Canadian citizenship is typically obtained by birth in Canada or birth abroad when at least one parent is a Canadian citizen, or by adoption abroad by at least one Canadian citizen. It can also be granted to a permanent resident who lives in Canada for three out of four years and meets specific requirements. Details and exceptions to these general rules are explained below.

History of Canadian Citizenship

First Canadian Citizenship ceremony in 1947 in Ottawa.

On 1 January 1947, Canadian citizenship was conferred on most British subjects connected with Canada. Subsequently, on 1 April 1949, Canadian nationality law was extended to Newfoundland upon that country's admission to Confederation.

Canadian nationality law was substantially revised on 15 February 1977 when the new Citizenship Act came into force. Notably, from that date Canada fully accepts multiple citizenship. However those who lost Canadian citizenship before that date did not automatically have it restored.

Birth in Canada

In general, anyone born in Canada from 1947 onwards acquired Canadian citizenship at birth. The only exceptions concern children born to diplomats, where additional requirements apply.

Most persons born in Canada before 1947 acquired Canadian citizenship on 1 January 1947 if still living at that date.

Canadian citizenship by descent

Any person born outside Canada after 15 February 1977, who has a Canadian parent at the time of birth, is automatically a Canadian citizen by descent. Any such person whose Canadian parent or parents were also not born in Canada and obtained their citizenship at birth by descent (i.e. second generation overseas) must apply to retain his/her Canadian citizenship by their 28th birthday, or their Canadian citizenship will be lost.

After Bill C-37 ^[3] comes into effect (no later than April 17, 2009), individuals born outside Canada (to a parent who was a Canadian citizen at the time of the birth) will only be Canadians at birth if the parent was born in Canada, or if the parent became a Canadian citizen (that is, by immigrating to Canada and being granted citizenship). ^[4] The first generation born abroad are automatically Canadian at birth, and no longer have to register by age 28 to retain their Canadian citizenship. The second generation born abroad can only gain Canadian citizenship by immigrating to Canada, which may be easy up to a certain age, since they can be sponsored as dependent children by their Canadian citizen parents.

Those born outside Canada between 1 January 1947 and 15 February 1977 are generally not Canadian citizens unless their birth was registered with the Canadian government before they were two years of age (and neither they nor their responsible parent subsequently lost Canadian citizenship by becoming citizens of another country before 15 February 1977) OR they applied for Canadian citizenship by descent between 15 February 1977 and 14 August 2004. Applications for citizenship by descent fell into two categories: 1) delayed registration of birth abroad, which, when granted, made the person a citizen from birth (as if the birth had been registered with the Canadian government within two years as required by the 1947 Citizenship Act), and 2) a facilitated grant, in cases where the Canadian parent was the mother, not the father. The latter was not retroactive, so does not make children of the grantee born before the grant, Canadian citizens.

One class of Canadian citizens by descent who can still claim citizenship are those whose births were registered as required by the 1947 Act, but who then lost their Canadian citizenship when their responsible parent (normally the father) became a naturalized citizen of another country. In 2005, the Canadian Parliament passed a law allowing such persons who lost citizenship as minors to apply to resume Canadian citizenship without a residency or background-check requirement. ^[5]

Under new rules introduced in 2008, foreign-born citizens being adopted by Canadian citizens can now acquire Canadian citizenship immediately upon completion of the adoption, without first entering Canada as a permanent resident under the previous rules.

Naturalization as a Canadian citizen

A person who is a permanent resident may apply for Canadian citizenship by naturalization (grant) after three years resident in Canada.

The requirements in full are that the person:

• is aged 18 years or over
• is a permanent resident
• has lived in Canada for a total of three years out of the four years preceding the application for citizenship
• knows about Canada (a test is required as part of the application process, but only if the applicant is between 18 and 54 years of age)
• knows the rights and responsibilities of Canadian citizenship
• is of good character
• is not a war criminal
• is able to speak English or French well enough to communicate with people http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/citizenship/become-eligibility.asp#language

Children aged under 18

The naturalization requirements for children under 18 are different from those for adults.

• the child should be a permanent resident
• a parent of the child should be a Canadian citizen or in the process of applying for Canadian citizenship

The residence and other requirements do not normally apply to those aged under 18.

Citizenship ceremonies

All applicants for Canadian citizenship aged 14 or over must attend a citizenship ceremony as the final stage of their application.

