How your complaint is processed by the Complaint and Appeals Office (CAO)
The Complaints and Appeals Office (CAO) does not have the legislative authority to reconsider, confirm, vary or cancel a regulatory decision
The CAO continues to review service-related complaints and may assist in clarifying applicable regulatory requirements and CFIA policies. Regulated parties that disagree with a regulatory decision should continue to discuss their concerns with a CFIA inspector.
Description for flowchart - How your complaint is processed
Step one: Submit your complaint.
Step two: We will acknowledge your complaint by email or phone and assign you a file number.
CAO will triage your complaint to determine whether it falls within the CAO's mandate and can be reviewed by the CAO.
Step four: If your complaint can be reviewed by the CAO then we will request a call with you to gather more information about your complaint. If we cannot review your complaint we will tell you why and refer your complaint to the appropriate section of the CFIA (or other) which will be able to help you.
Step five: We will ask you to provide or confirm the details of your complaint, who you have dealt with to date in the CFIA, and your expected outcome.
Step six: We will ask the CFIA specialists to provide their perspective on the complaint.
Step seven: We will review all of the relevant technical documents provided and may request further information from you or specific CFIA staff.
Step eight: We may meet with CFIA staff to explore options for addressing the complaint.
Step nine: The Complaints Analyst will consider all viewpoints in an impartial and unbiased manner and make a determination about the complaint.
Step ten: You will be informed by phone as well as by letter of the outcome of your complaint.
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