A person of "national security concern" was granted permanent residency "due to a series of failures" by the Canadian border agency and immigration department.

In light of the incident, both departments have had to introduce changes in what the public safety minister's office is calling a "completely unacceptable" mistake.

The changes were outlined in a briefing note sent by Canada Border Services Agency president John Ossowski to Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale in early 2018 regarding the 2017 error.

A heavily redacted copy of the document was recently obtained by CBC News through access to information laws.

The briefing note, titled "Subject of national security concern granted permanent residency" says the subject — their name, age and gender are redacted for privacy reasons — was granted permanent resident status "due to a series of failures on the part of both Immigration, Refugees, Citizenship Canada and the CBSA."

Ralph Goodale responds to reports of failures by CBSA and Immigration on Power & Politics

That means the person is entitled to most social benefits — including health care — can live, work and study anywhere in Canada, and is protected by Canadian law and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, but isn't considered a citizen.

Most of the details about why this person is considered a security concern and how they were granted permanent residency were redacted because, among other reasons, officials believe releasing information could hurt "the conduct of international affairs, the defence of Canada or any state allied or associated with Canada."

Disconnect between agencies

However, the document does mention that the Canadian Security Intelligence Service had "derogatory information," meaning information that could be relevant to a finding that the person was inadmissible to Canada. CSIS and the RCMP were also tapped to monitor a national security investigation linked to this case.

Kelly Sundberg, an associate professor in the department of economics, justice and policy studies at Mount Royal University in Calgary, said it appears there was a disconnect in communication between Canada's intelligence agencies.

Those mistakes were completely unacceptable. — Scott Bardsley, spokesperson for the public safety minister

"To me it's unacceptable. As a Canadian I expect more, and I think other Canadians expect that our federal law enforcement, intelligence and border security agencies can work seamlessly, share information seamlessly. And if there are administrative or legal hurdles, then that's something Parliament needs to look at," he said.

A spokesperson for Goodale would only say a combination of "several unique errors" led to the "oversight for a single permanent residency application."

"Those mistakes were completely unacceptable. Changes have been made to prevent them from happening again," said Scott Bardsley in an email to CBC News.

"While we do not comment on operational matters related to security, we can say that the government of Canada monitors all potential threats and has robust measures in place to address them."

Later, in an interview with CBC News Network's Power & Politics, Goodale said that he was not aware that any government employees had lost their jobs over the decision, although he offered assurances measures were taken.

"The right disciplinary action is always taken by CBSA and other agencies where that is necessary and appropriate," Goodale told guest host Katie Simpson. "That's a matter of internal judgment within within the public service. My concern is to make sure that the problem is is solved and that we're not vulnerable to it happening again."

Most new permanent residency cards are valid for five years, but Goodale's office pointed out that permanent residents can become inadmissible on security grounds or for a misrepresentation, under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.

"The government of Canada is unwavering in its commitment to protect the safety and security of Canadians," said Bardsley.

"We continue to take appropriate action to counter threats to Canada, its citizens and its interests around the world."

Changes raise red flags

Ossowski told Goodale that the border agency identified a number of "vulnerabilities" and is taking steps to "respond to this incident and to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future."

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