On December 15, An Act to Amend the Citizenship Act came into effect, making it easier for certain individuals to receive Canadian citizenship. And according to a CTV interview with Ottawa-based immigration consultant Cassandra Fultz, applications are flying in from all over the U.S.
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The Citizenship Act
Canadian citizenship currently previously had a first-generation limit. This meant that someone was not be able to automatically become a Canadian citizen if:
- they were born outside Canada, and
- their parent was also born outside Canada to a Canadian parent or adopted outside Canada by a Canadian parent.
- The grandparent was Canadian.
With Bill C-3, a Canadian parent that was born or adopted abroad will be able to pass their Canadian citizenship onto their child that was born or adopted abroad, as well. This is provided that they have significant ties to Canada.
These people are often referred to as “Lost Canadians.” They are individuals who would have otherwise been citizens if not for the first-generation limit or other outdated provisions.
“Canada has taken an important step toward modernizing its citizenship laws,” stated the Government of Canada’s news release. “Canadians excluded under outdated rules will have a fair, clear way to pass citizenship on to their children born or adopted outside of Canada.”
Bill C-3
It was in 2023 that the Ontario Superior Court of Justice declared that “key parts of the Citizenship Act relating to the first-generation limit to citizenship by descent were unconstitutional.” The ruling was not appealed, as the Government of Canada agreed with the decision.
“By updating the Citizenship Act to reflect the global mobility of modern Canadian families, the federal government has made access to citizenship more fair and reasonable,” said The Founder of the Lost Canadians, Don Chapman. “I applaud the efforts of all who supported Bill C-3, and the federal government for doing the right thing for Canadians who lost their citizenship because of an outdated law.”
Now that Bill C-3 has come into force, those who were unable to become Canadians due to the first-generation rule or other outdated laws are now eligible to apply for proof of citizenship. Fultz notes that Americans from the south, as well as the northeast, are applying; although there are also plenty from western states, including Oregon, Washington, and California.
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