Muslim names delays - IRCC rules set

[null]

So I have been collecting and building possible rules that the IRCC uses to decide what an application is routine, complex, or priority based on multiple sources, online and offline. And as some of you know, these rules are NOT public to prevent the system abuse, which is fair, but also it leaves an area of non transparency on how some applications are processed, especially now with AI being involved, there could be some potential automatic delays, even though IRCC claims they don't use 'black box' AI in decision making process, the delays could still happen with a false positive flagging till an officer check it.
However, before publishing the list as it's still in progress (attached part of it), and while collecting some indicators, I found that a lot of people in here who happen to have Muslim names always complain about delays, I even looked at some trackers online, users with such names have delayed processing compared to to others, further looking into the some court orders (1), vast majority are matching that criteria. It's starting to become a pattern while looking around, and while I'm almost certain IRCC don't directly discriminate, however, somewhere in the process there is a piece that causes it, my suspect is the CSIS, and they have the justification ready of 'a country of origin with concern' or something along these lines.
So, I invite anyone here who's facing some delays to fill this generic form:

Delay: (days since AOR):
Do you have a Muslim name: (Yes/No):
Country of citizenship:
Country of Birth:
Did you have any delays in previous applications: (Like PR, etc.):
Countries traveled to in the past 5 years of the application:


(1) cases of mandamus:
https://www.canlii.org/en/ca/fct/doc/2025/2025fc388/2025fc388.html
https://www.canlii.org/en/ca/fct/doc/2023/2023fc946/2023fc946.html
https://www.canlii.org/en/ca/fct/doc/2022/2022fc283/2022fc283.html
https://www.canlii.org/en/ca/fct/doc/2021/2021fc712/2021fc712.html
https://www.canlii.org/en/ca/fct/doc/2005/2005fc729/2005fc729.html
https://www.canlii.org/en/ca/fct/doc/2025/2025fc500/2025fc500.html

 

[null]

I can't edit OP, but further info about this CSIS blackbox:
- Canada names 100 research institution from China, Russia, Iran as a security threat:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/reserach-canada-china-russia-iran-1.7085391
The list:
https://science.gc.ca/site/science/...liations-concern/named-research-organizations

- Working/worked in 'Sensitive Technology Research Areas' could trigger the enhanced security screening:
https://science.gc.ca/site/science/...s-concern/sensitive-technology-research-areas

So with the use of AI, any (and more that we don't know) of the above could trigger the process to be sent into enhanced SS, and until an officer in CSIS sees it and process, then sent to IRCC to further take decision, it could take moths or years! So in the AI automated system, you are guilty until proven innocent!!

The form above with added bullet:

Do you have a Muslim name: (Yes/No):
Country of citizenship:
Country of Birth:
Did you have any delays in previous applications: (Like PR, etc.):
Countries traveled to in the past 5 years of the application:
Have you studied/worked in one of the 100 research institutes mentioned above?
Do you work/worked in a 'Sensitive Technology Research Areas' listed above? Did you work in a 'company of concern' say like huawei, etc?
Do you have social media? Active on social media? Phone numbers associated with social media?
Credit cards or other form of payments paid as donation, online payments, certain shops?
Doing OSINT on your name does it brings anything unusual?

Feel free to add more to the criteria, the more people share the better because the only way to find that CSIS blackbox is reverse engineering it from how it behaved on different applications, because every other aspect of the applications are clear and straight forward like police check, physical presence, etc. except this one.

 

[Zdrwaar]

I don't think it's much to do with AI (maybe AI is worsening this) but i believe they already have red flag countries. Any time the system detects one of these countries in an application (whether it is nationality or one of the countries in travel history > 6 months) the comprehensive security check is mandatory i don't think IRCC agents have any chance in overriding this. I am Iraqi and never went to any of the countries you mentioned but i was selected for deep security in my PR application and Citizenship but i also know German and French nationals that worked in Gulf region (Saudi Arabia & UAE) for a few years and they were sent to comprehensive check just like me even though they had western names.

I believe legal falcon at the time i got my PR mentioned CSIS got exposed for discrimination in their practices. Don't think anything changed after that and you really can't do anything about it some people lost mandamus due to judge yielding to "it's a national security concern". Now my friend's brother (Pakistani living and working in Qatar) is applying for PR afte ITA, i told him to inform his brother to take it easy and brace for long wait and get busy.

 

[stuckinsec]

I don't think it's much to do with AI (maybe AI is worsening this) but i believe they already have red flag countries. Any time the system detects one of these countries in an application (whether it is nationality or one of the countries in travel history > 6 months) the comprehensive security check is mandatory i don't think IRCC agents have any chance in overriding this. I am Iraqi and never went to any of the countries you mentioned but i was selected for deep security in my PR application and Citizenship but i also know German and French nationals that worked in Gulf region (Saudi Arabia & UAE) for a few years and they were sent to comprehensive check just like me even though they had western names.

