Citizenship and Immigration committee  As the committee members know, the process used to set fees is very complicated and long. We have an obligation to consult everyone affected by the initiative. Since those fees will be paid by Canadians, they deserve to be consulted on the issue. Since we have to consult people outside the country and will be guided by the provisions of the Financial Administration Act, the exemption gives us a flexibility tool to ensure our ability to respond to circumstances abroad.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  Yes. The electronic authorization fees should be set out in our regulations. We will have a process for deciding how to draft the regulations, and that will include a prepublication process, where the public and MPs will be asked for their opinion.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  I have to tell you that determining what the reasons for rejections are will be difficult, as that information is not entered into our system. The record will only indicate whether the application is approved or rejected. The reasons for a refusal are explained in the notes.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  We haven't done a lot of work on a bond. As I said, we think that the current process provides a fairly good response to the demand for access to Canada. Our initial assessment of a bond is that it's fairly administratively challenging to administer. What we've seen in terms of previous experience is that it hasn't really acted as a deterrent in a number of cases where bonds have been used by other countries.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  For us, the main purpose of implementing a biometric system is to establish a traveller's identity. If we can use our partners' help to determine that a person with the same characteristics has already submitted an application or has already visited another country under a different identity, we will have a strong indication that the person is not acting in good faith.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  Yes.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  Not yet, but we will base our decision on the provisions of the Financial Administration Act. We cannot impose fees that exceed the cost of the service provided. We will follow the regulatory process. We will first publish regulations setting out the fees, and we will ask the public to comment on the fee structure.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  I think that we take our accountability under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act very seriously. Our officers abroad are the front line in terms of gaining access to Canada through the visa process, and with our partnership with public safety agencies, we fulfill that to a very high level on a daily basis.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  I would say that both costs and logistics enter into our preliminary assessment. My sense as well is that client service is a big contributor to this. When we look at the Australian and the U.K. system—as I said, 250 days for an appeal to be heard—and what we see on the ground in terms of the 48% success rate for those who reapply after refusal, for $75, potentially, the cost and benefit...they can have their case reviewed and a different decision potentially within two to three weeks.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  Mr. Chair, I'd like to comment just in terms of paper applications. While we would encourage most applicants to use e-facilities, under Treasury Board guidelines we have to maintain alternate channels, so paper would remain available.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  Yes; 3% to 4% are visa-required.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  With the electronic travel authority, that's essentially what we're aiming to implement—an electronic record that the individual has permission to travel to Canada, that they have been screened, and that CBSA, through the airlines, will be able to issue board or no-board orders before individuals leave their country of origin, or the point of embarkation for the flight, pushing the risks off.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  If my math is correct, 1.2 million visas on 35 million admissions is about 4%. That's why we look to the ETA to broaden our ability to screen current visa-exempt travellers who are only first screened essentially by a border services officer when they land at a Canadian airport.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  Well, Mr. Chair, that's a very good question. We have a very comprehensive risk profile that we develop in terms of whether or not a country should have a visa exemption or a visa requirement. As the committee is aware, the Czech Republic and Mexico before 2009 were visa-exempt.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  Yes. As Bob was saying on the balance of reviewing the various factors in a file, certainly that is part of the consideration. Would this individual choose to go underground once in Canada, or make a claim for asylum? We've certainly seen that in the past.