- Do I need an ICAS Assessment Report?
You may need an ICAS Assessment Report if:
- You live in Canada and have received some or all of your education outside Canada
- You live outside Canada but are thinking of moving here to work or study
- You are applying for immigration to Canada
- You live in Canada and are applying for a TN visa to work in the United States under the North American Free Trade Agreement
- You were educated in another province or territory of Canada but require an Ontario qualification for study or employment
- You live in Canada and are considering education programs offered in other countries
- Are ICAS assessments accepted?
ICAS is a Canadian company with over 20 years of experience in the assessment of international credentials. We are committed to helping people achieve their personal, career and education goals by providing accurate and reliable credential assessment services.
ICAS is designated by the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship to provide assessments for individuals who are applying for immigration to Canada. We are also an approved provider of credential assessment services for individuals applying to colleges in Ontario through ontariocolleges.ca (Ontario College Application Service/OCAS).
ICAS Assessment Reports are widely accepted across Canada, by employers, by colleges and by Canadian and U.S. customs and immigration officials. It is the applicant's responsibility to confirm that the type of report you request will meet the requirements of the institution, organization, agency or employer.
- I am applying to universities and colleges in Ontario. Will an ICAS assessment help me?
Many universities in Canada prepare their own assessments of international education for admission to their programs. An admissions counsellor can tell you whether or not you will require an external assessment.
If you are applying to a college in Ontario through ontariocolleges.ca (also known as Ontario College Application Service or OCAS), ICAS offers specialized Assessment Reports. This can include electronic transmission of your assessment directly to ontariocolleges.ca. Please see our College Applicant section for more information.
- Can an ICAS Assessment Report be used for my TN Visa application?
U.S. Customs officials routinely accept ICAS Assessment Reports in support of applications for TN Visas, but you should seek confirmation from appropriate officials before submitting an application for assessment.
- Are ICAS assessments acceptable for immigration to Canada?
Yes. If you intend to apply for immigration to Canada, ICAS has a separate application process and requirements.
Important Note: Only reports requested through this process will be accepted by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship for immigration purposes. Learn more.
If you already have an ICAS Assessment Report and would like to upgrade to the Canadian Immigration Assessment Package, we can help.
- What types of qualifications does ICAS assess?
ICAS prepares Assessment Reports that describe education completed outside Canada and provide the comparable level of education here. Assessments are prepared for all levels of education - secondary, postsecondary (undergraduate and graduate) and technical.
ICAS does not provide assessments of postgraduate medical education nor qualifications awarded by professional associations.
- Does ICAS assess work experience?
No. ICAS does not assess work experience. We offer Assessment Reports only for education completed at appropriately recognized institutions.
- What types of reports are available and how much do they cost?
ICAS offers four types of Assessment Reports:
- General Report ($120)
- Secondary School Comprehensive Report ($165)
- Postsecondary Comprehensive Report ($215)
- Secondary and Postsecondary Comprehensive Report ($310)
For more information about these reports, please see the Services.
- What type of report do I need?
The General Assessment Report is sufficient for many purposes including general information and employment. A General Assessment Report can often be completed more quickly than any other type of Assessment Report.This type of report is not suitable for immigration to Canada. If you intend to apply for immigration to Canada, ICAS has a separate application process and requirements.
The Secondary School Comprehensive Assessment Report is most often requested by people who are applying for admission to college and/or university programs.
People applying for advanced standing or transfer credit in a postsecondary program often request the Postsecondary Comprehensive Assessment Report.
The Secondary and Postsecondary Comprehensive Assessment Report is only required if you need evidence of courses completed at both the senior secondary and postsecondary levels.
We recommend that applicants request a General Assessment Report. If you later discover that a Comprehensive Assessment Report would be more helpful, you can request an upgrade.
If the Assessment Report is intended for a specific employer, organization or education institution, we advise you to confirm the type of report required before submitting your request. You may wish to confirm whether an assessment of your qualifications (a General Assessment Report) is necessary or whether both the qualifications and the courses completed for these qualifications (Comprehensive Assessment Report) are required.
- Is it possible to upgrade from one type of report to another at a later date?
Certainly. Your application and documents are retained by ICAS for two years. At any point during this time you may upgrade from one type of report to another or add a qualification to an existing report.
