New Canadian Citizenship Rules

Government of Canada has been reviewing the citizenship laws of Canada over the past few years as the laws are considered to be far more liberal in comparison to other countries. As a result of this, Bill C-37 was introduced, which will come into effect from the 17th of April, 2009. Some individuals in Canada might be able to regain their citizenship after the new law, and many will receive Canadian citizenship for the first time. However, in between all these changes, the most important is the one for providing citizenship to children born outside Canada to Canadian parents.

One of most important reasons behind Bill C-37 is to provide Canadian Citizenship to large number of Canadians who lost their citizenship or let it expire, mainly due to some little-known facts and rules of the Citizenship Act of Canada.

Under the proposed legislation, citizenship will be restored of all people born in Canada or who became citizens of Canada on or after the 1st of January, 1947 and lost their citizenship later, and this also includes war brides who have not been granted Canadian Citizenship till now.

Those people whose citizenship will be restated includes children who were born to Canadian parents living outside Canada and those who were born in Canada but whose parents later acquired citizenship of some other country. Under the new law, citizenship will be provided to foreign-born family members of Second World War veterans, who were provided citizenship after moving to Canada, but then lost it being unaware of the rule that it is needed to be later reaffirmed.

However, in case of children of Canadians born abroad, citizenship laws will become more restrictive.

Anyone who is born on the Canadian soil is granted Canadian Citizenship. In case, citizens of Canada give birth to their children abroad, their children are granted citizenship.

Earlier, these foreign-born Canadians were able to pass their Canadian citizenship to their children, then grandchildren and so on, irrespective of whether these children were born in Canada or not. However, citizenship by descent has become lot more restrictive under the new law. From now onwards, if Canada-born citizens gives birth to their children outside Canada, they will be granted Canadian citizenship. But, if these children, who are born to Canadian citizens abroad, give birth to their children abroad, then their children will fail to qualify for Canadian citizenship.

All this mean that Canadian citizenship by descent will now be accorded only till the first-generation Canadians living outside Canada.