The Resumption of Citizenship

The authorities consider the resumption of citizenship as being a grant of citizenship. As such, people who resume Canadian citizenship typically receive grants of citizenship. Adults receiving citizenship would need to take the Oath of Citizenship. It is worth mentioning that the resumption of citizenship is not retroactive. As such, the effective date of citizenship is the date on which the authorities administer the Oath and sign the oath form.

The Eligibility and Requirements

Who Can Resume Citizenship?

People who previously were Canadian citizens have the ability to resume their citizenship under the provisions specified in subsection 11 (1). This is especially so if they:

• Have since acquired permanent resident status and,

• Meet all the prescribed requirements for the resumption of citizenship

This is applicable for all people, except those whose citizenship the authorities revoked under the previous or existingCitizenship Act.

The amendments to the Citizenship Act came into force on June 19, 2014. These amendments provide expedited access to citizenship for people who are serving in or have served with the Canadian Armed Forces. As such, the authorities need to process these applications on a priority basis.

Who Cannot Resume Citizenship?

People will not be able to resume their citizenship if they:

• Have had their citizenship revoked under the Canadian Citizenship Act or under the current Act

  • These people will need to apply under the provisions specified in subsection 5 (1) as long as the authorities have not prohibited them permanently

• Are women who lost their British subject status solely because they married foreign nationals, or because their husbands acquired foreign nationalities during their marriage prior to 1947

  • These women would need to acquire citizenship under the provisions specified in subsection 11 (2) of the Act or,

  • They could become citizens because of the 2015 legislative amendments i.e. Bill C-24

• Are people whose citizenship the authorities restored because of the 2009 legislative amendments i.e. Bill C-37, such as citizens under paragraphs 3 (1) (f) of the Act

  • These individuals would need to apply for proofs of citizenship

The Requirements for Applications Received Prior to June 11, 2015

The authorities could grant the resumption of citizenship to former Canadian citizens if these individuals:

• Submit applications

• Are not subject to orders or declarations by the Governor in Council made pursuant to the provisions specified in sections 10 or 20 of the Act or section 18 of the former Act i.e. the Canadian Citizenship Act

• Are not prohibited

• Are not the subjects of removal orders

• Have become permanent residents within the meaning specified in subsection 2 (1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) after having ceased to be Canadian citizens and have no further unfulfilled conditions pertaining to their status as permanent residents and,

• Have resided in Canada as permanent residents for at least one year immediately before the date of the application

The Requirements for Applications Received On or After June 11, 2015

The authorities could grant resumption of citizenship to former Canadian citizens if they:

• Submit applications

• Are not subjects of:

  • Orders made under the provisions specified in section 10 (as it read immediately before section 8 of theStrengthening Canadian Citizenship Act came into force)

  • Decisions made under the provisions specified in section 10

  • Declarations made under the provisions specified in section 10.1 or,

  • Orders made under the provisions specified in section 18 of the former Act i.e. the Canadian Citizenship Act(the authorities did not revoke the person’s citizenship)

• Are not subject to declarations made under the provisions specified in section 20

• Are not prohibited

• Are not under removal orders

• Have become permanent residents within the meaning specified in subsection 2 (1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) after having ceased to be Canadian citizens and have no further unfulfilled conditions pertaining to their status as permanent residents

• Have been physically present in Canada as permanent residents for at least 365 days during the two years immediately before the date of the application

• Meet the income tax filing requirements and,

• Subject to receiving citizenship, intend to:

  • Continue residing in Canada

  • Enter into, or continue in, employment outside Canada in or with the:

    • Canadian Armed Forces

    • The federal public administration or,

    • The public service of a province otherwise than as a locally engaged person or,

  • Reside with their spouse, common-law partner or parents who are Canadian citizens or permanent residents and are employed outside Canada in or with the:

    • Canadian Armed Forces

    • The federal public administration or,

    • The public service of a province otherwise than as a locally engaged person

The Application Form

To apply for the resumption of Canadian citizenship, the applicants would need to submit the Application to Resume Canadian Citizenship under Subsection 11 (1) i.e. CIT 0301.

