Glossary · Any IRCC file where an officer has a concern that could refuse the application: permanent residence, work, study, or admissibility.
PFL
Procedural Fairness Letter
IRCC has a concern that could refuse the file. You get a chance to answer first.
On the official record
- A letter or account message that tells you the concern the officer has before a final decision.
- IRCC security-screening brief says applicants are informed of admissibility concerns through a procedural fairness letter and given a chance to provide more information.
- On medical excessive-demand files, IRCC tells you to put any mitigation plan in the response to that letter and to send it to the contact printed on the letter.
- The deadline is the one on that letter. It is real.
Common mix-ups
- Not a refusal yet.
- Not an additional-documents request on a file that is otherwise moving.
- Not a template you fill and send back. Read the concern. Answer that concern with evidence.
Confirm on the official page
Start here: IRCC: Immigration security screening (SECU, 28 Aug 2024).
The catch
Deadlines are real. This site will not auto-draft a PFL response and will not collect your file facts to write one. If the letter asks for something specific, send that. If you miss the date, the officer can decide on the record as it stands.
What people mix up
A PFL is not an ADR. An ADR asks for more information. A PFL tells you the officer already has a concern that could refuse the file.
Related
ADR · Web form · ATIP / GCMS
Source: IRCC: Immigration security screening (SECU, 28 Aug 2024) · official page Dec 24, 2024 · checked Aug 21, 2026
Source: IRCC: Mitigation plans for excessive demand · official page Jul 23, 2026 · checked Aug 21, 2026