If it has been more than two years since your initial application, ICAS no longer has your application or education documents. As a result, you may be required to re-submit all your documents in accordance with our current documentation requirements.
For more information on upgrades, please see the Upgrades section of our website.
- How do I apply for an ICAS Assessment Report?
- Select the type of report you need. Read more about the reports we offer.
- Review the documents we require.
- Complete the online application form (credit card payment required)
- Send all required documents to ICAS by mail or courier, or in-person (by appointment only).
ICAS of Canada
100 Stone Road West, Suite 102
Guelph ON N1G 5L3
Canada
- How can I pay for an Assessment Report?
The fee for an Assessment Report can be paid by VISA, MasterCard, Discover Card, certified cheque, paper money order or paper bank draft payable in Canadian dollars to ICAS of Canada. All fees listed include all applicable taxes.
We do not accept money transfers from other financial institutions, personal cheques or money orders payable in other currencies.
- How will I receive the report?
Completed Assessment Reports may be sent by regular mail or courier.
If you submit original documents with your application, ICAS encourages you to select courier service so that your original documents can be returned with the Assessment Report. ICAS will not return your original documents by regular mail without your permission. If you would like your original documents returned by regular mail with your completed Assessment Report, please provide signed, written authorization along with the required payment.
- How do I know if my application has been received?
If you completed your application on August 1 or later, please log into your client account for information about the status of your file.
If you completed your application prior to August 1, you can log in using your ICAS File Number and Date of Birth.
If you submit your application by mail or courier, you will receive a confirmation e-mail after your application has been received and processed by our office. At that point, you can log in to check your on-line file status.
The file status will be updated when documents are received in our office (and processed by the Document Control Unit), and as your file moves through the assessment process. The file status contains the most up-to-date information about your file. Customer service staff are not able to provide any additional information by phone or e-mail.
- Can I submit my documents by e-mail?
Original documents must be sent by mail or courier or delivered in-person (by appointment only). They cannot be sent by e-mail.
If you have contacted your institution to arrange for official documents to be sent directly to our office, the institution may submit these documents to ICAS by e-mail. Please contact us for submission procedures.
- What documents do I have to submit?
Please review ICAS’s documentation requirements including specific requirements for each country. The processing of an application does not begin until we receive all required documents. Incomplete documentation delays the assessment process.
At any time during the process, ICAS reserves the right to contact appropriate authorities for verification of your documents or request documents forwarded directly to ICAS by the institution.
- What happens if I don't have my original documents?
If you do not have your original documents, you should contact the schools/institutions you attended for information about replacement documents.
Only in exceptional circumstances, will ICAS request information on your behalf. In order to request documents on your behalf, you will be required to complete a form that authorizes the institution to release this information to ICAS. There is a fee for this service.
- Do you accept certified, notarized or attested documents?
No. ICAS requires you to submit original documents or have them issued directly to ICAS by your education institution/appropriate authority. Please note that institutions may issue, directly to ICAS, certified copies of documents from their records.
- What are official documents?
Official documents are documents sent directly to ICAS by the institution you attended (or the appropriate authority). The institution may issue to ICAS original documents or attested copies from their records, but the documents must be sent directly to our office.
Documents submitted to ICAS in a sealed envelope by an applicant or another third party are not considered to be official documents and will not be accepted.
- What if my documents are not in English or French?
If your documents were not originally issued in either English or French, you must provide word-for-word translations in the same format as the original documents. The translation does not need to be completed by a certified translator but MUST be a literal translation, not an interpretive translation. We reserve the right to request a certified translation if there is a problem with the translation provided.
Please note that applicants who submit documents and an application in English will receive an Assessment Report in English. Applicants who submit an application and/or documents in French will receive an Assessment Report in French.
Please submit both the original documents and translations. Do not submit only the translations.
- Do I have to submit all of my documents?
When completing the application form, you must fill in the entire education history chart. You may submit only the qualifications you wish to have assessed. Depending on the nature of your qualifications, ICAS may request documentation for other qualifications.
- What if I submit insufficient documentation?
You will receive a letter or e-mail from ICAS if we require additional documents in order to complete your assessment. This letter or e-mail will outline the type of documents ICAS requires.
- What happens if I submit false documents?
False documents are those that do not accurately reflect your academic record.
