Marc Miller presented a new law for Canadian citizenship by descent recently. Furthermore, he proposed a bill before the Canadian parliament to enable first-generation restriction on citizenship by descent.
This indicates that if the bill comes into action, Canadian citizens’ children with their birth country outside Canada will be able to pass their citizenship to their children. This bill also refers to Bill C – 71, which is an Act to Amend the Citizenship Act 2024. Lost Canadians will also be able to restore their citizenship status. Lost Canadians basically refers to those who have lost or could not regain their Canadian citizenship status due to past and outdated legislation.
The existing rules simply limit citizenship by descent to the first generation, devoid of specific individuals with an authentic connection in Canada. As a result, there could be irreversible repercussions for families and might affect one’s life decisions. These include individuals who seek to reside, study, or even their decision of where to have children and pursue family growth.
All these are inclusive changes and preserve the significance of Canadian citizenship. This further indicates that the department is dedicated to transforming the Canadian citizenship process into a better, convenient, and reliable one.
Marc Miller presented a new law for Canadian citizenship by descent
The legislation states that parents who have a different birth country from Canada and those with children abroad or adopted kids from outside Canada must have accumulated at least 1,095 days of physical presence in Canada. This condition applies to them before the birth of their children or the adoption of their child to confer Canadian citizenship.
In short, those born or adopted by Canadian citizens living abroad will not qualify for citizenship. This stands true if the parents can’t demonstrate that they have resided in Canada for three Calendar years before the child’s birth or adoption.
The immigration minister claimed that a few details would be provided if the parliament passed the bill with royal assent. However, he didn’t reveal anything about the timeline for its approval.
The proposed bill mirrors a prior ruling by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice. In December of last year, the court deemed the second-generation restriction unconstitutional. The judge overseeing the case determined that the cutoff for second-generation citizenship creates a discriminatory division based on national origin. It distinguishes between individuals who automatically become Canadian citizens by birth in Canada and those who acquire citizenship by descent due to being born outside of Canada.
The Canadian government had the alternative to appeal the ruling. However, it decided not to do so because it believed that the existing law could lead to unacceptable consequences for Canadians who had children born other than in Canada.
Attaining the citizenship proof
According to existing law, the Canadian government needs a certificate of Canadian citizenship to affirm the citizenship status of those born abroad.
Qualifying candidates can apply for this certificate of Canadian citizenship at any stage in their lives, irrespective of whether their Canadian parent is alive or dead.
However, applicants must be able to submit proof that at the time of their birth, at least one of the biological or legal parents held Canadian citizenship.
Once IRCC obtains an application, they will issue the applicant an acknowledgment receipt and continue with the application.
The existing processing time data claims that Canada and United States applicants will take at least three months. Meanwhile, applicants from other countries will take longer than three months.
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