Veterans Affairs Canada Evaluation of the Veterans Affairs Canada (VAC)-Service Canada Partnership - December 2015

In 2012, Veterans Affairs Canada (VAC) and Service Canada entered into a Partnership whereby Service Canada would use their web, in-person and telephone services to provide general information on VAC’s benefits and services to individuals who visit Service Canada’s website, visit a Service Canada Centre or call VAC’s toll-free line. In addition, Service Canada would accept and review applications for the Disability Benefits Program and the Veterans Independence Program (VIP). The intention of the Partnership was that Veterans would have broader access to VAC’s services on the web, in-person and on the phone. By having Service Canada answer general inquiries on VAC’s behalf, it was expected that VAC would be able to re-focus their resources on more complex cases. The Partnership was also intended to increase points of access for VAC Services, particularly for residents in rural and remote areas. In addition, Service Canada would use their expertise and experience with all Government of Canada programs and bundle VAC’s information with a broader array of related Government of Canada programs and services.

In February 2014 the Partnership was expanded to include employee hosting services, whereby Service Canada would provide office and meeting space for a VAC representative to be co-located in the Service Canada Centre closest to each of the VAC area offices that were closing.

As part of the approval of the Partnership, an evaluation was required which would assess whether applicable service standards for Veterans had improved, whether resources were effectively refocused on improving case management and if efficiencies had materialized that could provide longer term operational savings without reducing the level of service to Veterans. The evaluation would also determine if there was compliance with the documented agreement between VAC and Service Canada, and identify any areas for improvement.