Municipal Services

City of Toronto

Services provided by the City generally fall into three categories:

1. Services that the City provides knowing that everyone benefits (e.g. roads, other physical infrastructure, fire and emergency services, quality of life or protective regulation such as licensing and standards)
2. Those that the City funds and operates itself (e.g. recreation) or funds and operates through arm’s length boards (e.g. public health, libraries) that are intended for residents
3. Services for specific populations (e.g. children, people who require income support or subsidized housing) and for which the legislation, regulation and costs are shared with other orders of government (i.e. provincial or federal government) (e.g. child care, Ontario Works, rent-geared-to-income housing)

If you live in Toronto, you may use City services. In general, very little identification and no documentation regarding immigration status is needed to use the great majority of the programs, activities and services that the City of Toronto operates, funds and controls. 

Exceptions to fully open access to services generally fall into category #3 above where residents must apply (instead of just registering or walking in) to use a service and identification that might disclose immigration status could be requested for specific reasons - most often, to comply with federal or provincial legislation.

In most cases where City staff request information that may directly or indirectly lead to disclosure of immigration status, the information is not reported to other authorities.  However, to comply with provincial legislation, staff check immigration status of applicants for Ontario Works, and in cases of sponsorship breakdown, with Citizenship and Immigration Canada.   In addition, City staff may have to testify in Court or at a hearing (e.g. in a case of Ontario Works benefits fraud or, with Emergency Medical Services staff, if charges ensued from an accident where someone was injured) and may, if asked, have to reveal a client’s citizenship status.

• Information kindly provided by staff member from the City of Toronto