Hypothetical Question About the 1977 Act

[Human Errer]

Hypothetical:

Someone born in the US in June 1981 to a mother who had been naturalized in Canada as a minor in 1974 - are they a Canadian by birth?

Would they have been required to file to retain citizenship before turning 28, or did they just make it with the 2009 Act? It's all very confusing.

Thanks in advance.

 

[primaprime]

Such a person would likely be a citizen by birth.

 

[Human Errer]

Such a person would likely be a citizen by birth.

Thank you for your response. I was worried that my mother may not be a Canadian citizen now because she was only in Canada briefly, but she was told at the border in 1990 when she went to Montreal for a concert that she was a Canadian citizen. I’m just not sure how everything works with the 1977 Act and that weird clause about filing to retain your citizenship by age 28. If she has since lost her citizenship because she didn’t file to retain it, does that mean I lost mine, too?

You’ve answered my question - I’m just wondering out loud. This whole process is stressing me out. Thanks.

 

[primaprime]

No, you don't lose citizenship unless you explicitly renounce it.

 

[Human Errer]

No, you don't lose citizenship unless you explicitly renounce it.

Yeah, that was my understanding in general. I’ve read in older threads here that the 1977 Act made people who left Canada for more than a year have to file to retain their citizenship before their 28th birthday, and the application I just got done filling out for proof of citizenship asked about that specifically, so i was just worried that I might fall into some strange loophole. Again, thank you for clarifying.

 

[hawk39]

Under the 1977 Act, the application for retention was only required for those born abroad in the second and subsequent generation before 1977. One of the conditions for retention was that the applicant had to show significant ties to Canada, with one option being that the applicant had lived in Canada for at least a full year before applying.

 

[Human Errer]

Under the 1977 Act, the application for retention was only required for those born abroad in the second and subsequent generation before 1977. One of the conditions for retention was that the applicant had to show significant ties to Canada, with one option being that the applicant had lived in Canada for at least a full year before applying.

Thank you so much for clarifying! This really takes a load off my back. Now I can focus on learning all about hockey, Labatt Blue, and Celine Deon in order to feel like a true Canadian! lol

Seriously, though - this took a huge load off my mind. I’m now 99% confident that I was born a Canadian citizen and will (at least eventually) be able to move to America’s better half. Maybe I’ll move to Quebec, as my mother’s maiden name is one of the most popular surnames there...