Canadian citizenship by adoption

In May 2006 the Canadian government introduced draft legislation, Bill C-14: An Act to Amend the Citizenship Act (Adoption) which is designed to allow adopted children the right to apply for immediate citizenship. This bill received Royal Assent on June 22, 2007. http://www.parl.gc.ca/common/bills_ls.asp?lang=E&ls=c14&source=library_prb&Parl=39&Ses=1

Bill C-14 consists of only four clauses. Clause 1 amends section 3 of the Citizenship Act so that adopted children who attain citizenship without first obtaining permanent resident status are Canadian citizens. Clause 2 applies to adopted children who are minors and also to those who are at least 18 years of age; it amends section 5 of the Citizenship Act and provides that, subject to certain conditions, the Minister shall grant citizenship to children who are adopted abroad after 14 February 1977. Clause 2 also has a special provision for adoptions that are under the jurisdiction of Quebec.

Japanese Repatriation

On September 22, 1988, Prime Minister Brian Mulroney agreed to a redress package for Japanese Canadians deported from Canada between 1941 and 1946 (about 4000 in total) and their descendants.

The package authorizes a special grant of Canadian citizenship for any such person. All descendants of deported persons are also eligible for grant of citizenship provided they were living on September 22 1988, regardless of whether the person actually deported from Canada is still alive.

Loss of Canadian citizenship

Under current law there is no provision for involuntary loss of Canadian citizenship except:

• naturalized Canadians can have their citizenship revoked if convicted of fraud in relation to their citizenship application, or their original admission to Canada as an immigrant
• second and subsequent generation Canadians by descent may lose Canadian citizenship automatically on their 28th birthday if they do not meet the requirements for retention

Many Canadians lost Canadian citizenship prior to 15 February 1977 through:

• naturalization in another country
• long residence overseas (prior to 1967)
• if a child, based on a parent's loss of Canadian citizenship

See History of Canadian citizenship

A Canadian citizen who holds another nationality may in some cases renounce Canadian citizenship voluntarily.

In February 2007, the House of Commons Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration held hearings on so-called Lost Canadians,^[6] who found out recently, on applying for passports, that for various reasons they may not be Canadian citizens as they thought.^[7] Don Chapman, a witness before the committee, estimated that 700,000 Canadians have either lost their citizenship or are at risk of having it stripped.^[7] However, Citizenship and Immigration Minister Diane Finley said her office has had just 881 calls on the subject. On 2007-02-19, she signed documents granting citizenship to 33 such individuals. Some of the reasons citizenship may have been lost is if the individual was born out of wedlock before 1977, or to a father who took a second citizenship. Another reason is if the child was born outside Canada, and failed to confirm their citizenship before turning 24 or 28. Some of the people affected reside in towns near the southern border, and hence were born in American hospitals.^[8] Others, particularly Mennonites, were born to Canadian parents in Mexico or Paraguay.^[9] An investigation by the CBC, based on Canadian census data, concluded that the problem could affect an estimated 10,000 to 20,000 individuals currently residing in Canada.^[10]

On May 29 2007, Canadian Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Diane Finley announced her proposal to amend the Citizenship Act. Under the proposal, anyone naturalized in Canada since 1947 would have citizenship even if they lost it under the 1947 Act. Also, anyone born since 1947 outside the country to a Canadian mother or father, in or out of wedlock, would have citizenship if they are the first generation born abroad.^[11] Appearing before the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration, Finley asserted that as of May 24 2007, there were only 285 cases of individuals in Canada whose citizenship status needs to be resolved.^[12] Under the proposed legislation, anyone born before 1947 to a Canadian citizen abroad would be dealt with on a case-by-case basis; such individuals would have to apply for a ministerial permit.^[13]

Bill C-37, which received Royal Assent on April 17, 2008, amends the Citizenship Act to give Canadian citizenship to those who lost or never had it, due to outdated provisions in existing and former legislation. The law will come into effect no later than a year following Royal Assent.

Resumption of Canadian citizenship

Former Canadian citizens who lost their citizenship as adults are generally required to obtain landed immigrant (permanent resident) status under normal rules and live in Canada for one year in order to resume Canadian citizenship.

As of 5 May 2005, a special concession has been made to those who lost Canadian citizenship as minors between 1 January 1947 and 14 February 1977 based on a parent's loss of Canadian citizenship. These persons may now apply to resume their Canadian citizenship without actually residing in Canada. http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/applications/resume.html

Former Canadians who lost British subject status before 1947 have no specific rights to Canadian citizenship, except in the case of women who lost British subject status on marriage to a foreign man.

