Am I Canadian?

[joyo1966]

1. I was born in Quebec in 1966
2. My parents were British
3. Moved to the States in 1968
4. Naturalized US citizen
5. Want to move to Canada

 

[tmota]

I'm sorry to tell you this, but under current law, you are not:

Citizenship Act

R.S.C., 1985, c. C-29

PART I
The Right to Citizenship
Marginal noteersons who are citizens

3 (1) Subject to this Act, a person is a citizen if

(a) the person was born in Canada after February 14, 1977;

Source: http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/C-29/page-1.html#h-3

That doesn't mean you can't move to Canada. You'll have to do it as an immigrant - which will grant you access to citizenship in the future.

 

[Rigly68]

The Op was born in Canada...so yes he/she most likely is a Canadian Citizen. Unless one or both parents had diplomatic status at the time of birth.
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/citizenship/rules/index.asp

 

[joyo1966]

Neither had diplomatic status. I will check with the Consulate. I have sent for my orignal birth certificate to get the process started,

 

[joyo1966]

I believe I am: ;D
Canadian Citizenship Through Birth in Canada

Written by Henry J. Chang
Overview
Prior to January 1, 1947, there was no citizenship statute in existence. Canada was in a curious position of being a nation without citizens. This was corrected on January 1, 1947 with the Canadian Citizenship Act, S.C. 1946, c.15 (the "Former Act"). The Former Act recognized Canadian citizenship for the first time.

The current Citizenship Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. C-29 (the "Current Act") replaced the Former Act on February 15, 1977. It contains various provisions designed to preserve the citizenship rights of citizens under the Former Act. It also recognizes limited citizenship rights for persons born in Canada before the Former Act came into effect. Both statutes are discussed below.

Persons Born in Canada After February 14, 1977

Section 3(1)(a) of the Current Act states that anyone born in Canada after February 14, 1977 is considered a Canadian citizen. This was the date that the Current Act came into force.

Persons Born in Canada After December 31, 1946 But Before February 15, 1977

The Former Act stated that a person born after the 31st day of 1946 was a natural-born Canadian citizen if he/she was born in Canada or on a Canadian ship. Section 3(1)(d) preserves this provision of the Former Act by confirming that a person who was a citizen immediately before February 15, 1977 continued to be a Canadian citizen.

 

[Rigly68]

Neither had diplomatic status. I will check with the Consulate. I have sent for my orignal birth certificate to get the process started,

Yes you will need a birth certificate.

For more information on proof of your status you can see here: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/citizenship/proof.asp

 

[alphazip]

1. I was born in Quebec in 1966
2. My parents were British
3. Moved to the States in 1968
4. Naturalized US citizen
5. Want to move to Canada

You're definitely a Canadian citizen (as well as a British & U.S. citizen). Anyone who says otherwise doesn't know what they're talking about!

(If you became a U.S. citizen before 1977, you would have lost your Canadian citizenship, but regained it on April 17, 2009.)

All you need to get a Canadian passport is your birth certificate (which must have been issued by the province of Quebec on or after January 1, 1994...your 1966 certificate is no longer recognized).

Look here: http://www.etatcivil.gouv.qc.ca/en/default.html

 

[alphazip]

I'm sorry to tell you this, but under current law, you are not:

Persons who are citizens
3 (1) Subject to this Act, a person is a citizen if
(a) the person was born in Canada after February 14, 1977;

Source: http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/C-29/page-1.html#h-3

That doesn't mean you can't move to Canada. You'll have to do it as an immigrant - which will grant you access to citizenship in the future.

Huh? Only people born in Canada after February 14, 1977 are citizens? Wow! That mean's that everyone born here who is over age 39 isn't Canadian! That's one way of cutting down on Old Age Security costs, I guess. LOL

 

[tmota]

Huh? Only people born in Canada after February 14, 1977 are citizens? Wow! That mean's that everyone born here who is over age 39 isn't Canadian! That's one way of cutting down on Old Age Security costs, I guess. LOL

There are more to the law, you can read everything in the link if you will. The thing about the OP is that he was born before the time the law indicates, to non-Canadian parents. In the link posted by Rigly68, if you follow the "Am I a Canadian Citizen" tool and answer the first few questions, the answer comes as not Canadian. It might sound strange, but that's what the law, and the tool, says. Believe it or not, being born in a country does not automatically grant citizenship. Several countries require blood ties as well - which seems to be the case for people born in Canada before 1977.

If a person was born in Canada, to Canadian parents, she or he would be Canadian regardless of the birth date. But that's just not the case for jojo1966.

All that said, there might be ways for jojo1966 to acquire citizenship that we don't know about, hidden between the lines. Only a government agent can correctly answer that.

 

[Rigly68]

There are more to the law, you can read everything in the link if you will. The thing about the OP is that he was born before the time the law indicates, to non-Canadian parents. In the link posted by Rigly68, if

Actually it comes out as that he is a Canadian according to the online tool. OP was born in Canada and none of the parents had diplomatic status. Entering all this into the tool it clearly states " You are most likely a Canadian".
Alphazip is correct that with the the 2009 act OP regained citizenship that would have been lost under the act you posted.

 

[Sa3Sa3]

Have you tried this online tool?

https://na1.se.voxco.com/SE/56/amicanadiansuisjecanadien/?lang=en&tui=253d262d-5784-4802-b07b-0577ba992625

Which you can find in this page:

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/citizenship/rules/index.asp

 

[alphazip]

There are more to the law, you can read everything in the link if you will. The thing about the OP is that he was born before the time the law indicates, to non-Canadian parents. In the link posted by Rigly68, if you follow the "Am I a Canadian Citizen" tool and answer the first few questions, the answer comes as not Canadian. It might sound strange, but that's what the law, and the tool, says. Believe it or not, being born in a country does not automatically grant citizenship. Several countries require blood ties as well - which seems to be the case for people born in Canada before 1977.

If a person was born in Canada, to Canadian parents, she or he would be Canadian regardless of the birth date. But that's just not the case for jojo1966.

All that said, there might be ways for jojo1966 to acquire citizenship that we don't know about, hidden between the lines. Only a government agent can correctly answer that.

I'm sorry, but you don't know what you're talking about. The person was born in Canada. Like the USA, we have birthright citizenship in Canada. It doesn't matter where his parents were from, if the person was born in Canada (unless his parents were on the staff of a foreign embassy/consulate), that person is a Canadian citizen.

Online tool:

Q: Where were you born? A: in Canada

Q: When were you born? A: on or after January 1, 1947

Q: Did your parents have diplomatic status? A: no

Result: You are probably a Canadian citizen.

 

[tmota]

I'm sorry, but you don't know what you're talking about.

You are right, I don't know what I'm talking about. That's why I went to the citizenship law to check it, and was baffled by the very first paragraph. The law is several paragraphs long and I didn't read it all.

Several countries don't grant citizenship by birthplace, and I though it was the case for Canada before the current law, honest mistake.

Sorry for that.