Government of Canada expands passport services to Service Canada Centres across Canada

OTTAWA, May 11, 2017 /CNW/ - Passport services have now expanded from 151 to over 300 Service Canada Centres, providing Canadians with more options when applying for or renewing a passport. The Honourable Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Families, Children and Social Development, and the Honourable Ahmed Hussen, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, made the announcement today. Service Canada Centre locations across the country are now receiving passport applications and validating citizenship documents, making it more convenient and accessible for Canadians to submit passport applications.

Canadians applying for passports at a Service Canada Centre are able to submit their applications and have their citizenship documents, like birth certificates and certificates of citizenship, validated and returned to them while they are in the office. Service Canada Centres will also assist citizens with their standard passport application by reviewing it on site for completeness, accepting payment and forwarding it on for processing.

Quotes

"Canada's passport program provides a valuable service to millions of Canadians every year. By improving our front-line services and offering them in more locations, we can continue to meet the excellent service standards that Canadians have come to expect when applying for a passport."
– The Honourable Ahmed Hussen, Minister of Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship

"Canadians want better, faster and more accessible services from their government. By leveraging Service Canada's nationwide service delivery network, the Government of Canada is making passport services more convenient for Canadians."
– The Honourable Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Families, Children and Social Development

Quick Facts

• As of April 1, 2017, approximately 60 percent of Canadian adults held a valid Canadian passport.
• In 2016–17, Canada issued more than 4.8 million passports, which translates into over 19,000 passports issued daily.
• The expansion will result in over 97 percent of Canadians having access to passport services within a 100 km distance of their home.
• Passport services exceeded the 90 percent program service standard and is pleased to report that Service Canada met a service standard of 99.57 percent in fiscal 2016–17.

Associated Links

Passport receiving service at Service Canada Centres
Find a passport service location near you
How to show proof of Canadian citizenship for adult passport applications

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SOURCE Employment and Social Development Canada

For further information: For media enquiries, please contact: Media Relations Office, Employment and Social Development Canada, 819-994-5559, [e-mail]; Media Relations: Communications Branch, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, 613-952-1650, [e-mail]