Biometrics for Iranian applicants: where and when.

Who must give biometrics

Biometrics are your fingerprints and a photo. Unless you are exempt, IRCC asks for them when you apply for:

• temporary residence: a visitor visa, study permit or work permit (US nationals are exempt);
• permanent residence;
• an extension of your stay in Canada (citizens of visa-exempt countries are exempt);
• refugee or asylum status.

If you do need to give them, IRCC sends a biometric instruction letter (BIL) confirming it. IRCC's online tool only gives general guidance; the letter is what counts.

Who is exempt

• Canadian citizens and citizenship applicants, including passport applicants.
• Permanent residents, with one exception for PR cards (see below).
• Children under 14 when the application is submitted.
• Applicants over 79 when the application is submitted. There is no upper age exemption for asylum claimants. Someone who is 79 when they apply and turns 80 during processing must still give biometrics.
• Heads of state and heads of government coming to Canada temporarily, and applicants for, or holders of, diplomatic or official visas.
• Visitor visa, study permit or work permit applicants who already gave biometrics for a permanent residence application that is still in process.

The PR card exception: if you were exempt from biometrics when you applied for permanent residence because you were under 14, and you are now 14 or older and have arrived in Canada or are renewing your PR card, IRCC asks you to give them.

The 10-year rule

For temporary residence, biometrics are valid for 10 years. If you gave them within that period, IRCC attaches them to a new visitor, study or work application and you generally do not give them again.

• IRCC cannot issue a visa or permit that runs past the expiry date of your biometrics, or more than 10 years from the last time you gave them.
• You can extend their validity by giving them again when you apply, even if they are still valid. Once the visa or permit is issued, you cannot give them again to extend that document.
• You can check whether your biometrics are still valid, and when they expire, with IRCC's Check status tool.

Permanent residence is different. You must give biometrics every time you apply for permanent residence, even if you gave them before, unless one of IRCC's special cases applies. If a permanent residence application is refused, those biometrics cannot be used for any future application.

The fee, the letter and the 30-day deadline

1. Pay the fee with the applicationIRCC's biometrics fee is $85 for one person, with a maximum of $170 for a family applying at the same time. There is no biometrics fee for a transit visa. Paying when you apply avoids delays.
2. Receive the biometric instruction letterAfter you pay, IRCC sends the BIL. It confirms that you must give biometrics and explains how to book. Do not use a BIL from an earlier application: that can delay processing or lead to a refusal.
3. Give biometrics within 30 daysIRCC gives you 30 days from the time you get your BIL. Book as soon as it arrives.
4. Ask for more time if you need itIf you cannot give biometrics before the BIL expires, use the IRCC web form to explain why. Include your appointment date and a screenshot of the confirmation if you have one.

Bring your BIL and your valid passport to the appointment. Biometrics are given in person. If your application has been refused, IRCC asks you not to try to give biometrics for it.

No visa application centre in Iran

IRCC's list of visa application centres (VACs) does not include any centre in Iran. IRCC's rule for this situation is simple: if there is no VAC in the country or territory you are applying from, you can go to any other VAC.

IRCC does not name one particular centre for Iranian applicants. These are the VACs nearest to Iran on IRCC's list:

IRCC notes that VAC services and opening hours in the United Arab Emirates and Iraq may change on short notice. Each VAC has its own website, linked from IRCC's list; check it before you book and again before you travel.

IRCC's pages say nothing about entering the country where the VAC is located. Check that country's own entry rules for Iranian citizens before you plan the trip.

For processing, IRCC lists Iran under its visa office in Ankara, Türkiye. That is a separate question from where you give biometrics.

Giving biometrics in Canada

If you are in Canada, you give biometrics at a designated Service Canada office. Book through the eServiceCanada Appointment Booking Tool and go only with a scheduled appointment.

In the US, you must already be legally in the country to use an application support centre or a VAC.

Citizenship applications follow a different process. When fingerprints are needed for citizenship, they must be taken electronically by a local police service, the RCMP or an RCMP-accredited fingerprinting company. IRCC does not accept fingerprints taken at a Service Canada Centre for citizenship.

Biometrics and police certificate fingerprints

Fingerprints you give to get a police certificate are not your IRCC biometrics, and IRCC biometrics do not replace a police certificate. Our article on police certificates from Iran explains that process.

Official sources

• IRCC: Find out if you need to give biometrics
• IRCC: Biometrics facts
• IRCC: When to give biometrics: temporary residence
• IRCC: When to give biometrics: permanent residence
• IRCC: How to give your biometrics
• IRCC: Where to give your biometrics
• IRCC: Find a visa application centre
• IRCC: Visa offices outside Canada