Canadian Citizenship

You can apply online or submit a paper application. Be sure to include the application forms, supporting documents and the Citizenship fee ($630 per adult, $100 per minor child).

Pay careful attention to the documents requested and the format required. It is necessary to include copies of ALL the pages of relevant passports, some of the documents will need to be in color, and you will need to submit front and back copies of some of your ID documents.

After your application has been assessed and you have been deemed eligible for Canadian Citizenship, you will receive an invitation to write the Citizenship Exam. The exam is composed of 20 multiple choice questions and covers topics such as Canadian history, geography and systems of government. You will be provided with a link to the online study guide after you have submitted your application for Canadian Citizenship. A passing mark on the Canadian Citizenship exam is 15 correct answers.

If you don’t pass the exam on your first attempt, you will be rescheduled to take the exam again in a few weeks. If you are unsuccessful on your second attempt, you will be scheduled for an interview with a citizenship official so that they can speak with you about your knowledge of Canada and determine if you meet the criteria to become a Canadian Citizen.

Applicants under the age of 18 and over the age of 54 do not need to take the Citizenship exam.

On the same day that you write your Canadian Citizenship Exam, you will meet with a government official to present your original documents for inspection and have a brief conversation to verify your language skills.

All Canadian Citizenship applicants over the age of 14 must attend a citizenship ceremony and take the oath of Citizenship. Sometimes your oath ceremony will be scheduled on the same day as your exam, and other times it will be held on a separate day. During the ceremony, you will be presented with your Certificate of Canadian Citizenship and have the opportunity to take a photo with the Citizenship judge.

You can apply online or submit a paper application. Be sure to include the application forms, supporting documents and the Citizenship fee ($630 per adult, $100 per minor child).

Pay careful attention to the documents requested and the format required. It is necessary to include copies of ALL the pages of relevant passports, some of the documents will need to be in color, and you will need to submit front and back copies of some of your ID documents.

In some cases, you may already be a Canadian Citizen and just need to apply for a Citizenship Certificate so that you can obtain a Canadian passport. If one of your parents or grandparents was Canadian, and you were born before 2009, there is a good chance that you became a Canadian citizen when you were born.

For those born outside of Canada to a Canadian Citizen in 2009 or later, the situation is less clear and will depend on where your parents were born. If you find yourself in this situation, it would be a good idea to set up an appointment with a professional in order to review the complex rules with respect to Canadian citizenship and determine what your options might be.

Yes, you do not need a valid PR card when you apply for Canadian Citizenship. If you have been inside Canada with an expired PR card, you are still considered to be a Permanent Resident of Canada and you are eligible to apply for Canadian Citizenship.

Yes, you can leave Canada after applying for Citizenship, as long as you maintain your Permanent Resident status and you can return to Canada to take the Oath of Citizenship when it’s time to do so. Although you can obtain special permission to take the Canadian Citizenship test from outside Canada, you must be physically present in Canada when you take the Oath of Citizenship.

Canada does not prohibit dual citizenship. You will need to check the rules related to your country of origin to understand if acquiring Canadian Citizenship will mean that you lose your original citizenship.

The Canadian Citizenship test is an online, multiple choice test consisting of 20 questions related to the Canadian government and political system. You will need to score at least 15 correct answers, within 30 minutes, to pass your test.

The Canadian government has published a study guide of preparation materials for the Canadian Citizenship test. You can study the guide online, you can order a paper copy to study from, or you can also listen to the audio version of the study guide.

Applicants are normally given three attempts to take the Canadian Citizenship test. If you do not pass the Citizenship test within three attempts, you will be referred to a Canadian Citizenship judge for an interview to ensure that you understand the rights and obligations of Canadian Citizenship.

Canadian citizenship processing times are generally around 8-12 months from start to finish. Applications can take longer when fingerprints are requested, when the applicant has a criminal record, or for applicants from certain countries where background checks take longer to complete.

A minor child does not need to live in Canada for any specific length of time in order to apply for Canadian Citizenship, as long as the child has maintained their PR status and at least one parent has achieved Canadian Citizenship, or will be applying for Canadian citizenship at the same time as the child.

You can submit proof that you studied at the high school or post-secondary level in one of Canada’s official languages, or you can take an English or French exam that is recognized by IRCC. If you are taking an official exam, you need to be tested on only the Listening and speaking components. Furthermore, if you have previously taken an exam for one of Canada’s official languages, you can submit the test score no matter how old the results are. You need to obtain a CLB 4 of higher in each of listening and speaking in order to be eligible for Canadian Citizenship. If you are 54 years of age or older, you do not need proof of language skills.

In some instances, an individual may wish to renounce Canadian Citizenship in order to acquire the nationality of another country that does not permit dual Citizenship, or for other reasons like wanting to avoid paying Canadian income taxes on world income, for example. In other instances, changes to the Canadian Citizenship act over the years means that someone who has never considered themselves a Canadian citizen, became Canadian due to changes in the law. It is possible to submit an application to formally renounce Canadian Citizenship as long as you meet the following criteria:

• You have Citizenship of a different country
• You are not living in Canada
• You are over 18 years old
• You must have capacity to understand the decision you are making
• You are not already involved in a process of losing your Citizenship due to Canada deciding to strip your Citizenship

As of the date of writing for this article, it is taking 14 months to process an application to Renounce Canadian Citizenship; however it is possible to apply for urgent processing in certain circumstances.