Am I already a Canadian?

[Daria90]

Hello everybody,
I would like to know if I already have a Canadian citizenship or not. I was born to a Canadian parent who was born abroad and received his citizenship at birth from both his parents. I was born abroad in 1993, when people obtained citizenship automatically even if their parents were born outside Canada. According to what I have read, I received it at birth. But I still have some doubts due to the limits imposed in 2009. I haven't asked for a cit. certificate yet, have I lost my citizenship? Or I can still apply for a certificate and then a passport? Some people claim not. But it seems strange to me, because if I acquired citizenship at birth, I could not have lost it during these years (I wasn't even 28 before 2009!). Thank you in advance!

 

[alphazip]

Yes, if you had not reached age 28 by 2009, when the requirement to retain was abolished, then you are a Canadian citizen. The 2009 changes limited citizenship to the first generation born abroad, but citizenship was not taken away from anyone who already had it.

Caveat: Of course, for you to have inherited citizenship from your father, he had to have been a Canadian citizen when you were born. Depending on his date of birth, was his birth registered, OR, did he retain his citizenship?

 

[Daria90]

Thank you very much for your answer. My father was born in 1972. He is still in possession of the Canadian citizenship. He got the documents in 1994 , I don't know if it was a "retention" or just a proof of citizenship. It would be a great honour for me to be part of this country...

 

[alphazip]

Thank you very much for your answer. My father was born in 1972. He is still in possession of the Canadian citizenship. He got the documents in 1994 , I don't know if it was a "retention" or just a proof of citizenship. It would be a great honour for me to be part of this country...

If born in 1972, your father's birth would have had to be registered, either by his father when he was an infant or by himself in 1994 (delayed registration of birth abroad). If it was the latter, he was still a citizen when you were born in 1993, because his citizenship would have been retroactive to his birth. So, yes, he was a citizen when you were born and you are a citizen now.

One correction to what I wrote previously. Had your father been born in or after 1977, he would not have had to apply to retain his citizenship. Only you, as the 2nd generation born abroad, would have had to do so, if you had been 28 or older on April 17, 2009. More on that here: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/resources/tools/cit/acquisition/retention.asp