Canada: Avoiding scams

Red flags

• Emails from free webmail (Yahoo, Hotmail, Gmail) instead of a gc.ca or canada.ca address, or a generic greeting such as “Dear customer”.
• Anyone who guarantees a job or visa, or offers to speed up processing for a fee.
• Requests for passwords, card or bank details, or phone calls asking for payment.
• Fake websites (address differs from what you typed, no https), sites that charge for eTA help, and social-media messages or AI-generated videos or voices of officials promoting fast or guaranteed immigration.

What IRCC never does

• Ask you to deposit money into a personal bank account or send it through a private transfer service.
• Ask for payment by telephone, threaten you, or contact you by free webmail or social media.
• Ask for personal information by email or send visas by email.

Check before you trust

• A paid consultant, lawyer or Quebec notary must be licensed to represent you. Use IRCC’s “Check if your representative is authorized” tool.
• Students: check that the school is on the designated learning institutions list.
• Contact organisations using details you find yourself, not those in the suspicious message. Visa application centres do not charge for biometrics.
• False documents or lies on an application have serious consequences.

Report it

• Use IRCC’s “report fraud” page for suspicious emails, calls, websites and representatives.
• Report to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at reportcyberandfraud.canada.ca (anonymous reports possible) or call 1-888-495-8501, Monday to Friday, 10:00–16:45 Eastern.
• If you were a victim, contact your local police as soon as possible.

Drafted from the official pages listed under Sources, last read on 26 October 2026. Rules change and differ by region or city: confirm on the official page before you act. General information, not legal advice.