If ICAS determines that you have submitted false documents, no assessment of any type will be provided at any time, and we will notify other agencies and associations. No refund will be issued, and documents will not be returned.
- Will ICAS contact my institution for information?
From time to time it is necessary for ICAS to contact the institution that issued your qualifications for additional information. The report will not be issued until ICAS has received the required information.
- Will ICAS return my documents?
ICAS will return your original documents with your Assessment Report. You must either select and pay for courier delivery or provide written and signed permission for ICAS to return your documents by regular mail. Please note that ICAS does not accept pre-paid XpressPost or courier envelopes/waybills.
ICAS recommends choosing to have documents returned by courier so that you can trace the delivery of your package.
Photocopies and documents sent directly to ICAS by the institution become the property of ICAS and will not be returned.
- How do I know if my documents have been received?
After you have completed your online application, or after your paper application is received in our office, you will receive a confirmation e-mail from ICAS. This e-mail contains your ICAS File Number and instructions for tracking the status of your assessment.
Your file status will be updated when documents are processed by our mail room and as your file moves through the assessment process. Due to the aftermath of the COVID-19 closure, the gradual re-opening of our office, and the volume of mail we are currently receiving, it may take 3-4 weeks for mail that has physically arrived in our office to be processed by our Document Control Unit. The file status contains the most up-to-date information about your file.
- How long does it take to obtain an ICAS Assessment Report?
The preparation of an ICAS Assessment Report begins when we have received a completed application form, payment and all required documents. Information about our current processing time is listed in the News and Updates window in the right-hand column.
Rush services are not currently available. In the interest of fairness to all applicants, all files are handled in the order in which complete documentation is received.
- What is the status of my file?
After you have completed your online application, or after your paper application is received in our office, you will receive a confirmation e-mail from ICAS. This e-mail contains your ICAS File Number and instructions for tracking the status of your assessment.
Your file status will be updated when documents are processed by our mail room and as your file moves through the assessment process. Please note that, due to the volume of mail we receive, it can take 2 to 3 business days for mail that has physically arrived in our office to be processed by our mail room. The file status contains the most up-to-date information about your file. Customer service staff are not able to provide any additional information by phone or e-mail.
- How do I add services to my application?
If you have already applied for an Assessment Report and would like to add services such as courier service, electronic transmission to ontariocolleges.ca or extra original reports, please visit our Upgrades and Updates section. There, you can print the application form to add services to your request. The completed form can be submitted to ICAS by mail, courier, fax or by e-mail to documents@icascanada.ca.
- Can I cancel my application?
As indicated in our Terms and Conditions, ICAS’s fees are non-refundable with the exception of overpayment.
- What if I have questions about my Assessment Report after receiving it?
To protect your privacy, ICAS staff are not authorized to discuss the results of an assessment on the phone. If you have questions about the Assessment Report, please submit your questions in writing (mail, fax or e-mail). Your enquiry will be forwarded to the Assessment Officer who is responsible for your file. He or she will review your assessment and send a formal, written response by mail.
- How can I obtain an additional copy of an Assessment Report?
You may request extra original reports when you submit your initial application or at a later date.
To request extra original reports at a later date, please complete the Update Package and provide your ICAS File Number where indicated. Each extra original is $30.
Important Note: If it has been more than two years since your initial application, ICAS no longer has your application or education documents. As a result, you may be required to re-submit all your documents in accordance with our current documentation requirements.
If you would like the extra original to be sent to a third party, please provide the address in the space provided on the application form.
- What if I disagree with the conclusion of the assessment?
ICAS assessments are based on policies developed and approved by our Management Committee. If you disagree with the outcome, you must contact us in writing (mail, fax or e-mail) within one year of the date on which ICAS issued the report. A Senior Assessment Officer will review your Assessment Report to ensure it is consistent with current policies and will advise you of the outcome of the review in writing.
If you still do not agree with the assessment, you can submit a formal appeal in writing to:
The Chair of the Management Committee
PO Box 21042
35 Harvard Road
Guelph ON N1G 4T3
An external consultant will then review your documents and forward a report to the Committee for consideration at its next meeting. The Committee's decision will be forwarded to you in writing.
The fee for the appeal is $200. ICAS will refund this fee if the appeal is successful.