Email Scam

[waluigi]

Hi everyone,

I'm 99% sure that I received a phishing email recently pretending to be from CIC Etobicoke Landings but the 1% is enough to make me nervous about ignoring it. Just wondering if anyone else has received a similar email or if anyone has some insight into the situation.

The subject is: "Outstanding Right of Permanent Resident Fee (RPRF) Payment For Application (PR Application #[application number], [surname], [first name])". What's spooky is that they have my application number right. But they're calling it the Right of Permanent Resident fee and not Permanent Residence fee, which is what it says everywhere else on CIC's website.

It reads:
"We are pleased to inform you that the processing of your application for permanent residence is ready to be finalized. You are requested to provide the payment of your Right of Permanent Resident Fee (RPRF) Payment [weird to write payment twice, no?].
· The Right of Permanent Resident Fee is $500.00. Please note that only Convention refugees do not have to pay this fee.
· Please make your payment online at https://eservices.cic.gc.ca/epay/welcome.do
Please send your payment receipt to this email. We will need to confirm your fee payment to finalize your application."
There's more but I'll spare you it.

The link looks legit (I haven't clicked on it) but that's not hard to fake. The most convincing part is that the email address of the sender is cic-etobicoke-landings@cic.gc.ca. Is it possible to fake this sender email? I haven't seen it before, if so.

I paid my RPRF when I applied so I don't owe this. But what if there's been an administrative error and they think I owe it. Help! Thank you.

 

[Akissi18]

I believe it's a phishing email. "Welcome.do" alone threw me off. It should be "https://eservices.cic.gc.ca/pay"

If anything it doesn't hurt to call IRCC to confirm.
All the best!

 

[waluigi]

Thanks Akissi! I didn't spot that one.

Yeah, I tried calling IRCC this morning but could only get through to automated information. Couldn't get through to an actual person. Is there a number I should be using that I'm not aware of?

 

[expatgoingback]

It isn't a scam, or at least it's not a phishing scam. Check out here:
https://eservices.cic.gc.ca/epay/order.do?category=8

You can see the same "right of permanent resident fee".

Your link is also fine to click.

 

[Akissi18]

@waluigi The only number that I'm aware of is toll-free 1-888-242-2100.
You can also submit a WebForm enquiry, but it might take a while to hear back from someone.
@expatgoingback states it's not a scam/phishing email, but it doesn't hurt to look into this just to put your mind at ease.

 

[Ude]

I would go on cic webpage and follow the instructions there and pay (if you are yet to pay).

Then check your gckey, there might be a request posted there too.

 

[Naheulbeuck]

I do not think it is a scam, furthermore you can make your payment without clicking on the link but by going online on the government's website.

I just did that and here is what you can see:

This is the link to my order which shows the .do that was pointed out above:
https://eservices.cic.gc.ca/epay/orderSummary.do

Also, it shows Right of permanent resident fee.

Summary of fees
All prices are in Canadian dollars.

Summary of fees

Fee	Quantity	Price ($CAN)	Total Amount (C$)
Right of permanent resident fee
Right of permanent residence fee	1	$500.00	$500.00
Total amount for all applications:	$500.00

I think it is more congratulation to you than anything else, but if you are concerned, you can pay by going directly to the government's website, therefore avoiding any link, at worst you'll just pay your fee before it is asked if the email was actually a scam (which I am quite convinced it is not).

https://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/fees/index.asp

 

[esam99]

Hi everyone,

I'm 99% sure that I received a phishing email recently pretending to be from CIC Etobicoke Landings but the 1% is enough to make me nervous about ignoring it. Just wondering if anyone else has received a similar email or if anyone has some insight into the situation.

The subject is: "Outstanding Right of Permanent Resident Fee (RPRF) Payment For Application (PR Application #[application number], [surname], [first name])". What's spooky is that they have my application number right. But they're calling it the Right of Permanent Resident fee and not Permanent Residence fee, which is what it says everywhere else on CIC's website.

It reads:
"We are pleased to inform you that the processing of your application for permanent residence is ready to be finalized. You are requested to provide the payment of your Right of Permanent Resident Fee (RPRF) Payment [weird to write payment twice, no?].
· The Right of Permanent Resident Fee is $500.00. Please note that only Convention refugees do not have to pay this fee.
· Please make your payment online at https://eservices.cic.gc.ca/epay/welcome.do
Please send your payment receipt to this email. We will need to confirm your fee payment to finalize your application."
There's more but I'll spare you it.

The link looks legit (I haven't clicked on it) but that's not hard to fake. The most convincing part is that the email address of the sender is cic-etobicoke-landings@cic.gc.ca. Is it possible to fake this sender email? I haven't seen it before, if so.

I paid my RPRF when I applied so I don't owe this. But what if there's been an administrative error and they think I owe it. Help! Thank you.

congrats!!
go to the link and proceed

 

[waluigi]

Thank you all for your replies! I have a receipt from when I paid the RPRF with the submission of my application so I guess I'll send them that and hope that will do. Thank you again!