What is citizenship by descent? A look at Canada’s new proposal

The federal government is looking to make it easier for people not born in Canada but are the grandchild of a grandparent who is Canadian to obtain citizenship.

Canada has introduced legislation that would expand on who can become a Canadian citizen on the basis of descent, saying holding citizenship “lies at the heart of what it means to be Canadian.”

The federal government introduced Bill C-3 on Thursday, which it says will extend citizenship by descent beyond the first generation.

The new bill tackles issues that surrounds Canada’s current first-generation limit.

Under that limit, a child born outside the country to a parent also born or adopted by a Canadian citizen while not in Canada does not receive citizenship upon birth, even though the grandparent was from Canada. While the parent could receive citizenship, their child could not.

Bill C-3 would change that, the government says, by automatically giving Canadian citizenship to anyone who would be a citizen today were it not for that first-generation limit or other provisions of previous citizenship legislation.

The bill, however, goes further by establishing a framework for citizenship by descent that would allow people to access it beyond the first generation based on a Canadian parent’s substantial connection to Canada. That connection is demonstrated by spending at least three years, or 1,095 cumulative days, physically in the country prior to their child’s birth or adoption.

“Citizenship is more than a legal status – it’s a profound connection to the values, history, and spirit of Canada,” said Immigration Minister Lena Metlege Diab in a statement.

“By requiring those who pass citizenship to their children born abroad beyond the first generation to have a substantial connection to our country, we are honouring that bond.”