Catching the Chinook before it gets on a Vespa: Canada's automated immigration process

• In Event: Criminology of Mobility. Panel 1. Immigration processes and mobility control

Abstract

This presentation will explore the role of Chinook, an automated tool used by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) in processing temporary resident visa (TRV) and sponsorship applications. Chinook was introduced as a means to streamline the decision-making process and improve efficiency, particularly in high-volume processing offices. While its design is intended to speed up processing times, its impact on applicants from the global south has raised concerns. By automating much of the application review, Chinook has become a key tool in decision-making, but its functionality has led to significant disparities in approval rates, with applicants from certain regions facing higher refusal rates. Despite its widespread use, much about Chinook remains shrouded in secrecy, and its full implications are still not fully understood. This presentation will critically examine Chinook’s role in IRCC’s immigration processes, highlighting its potential as an automated refusal mechanism and discussing the broader consequences of using such systems in global immigration contexts. By exploring Chinook’s design, use, and impact, we aim to spark a broader conversation about the fairness and transparency of AI-driven systems in immigration decision-making.

Author

• Jona Zyfi, University of Toronto