The following information was provided during a 6 October 1998 telephone interview with the former visa officer of the Visa and Immigration Section at the Embassy of Canada in Tehran. The former officer worked at the embassy between 1988 and the end of 1994, and has reviewed around 30,000 Iranian passports as well as other Iranian documents, including the military discharge card.

The former Visa Officer stated that a triangle stamp is indicative that the holder has participated in the electoral process. The former Visa Officer could not provide additional information without seeing the document and the stamp.

Iranian citizens living abroad can vote in Iranian elections through their embassies. Iranians living in the United States can vote at the Embassy of Algeria in Washington. For cities where an important Iranian community is living, such as Los Angeles, special arrangements through Iranian institutions are organized to allow all Iranian citizens to vote.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum.

Former Visa Officer, Embassy of Canada in Iran, Ottawa. 6 October 1998. Telephone interview.