Citizenship alert! Did you wake up Canadian?

By Catherine Sas, K.C.
Special to The Post

December 15, 2025, was a pivotal day in the history of Canadian citizenship with many people waking up to being Canadian citizens. This was the day that Bill C-3 came into force obliterating the longstanding “first generation” limitation on the ability of Canadian citizens to pass citizenship on to their foreign born relatives and opening the playing field wide open to all those born to Canadian citizens, no matter how far back, before December 15, 2025. (The playing field is considerably different for those born on or after December 15, 2025, but we will discuss this later on in our blog). Persons who are able to demonstrate their historical biological connection to a Canadian citizen, regardless of how many generations back you may go, are Canadian citizens “by operation of law” and are eligible to obtain a “proof” of Canadian citizenship allowing them to apply for Canadian passports and obtain a host of other ancillary benefits. Let’s review how this paradigm shift occurred as well as the steps that you can take to confirm your new Canadian citizenship!

The impetus for this transformative change was a decision of the Ontario Superior Court on December 19, 2023 in the case of Bjorkquist et al v. Attorney General of Canada in which the Court ruled that the Citizenship Act breached Section 6 ( mobility rights) and Section 15 ( equality rights) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms ( the Charter). This case was raised by a group of families who felt that the law improperly disenfranchised their second generation children born abroad. The Charter, being the supreme law of Canada, lead Immigration Citizenship and Refugees Canada (IRCC) to be directed to remedy this injustice and to bestow Canadian citizenship to all descendants of Canadian citizens. Remedying this legislative injustice was first dealt with by way of an interim temporary measures program introduced on March 15, 2025, allowing for discretionary grants of citizenship which was ultimately resolved with the passage of Bill C-3 on December 15, 2025.

While Bill C-3 bestows citizenship to those by virtue of “operation of law”, it is still necessary to demonstrate the biological and historical familial connection in order to benefit from this transformative change. In practice, this sounds easier than it really is. At our immigration law office, we are receiving weekly if not daily inquiries from people wanting to know how they can go about obtaining a “proof” of their Canadian citizenship such that they can apply for a Canadian passport. The answer, while straightforward, is not always that easy to achieve - you generally need a government issued record of birth. In many provinces or territories, birth certificates were not issued as a matter of course until the early or mid 1900s. In the province of Quebec, these government birth records were not issued until the early 1990s with baptismal records being the usual document issued confirming birth history. Furthermore, such online historical services as Ancestry.com or MyHeritage.com are not valid for the purposes of obtaining a proof of Canadian citizenship. However, these online services can be of assistance as if record of your ancestors is listed on these cites, it is often the case that they can be traced to legitimate government sources. In many cases, it is worth engaging the services of a genealogist to assist with tracing your family roots. It can often take a wide array of documents that can lead to a positive determination of citizenship including hospital records, baptismal certificates, marriage certificates, death certificates, census records and copies of passports, to name just a few. And it is necessary to provide such documentation for each and every family member in the chain to ensure the generational link to citizenship.

Not surprisingly, news of the significance of Bill C-3 spread quickly in the media with both The National Post (https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/why-millions-of-new-englanders-may-now-be-eligible-for-proof-they-are-canadian-citizensand) The Globe and Mail (https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-canadian-citizenship-changes-application-cost-process-bill-c-3/) featuring articles about the effect of these changes to Canadian citizenship law. Many American news outlets, such as the New York Times (https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/27/world/canada/canadian-citizenship-by-descent-applications-americans-us.html), also spread the word about people possibly being Canadian without even being aware of it. It is indeed a significant benefit worth pursuing.

It doesn’t mean that everyone is entitled to Canadian citizenship if they can demonstrate a Canadian born relative. For those persons adopted, there may be a break in the chain such that citizenship may not be passed on. We will examine the impact upon adoptees in a future blog. Furthermore, for those born on or after December 15, 2025, it is necessary for their parents to demonstrate a “substantial connection to Canada” test in order to bestow Canadian citizenship to their offspring. A “substantial connection to Canada” requires that the Canadian citizen parent be able to demonstrate that they have been physically present in Canada for three of the past five years - 1095 days. It is similar to the standard physical presence test for anyone applying for Canadian citizenship. Alternatively, if this threshold is not met, the Canadian citizen parent may sponsor their child or children for permanent residence, and they can then reside in Canada such that they can acquire citizenship on their own upon physically residing in Canada for more than 1095 days. This is a cumulative residency requirement within a five year period and not a consecutive requirement.

The change in Canada’s citizenship laws to enable the passage of Canadian citizenship beyond the first generation of persons born in Canada is indeed a tremendous shift and bestows the benefit of Canadian citizenship to many. The ability to confirm that legal right is not always as straightforward as it may seem. You may be well advised to seek professional assistance, both legal and genealogical, in order to confirm your claim to Canadian citizenship.

Catherine Sas, K.C. has over 35 years of legal experience. She provides a full range of immigration services and is a leading immigration practitioner (Lexpert, Who’s Who Legal, Best Lawyers in Canada). Go to canadian-visa-lawyer.com or email [email protected]