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Information Sharing and Employment Social Development Canada

Canada Revenue Agency: There is a need to clarify and make explicit the legislative authority for CIC to share personal information through its different business lines and with these partners, it said, according to Toronto Star. CIC has relied on the Privacy Act to support some information sharing. The plan, published Friday, would allow information sharing between border enforcement officials, Employment and Social Development Canada, Canada Revenue Agency, the RCMP and the regulator of immigration consultants, as well as other federal and provincial bodies. However, this has created uncertainty regarding what information can and should be shared, and has limited CIC ability for enforcement. The information sharing, said the proposal, is meant to allow authorities to crack down on fraud, validate citizenship status for government services, authenticate the identity or status of individuals and proactively alert other officials of changes in their immigration status. The Star immigration coverageAccording to the plan, the revenue agency would play a key role in the new information regime as the changes would let immigration authorities access the secure Income Verification Program as a source to identify possible false representation, fraud, concealment of material circumstances, or discrepancies provided by immigration and citizenship applicants. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.