Notice – CIC Consolidating Visa and Immigration Services

January 28, 2013 —Effective January 28, 2013, the Visa and Immigration Section at the Canadian Embassy in Seoul is closed. Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) is making changes to the way it operates in Canada and abroad. It is stepping up the pace of modernizing the way it works.

Closures to our operations network are not simply a matter of achieving savings; they are also a result of the transformative change that is taking place in program delivery.  For example, online submission of applications for temporary resident lines of business is now available and makes it possible to move processing to where capacity exists.  By centralizing some of this work, we can reduce our overseas network with a view to better focus programs and services, streamline internal operations, transform the way we do business and achieve better results for Canadians. The decision to close this visa office is tied to that strategy.

Persons who have already submitted applications do not need to do anything. Their files will continue to be processed. People who are submitting new Temporary Resident applications should do so online.  Persons applying for Permanent Residence should continue to submit applications to the centralised offices in Canada, unless otherwise directed by CIC.

If you already submitted an application

Temporary resident applications that have already been submitted at the visa office in Seoul will continue to be processed to completion at that office.

All permanent resident applications previously submitted to the visa office in Seoul will now be processed in Manila.

Economic and Family Class applications that have already been submitted to the CIO-S or CPC-M and have received positive eligibility will be redirected to the appropriate visa office. Applicants are not required to contact the offices to ensure their application is redirected.

New temporary resident applications

Applicants can submit Temporary Resident applications online or at a visa application centre where available.  

For residents of South Korea, all Temporary Resident applications previously processed by the visa office in Seoul will now be processed at the visa office in Manila.

New permanent resident applications

All new Economic Class applications should continue to be sent first to the Centralized Intake Office in Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada (CIO-S).

All new family class applications must first be mailed to the Case Processing Centre in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada (CPC-M). Applications that have received positive eligibility will be transferred to the visa office now responsible for further processing.