Need the status of your Canada visa application?


There are a couple of ways that you can find out the latest status of your Canadian immigration visa application: you can visit CIC's online e-CAS system, which will give you a short summary of which stage of processsing your file has reached (e.g. 'in process' or 'decision made'), or you can request a copy of your immigration file (i.e. your GCMS or CAIPS notes ) which should provide you with a more detailed look at your application status including the date when CIC may deal with your file next.

What is CIC's e-CAS system?


CIC's eCAS or eclient system allows you to instantly check the status of your Canada immigration application online at no cost. Unfortunately, it doesn't actually provide a great deal of information about your application, just what stage of processing it has reached and whether a decision has been made. You can find a link to the eClient Application System on the Citizenship and Immigration Canada website at http://www.cic.gc.ca.

What about the CAIPS / GCMS system?


CAIPS is short for 'Computer Assisted Immigration Processing System', which is the name of the computer system historically used by Citizenship & Immigration Canada to process all visa applications in overseas offices, such as permanent resident visas, work permits and study permits. The CAIPS system is being superceded by the new GCMS computer (Global Case Management System) but some older files are still held within CAIPS.

When a immigration application arrives at the visa office, the immigration officers create a file in the CIC computer system. It is this file number that is printed on an Acknowledgement of Receipt ('AOR'). An applicant's file number is normally a letter followed by 9 digits, e.g. E 123 456 789 for a PR application, S 123 456 789 for a study permit, or V 123 456 789 for a visitor visa application it will begin with a 'V'. Newer file numbers often begin with E or EC.

CIC's computer systems - CAIPS, FOSS and GCMS - maintain all information relevant to your permanent residence immigration or visa application, including :-

  • notes and comments from all the visa officers that have reviewed your application
  • points computations relevant to your application
  • background checks consisting of security clearances and criminality checks
  • medical assessments

Unfortunately, if you don't live in Canada you can't request your CAIPS or GCMS notes yourself. However, we can help! We can apply for your immigration file on your behalf and have done for many thousands of clients to date.

Visit our How Do I Apply? page to apply for your CAIPS / GCMS notes today!