Canada processes citizenship applications faster than pre-pandemic. The wait times have now reduced significantly, i.e., by three months.
Well, now some foreign naortionals – who have at least one biological and legal parent who is a Canadian citizen – can expect to obtain a decision on their citizenship application sooner.
What Is The Proof Of Citizenship?
Under Canada’s Citizenship Act, children born to Canadian parents abroad are not automatically given Canadian citizenship.
Instead, these children need to apply for proof of citizenship and obtain a Canadian citizenship certificate to confirm their citizenship to the nation. The citizenship certificate, along with the Canadian birth certificate, are the only two documents that Passport Canada recognizes as verification of citizenship – making them critical when applying for a Canadian passport.
This process can be undertaken at any time in a person’s life and can even be started whether a Canadian parent is alive or deceased.
Note: Adopted children of Canadian parents who were adopted after their birth are not eligible for this process. They will have to pursue other routes to become Canadian citizens.
New Changes To Citizenship Law
As Canada processes citizenship applications faster than pre-pandemic, there are certain new changes to citizenship law.
On December 19, 2023, Ontario’s Superior Court of Justice ruled that Canada’s second-generation citizenship cut-off law was unconstitutional and should be amended.
Under this law, Canadians who themselves were born abroad would not be able to automatically transfer their citizenship to their children if they were also born abroad.
Ontario’s Superior Court ruled that this rule created a distinction in citizenship statuses between Canadians who were born in the nation and those who were not due to the fact that the former group is able to automatically transfer citizenship to their children, while the latter group is not. The court further ruled that the federal government had six months to repeal the law and amend the Citizenship Act.
The federal government was given one month to appeal this decision, which they chose not to do. It is not known presently what the impact of this ruling will be for applicants who are looking to gain Canadian citizenship by descent. Changes are anticipated following the federal government’s decision not to appeal the Ontario court ruling.
Benefits Of Canadian Citizenship
Canadian citizenship brings several benefits. Canadians have protected rights and permanent legal status in the country, access to social systems and benefits like voting rights within Canada’s democracy, and the ability to hold political office.
Moreover, Canadian citizens benefit from a Canadian passport, and have the ability to sponsor loved ones to visit and even settle in Canada, and can usually pass on their status to their children.
Canadian citizens are also able to hold dual citizenship with other nations that have similar provisions.