Overview

• More than 80% of applications processed by Indigenous Services Canada exceeded the six-month service standard, with decisions taking nearly 16 months on average.
• A backlog of nearly 12,000 status applications remains, including about 1,500 cases unresolved for over two years.
• Appeals for registration decisions face wait times of almost three years, and there is no formal service standard for appeal reviews.
• Community-based processing centres have operated under a funding formula unchanged since 1994, equating to support for an administrator just one day per week at minimum-wage rates.
• Indigenous Services Canada has agreed to Auditor General Karen Hogan’s recommendations and is working to improve processes and training before transferring registration responsibilities to First Nations communities.