I believe legal falcon at the time i got my PR mentioned CSIS got exposed for discrimination in their practices. Don't think anything changed after that and you really can't do anything about it some people lost mandamus due to judge yielding to "it's a national security concern". Now my friend's brother (Pakistani living and working in Qatar) is applying for PR afte ITA, i told him to inform his brother to take it easy and brace for long wait and get busy.

If you don't mind me asking, how long did your SS take to finish for your Citizenship?

 

[dreamingmigrant]

I don't think it's much to do with AI (maybe AI is worsening this) but i believe they already have red flag countries. Any time the system detects one of these countries in an application (whether it is nationality or one of the countries in travel history > 6 months) the comprehensive security check is mandatory i don't think IRCC agents have any chance in overriding this. I am Iraqi and never went to any of the countries you mentioned but i was selected for deep security in my PR application and Citizenship but i also know German and French nationals that worked in Gulf region (Saudi Arabia & UAE) for a few years and they were sent to comprehensive check just like me even though they had western names.

I believe legal falcon at the time i got my PR mentioned CSIS got exposed for discrimination in their practices. Don't think anything changed after that and you really can't do anything about it some people lost mandamus due to judge yielding to "it's a national security concern". Now my friend's brother (Pakistani living and working in Qatar) is applying for PR afte ITA, i told him to inform his brother to take it easy and brace for long wait and get busy.

I traveled to Dubai right before my PR process and I wasn't selected for security screening. But I spent a total of 3 months there not 6>. Maybe that's the reason.

 

[null]

I don't think it's much to do with AI (maybe AI is worsening this) but i believe they already have red flag countries. Any time the system detects one of these countries in an application (whether it is nationality or one of the countries in travel history > 6 months) the comprehensive security check is mandatory i don't think IRCC agents have any chance in overriding this. I am Iraqi and never went to any of the countries you mentioned but i was selected for deep security in my PR application and Citizenship but i also know German and French nationals that worked in Gulf region (Saudi Arabia & UAE) for a few years and they were sent to comprehensive check just like me even though they had western names.

I believe legal falcon at the time i got my PR mentioned CSIS got exposed for discrimination in their practices. Don't think anything changed after that and you really can't do anything about it some people lost mandamus due to judge yielding to "it's a national security concern". Now my friend's brother (Pakistani living and working in Qatar) is applying for PR afte ITA, i told him to inform his brother to take it easy and brace for long wait and get busy.

You are correct, it's not directly the names, but names correlate with country of origin, and since in any of the post/trackers/cases I read I can't see the country of origin and only names, it was the only obvious indicator.

While looking around, I found IRCC indeed have a systematic discrimination, contrary to what I thought and said in OP, as clear said by the auditors

"there are deferential outcome by race, country of residence, country of citizenship" and by minister that there's a systematic one.

however, I still think the biggest issue is within CSIS, unlike IRCC where auditors check the records, CSIS can blame the delays on national security and waiting responses from 3rd party 'stakeholders'.

CSIS admit using that excuse and the response is kind of 'suck it up'
https://strathmorenow.com/articles/...er-of-csis-security-screenings-causing-delays

CSIS spokesperson Magali Hébert said in an email that the screening program is a "critical function of Canada's national security."

and

"CSIS and its security screening partners continue to take the necessary time with the information available at the time to process each file seriously and ensure the security of Canada and its citizens, in accordance with the security screening mandate of the CSIS Act," Hébert said.

Will Tao, immigration lawyer:

"The ones that were getting security-screened more closely were from countries that I would classify as having some sort of geopolitical proximity to a concern of Canada,"

He said those nations include Middle Eastern countries like Jordan, along with Ukraine, Russia, China, Iran and "in some cases" India.

What I don't understand is there might be some extra checks from countries that are currently a hot zone like ukraine and syria, but expanding the scope to a whole region including countries that you probably never heard of in the news having adversary relationship or individuals causing trouble, make no sense, countries like UAE or Jordan for example. The only non reasonable explanation is what it has to do with politics (israel) and those 3rd party stakeholders are international intelligence agencies including mossad, CIA, among others.

So until further details unfold, my advise to anyone from that region is to halt or stop being politically active in anyway, even in social media, as one simple random user report can end up having you in some shady blacklist that will be shared among the intl and red flag you over a post or statement.

@Zdrwaar can you provide the processing time from ITA to PR, and from AOR to OATH if you don't mind?

 

[null]

I traveled to Dubai right before my PR process and I wasn't selected for security screening. But I spent a total of 3 months there not 6>. Maybe that's the reason.

I don't think traveling alone will red flag you, but having the citizenship (say you are a UAE citizen) definitely will.

 

[dreamingmigrant]

I don't think traveling alone will red flag you, but having the citizenship (say you are a UAE citizen) definitely will.

If true it's a bit surprising because UAE is much more progressive, at least compared to some other countries in the region. But there are guys out here who never traveled to Middle East and had the most vanilla life possible and they're waiting for their security screening to complete. Yes, it's true that the chances of getting selected are higher if you're from the Middle East but IRCC also punishes a lot of innocent people for no reason too.