How to read your CAIPS notes — common refusal codes

Your refusal letter and your CAIPS notes are full of paragraph codes — short alphanumeric references to specific sections of Canadian immigration law. Here's a quick map of the ones you are likely to meet, so you can recognise the territory before you read your own notes.

What do the most common codes mean?

• R179(b) — Visitor / TRV refusal: officer isn't satisfied you'll leave Canada at the end of your stay.
• R200(1) — Work permit refusal. R200(1)(b) is a finding that you are unlikely to leave Canada at the end of the authorised period. R200(3)(a) is different: the officer had reasonable grounds to believe you are unable to perform the work sought — a qualifications test, not an intentions one. R200(1)(c) means the work itself was not authorised: no LMIA-supported offer and no exemption under sections 204 to 208.
• R216(1)(b) / R220 — Study permit grounds: R216(1)(b) is the officer not being satisfied you will leave at the end of your studies (see our separate guide), and R220 is about having enough money without working in Canada.
• A11(1) — the provision requiring a foreign national to apply for a visa before entering Canada, and allowing an officer to issue it only if satisfied the applicant is not inadmissible and meets the requirements of the Act. It is the officer's authority to refuse, not a specific complaint — look for the provision cited beside it. The provision that puts the burden on you to establish you will leave is A20(1)(b).
• A40(1)(a) — Misrepresentation. The most serious category. We have a dedicated guide on this.

On work permits specifically: we can read the notes on any refusal, work permits included, and explain what the officer wrote and what the provision requires. We do not prepare work-permit applications, and we do not represent anyone to IRCC in any category.

Why isn't a code list enough?

Every refusal letter cites a code, but the same code gets used for very different underlying problems. An R179(b) refusal for one applicant might be about thin travel history; for another, it's about unexplained finances; for a third, it's family in Canada creating “dual intent” concerns. The code is the legal hook — the officer's notes are where you find the actual reasoning.

Our refusal code decoder explains each code in general terms. Applying it to your case means reading your own decision note or notes alongside the code, in the context of your visa type, country and history. A generic explanation on its own can lead you to fix the wrong thing.