The Required Documents

Along with the application, the applicant would need to submit the following documents:

• The applicant’s birth certificate or any other satisfactory evidence that establishes the date and place of birth of the applicant

• Any satisfactory evidence that highlights that the applicant was a citizen such as:

  • A foreign birth certificate that confirms birth outside Canada to Canadian parents

  • A Canadian birth certificate

  • A Canadian citizenship certificate

  • A Canadian naturalisation certificate

  • A registration of birth abroad certificate and,

  • A retention certificate

• Any satisfactory evidence that the applicant ceased being a Canadian citizen such as:

  • A renunciation certificate or,

  • A naturalisation certificate from a foreign country

• Canadian immigration records such as:

  • A Record of Landing i.e. IMM 1000

  • A Confirmation of Permanent Residence i.e. IMM 5292 or IMM 5509 and both sides of the permanent resident card (if applicable) or,

  • Any other satisfactory evidence that establishes the date on which the authorities provided lawful admission to the applicant in Canada for permanent residence after the applicant ceased to be a citizen

• Any evidence that shows that the applicant has resided in Canada for at least one year immediately preceding the date of the application (if the authorities receive the application prior to June 11, 2015) or evidence that the applicant has been physically present in Canada for at least 365 days in the two years immediately before the date of the application (if the authorities received the application on or after June 11, 2015) and,

• Two additional documents for establishing the identity of the applicant

In some cases, the applicant might have submitted applications for citizenship in the past. In this scenario, the officers would need to accept clear and legible photocopies of the above-mentioned documents. In case this is the applicant’s first application for citizenship, the officers would require the applicant to submit certified copies.

In addition, the applicant would need to provide two identical photographs as well. These photographs would need to conform to the citizenship photograph specifications i.e. CIT 0021 included in the application.

The Residence for Applications Received Prior to June 11, 2015

The Citizenship Act requires resumption applicants to acquire at least one year of residence immediately before the date of the application. In general, the authorities expect resumption applicants to accumulate at least 365 days of physical presence in the year preceding the date of the application.

However, the Citizenship Act does not define residence as physical presence. In addition, the Federal Court has made various decisions on this issue over the years. It is worth highlighting that the process for assessing residence is similar to the process for adult grants. For more information on this, officers would need to refer to the section titled ‘Residence / physical presence’ given on the website of Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC).

The Residence for Applications Received On or After June 11, 2015

The Citizenship Act requires resumption applicants to have been physically present in Canada for at least 365 days during the two years immediately before the date of the application. The process for assessing residence or physical presence remains similar to that for adult grants.

The Intent to Reside

This requirement applies only to applications received on or after June 11, 2015.

The intent to reside requirement and the process for assessing this requirement for a resumption applicant remains similar to that for adult grants.

Officers would typically assess the applicant’s intent to reside if the authorities grant the applicant citizenship. Applicants would need to hold this intention from the time they sign their applications to the time they take their Oaths. After taking the Oath, the authorities would not prevent the applicants from leaving Canada. In other words, the applicants need to have the intent to reside for obtaining citizenship. On receiving citizenship, this requirement no longer applies. It is worth mentioning that this requirement has no relation to the residence requirement.

The Requirement to Have No Unfulfilled Conditions as a Permanent Resident

This requirement applies to applications in the inventory and applications received on or after June 11, 2015. The requirement of having no unfulfilled conditions under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) in relation to one’s permanent resident status and the process for assessing this requirement remains similar to that for adult grants.

The Requirement to File Income Taxes

This requirement applies only to applications received on or after June 11, 2015.

The authorities expect resumption applicants to meet any applicable requirements under the Income Tax Act for filing income tax returns in respect of the taxation year immediately before the year in which the applicant makes the application. As such, if the applicant applies to resume citizenship in 2020, the applicant would need to have filed the income tax (if required to do so) for the 2019 taxation year for meeting the tax filing requirement. The procedure to assess the income tax filing requirement remains similar to that for adult grants.

The Clearances and Prohibitions

The Case Processing Centre in Sydney (CPC-S) requests immigration, security and criminal clearance checks for applications for resumption. This is in accordance with the provisions specified in subsection 11 (1).

The applicants would need to ensure that they are not subject to the prohibitions specified in the following sections of the Act:

• Section 20

• Section 21 and,

• Section 22

The Other Requirements

Applicants would need to submit non-refundable processing fees along with the application. However, there is no right of citizenship fee. Applicants for resumption do not need to meet any language or knowledge requirements as well.