A federal audit has revealed significant mismanagement, confusion, and oversight failures at Canada’s passport office, leading to millions in taxpayer dollars being spent inefficiently.
Blacklock's Reporter says at the time, Liberal leadership candidate Karina Gould was the minister responsible.
The Internal Audit Of Governance And Financial Management Of The Passport Revolving Fund found that the entire service model was thrown into disarray, creating major financial instability. Auditors reported that millions were spent “relatively quickly” without adequate oversight.
An additional $188.2 million — above the initial budget — was spent to address a growing backlog of passport applications. The audit flagged this financial situation as an “emerging high risk” when the funding request was under review.
Auditors also noted widespread confusion among management, stating that it was unclear how disputes between departments handling passport services were to be resolved. Officials struggled to determine decision-making authority, worsening delays.
In 2022, Gould’s Department of Social Development blamed severe processing delays on a sudden surge in applications, inefficiencies caused by a shift to mail-in submissions, and an increase in complex cases.
However, internal records revealed that passport managers had been warned a year in advance about the looming crisis.
A briefing note from June 23, 2022, titled Passport Productivity And Staffing Measures acknowledged that officials anticipated a rush for documents. “In anticipation of increased volumes, Service Canada began implementing a staffing plan,” it stated.
Despite this, government documents later confirmed that many passport offices had actually reduced in-person staffing as application volumes skyrocketed.
A 2023 memo, Processing Passports And Service Delivery, revealed that half of employees were working remotely and 20% quit during the height of the backlog.
As a result, applicants endured wait times of three months or longer by mail, while those visiting Service Canada offices faced five- to six-hour lineups.
Frustrations boiled over at passport centers in Montréal, where police were called twice to manage protests, and crowd control barriers were installed.
Gould denied responsibility for the delays, testifying at a 2022 Commons human resources committee hearing that prolonged processing times were due to the overwhelming number of applications.