Judicial review of provisions of current and previous citizenship acts

There have been a number of court decisions dealing with the subject of Canadian citizenship. A few of the major decisions are:

Glynos v. Canada (1992). The federal court ruled that the child of a Canadian mother had the right to be granted Canadian citizenship, despite the fact that the responsible parent of the child (i.e. the father) had naturalized as a U.S. citizen before 15 February 1977 and had thus lost his Canadian citizenship. http://www.cic.gc.ca/cic-index/english/g.html

Benner v. Canada (1997). The Supreme Court of Canada ruled that children born abroad before 15 February 1977 of Canadian mothers were to be treated the same as those of Canadian fathers (i.e. granted citizenship upon application without the requirements of a security check or taking a citizenship oath). http://csc.lexum.umontreal.ca/en/1997/1997rcs3-389/1997rcs3-389.html

Canada (Attorney General) v. McKenna (C.A.) (1999). As a result of the existing Citizenship Act, adopted children are treated differently from biological children born abroad to Canadian citizens. The Federal Court of Appeal has indicated that distinctions in the law based on "adoptive parentage" violate the equality rights provisions in section 15 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Under the existing law, moreover, children adopted by Canadian parents who are living abroad and who wish to continue doing so cannot become permanent residents and, therefore, cannot become Canadian citizens. http://reports.fja.gc.ca/en/1998/1999fc23364.html/1999fc23364.html.html

Taylor v. Minister of Citizenship and Immigration (2006). The federal court ruled that an individual born abroad and out of wedlock to a Canadian serviceman father and a non-Canadian mother acquired citizenship upon arrival in Canada after World War II and did not subsequently lose Canadian citizenship while living abroad. The ruling was far-reaching in terms of striking down a number of the loss provisions of the 1947 Citizenship Act based on the retrospective application of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. http://decisions.fct-cf.gc.ca/en/2006/2006fc1053/2006fc1053.html http://www.canadianwarbrides.com/wn_details.asp?id=213 The Canadian Government launched an appeal in 2006, and on 2 Novemer 2007 the Federal Court of Appeal ruled in favour of the government, ruling that Mr. Taylor is not a Canadian citizen based on the 1947 Citizenship Act. http://www.canadianwarbrides.com/taylor-joe-bio.asp

Rights and responsibilities of citizens

According to Citizenship and Immigration Canada, citizens are:

• Enjoy the rights guaranteed by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
• Able to vote in political elections upon reaching the age of 18 (and provided they are not absent from Canada for more than 5 years and intend to resume residency in Canada).
• Able to run for political office upon reaching the age of 18.
• Able to obtain a Canadian passport.
• Able to prevent risk of getting deported from Canada (if the subject born outside Canada, but is naturalized)
• Able to work for the Federal government (where citizenship is usually required/preferred)
• Allowed to live outside Canada indefinitely while retaining the right to return
• Able to pass on Canadian citizenship to children born outside Canada.

Citizens are responsible for:

• Serving on jury when reaching the age of majority, and if selected.
• Obeying Canada's laws.
• Respecting the rights and freedoms of others.
• Helping others in the community.
• Caring for and protecting the Canadian heritage and environment.
• Eliminating discrimination and injustice.

Proof of Canadian Citizenship Document

Any Canadian can apply for a citizenship certificate. New Canadians get a certificate when they are granted citizenship. If you automatically acquired citizenship because you were born outside Canada to a Canadian parent or you are a woman who was landed in Canada before 1947 (e.g., a war bride), you can apply for a citizenship certificate. Details

It can take many months to issue a citizenship certificate. Processing Times for Citizenship Certificates

Commonwealth Citizenship

Under United Kingdom law, Canadians are Commonwealth citizens and hence are entitled to certain rights in the UK:

• access to the UK working holiday visa scheme
• for those with a UK born grandparent, access to the UK Ancestry Entry Clearance
• for those born before 1983 who meet the requirements, Right of Abode in the UK
• if resident in the UK, the right to vote and stand for public office there^[14]

Notes

See also

• Nationality law
• Citizenship and Immigration Canada
• Oath of citizenship (Canada)
• Permanent resident (Canada)
• Canadian passport
• Passport Canada
• Immigration to Canada
• Canadians of convenience
• Lost Canadians
• Honorary Canadian citizenship

External links

• How to become a citizen
• Information on Canadian law pre-1977 (pdf file)
• Canada Citizenship Act & Regulations
• CIC Citizenship Policy Manuals
• Globe and Mail article on "Lost Canadians"
• CP article on "Lost Canadians"
• Legal Resource for Foreign Brides
• legal case of immigration fraud
• Revised Statutes of Canada 1970, containing Canadian Citizenship Act 1946 (88MB PDF file)

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