  • Unlicensed Immigration Consultants: How to Check Before You Pay — Only RCICs and RISIAs licensed by the College, lawyers and paralegals in good standing with a law society, and Quebec notaries may charge for Canadian immigration advice. IRCC says it won't deal with unauthorized paid representatives and may return or refuse an application that uses one.
  • How to check an RCIC licence on the College's Public Register — Search the consultant on the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants Public Register (register.college-ic.ca). Only people with an "Active" status and "Yes" in the "Entitled to Practise" column may legally give you immigration advice for a fee. Then contact them using the details on the register, not the ones in an ad or a message.
  • IMM 5476, Use of a Representative: what the form asks and how it is submitted — IMM 5476 tells IRCC that someone may act for you on an application, paid or unpaid. You complete the applicant sections, your representative signs their own declaration, and a paid representative must give their membership ID from the College, a law society or the Chambre des notaires. The same form is used to cancel or change a representative.
  • RCIC vs immigration lawyer in Canada: what each one can do — Both a licensed immigration consultant (RCIC) and a lawyer may charge you for Canadian immigration advice and represent you before IRCC. The differences are at the edges: only RCIC-IRB consultants and lawyers may appear before the Immigration and Refugee Board, only lawyers may act for you in the Federal Court, and Quebec files need extra recognition for consultants.
  • Immigration consultant fees in Canada: what you pay for and how it must be billed — There is no official fee scale: the College says "RCICs set their own fees," and they must be "fair and reasonable." What the rules do fix is the paperwork. The fee for a first consultation must be in a written agreement before it starts, the full job needs a written service agreement with a fee estimate, and money paid in advance must sit in a trust account until the work is done.
  • Judicial Review of an IRCC Refusal: The 15-Day and 60-Day Deadlines — To challenge an IRCC decision in the Federal Court you first need leave. The application must be filed within 15 days if the matter arose in Canada, or 60 days if it arose outside Canada, after you're notified (IRPA s.72). Any appeal right, such as an IAD appeal, must be used first.