My daughter was issued a Certificate of Canadian Citizenship about 5 months ago. I just applied for her passport, and a note came back from Passport Canada that when they checked her Certificate of Citizenship that her citizenship had been cancelled. How can this be? I didn't even know about it, and I suspect that this would be illegal without due process. I am absolutely floored by the unfairness of this.
Can Immigration Canada cancel Canadian Citizenship
- Thread starter lightfoot44
- Start date
Canadian citizenship can be canceled. But there has to be a good reason (e.g. citizenship was obtained through misrepresentation).
I agree with Leon. You should contact CIC immediately.
I agree with Leon. You should contact CIC immediately.
It would be helpful to know if you are willing to share:lightfoot44 said:
1. How she obtained Canadian Citizenship i.e. naturalization, born abroad to a Canadian etc.
2. When did she apply for citizenship if naturalization?
My daughter is 8 years old, and we adopted her. She is the niece of my wife by blood. She received Canadian citizenship through the fact that I am a natural born Canadian, and she received Canadian Citizenship through naturalization. I would not have known about this, but I just recently applied for her passport and Passport Canada was told by CIC to send all the passport application documents back to us, and I have mailed both the Canadian Consulate with jurisdiction over our area, and CIC. I want this all in writing for obvious reasons. I applied for her Citizenship 3 years ago. We received her Citizenship Certificate 7 months ago. Both my wife and I live in the USA, and our daughter is presently in the Philippines.
The only issue I can see that perhaps CIC believes your niece was adopted as a means of getting her to Canada. In other words, she wasn't adopted because she is an orphan or because you have effectively played the role of her parents for years. Instead her parents are still alive and well and taking care of her as parents should. However they agreed to have you adopt her to give her a way of getting status in Canada.
Why did you adopt her? Is she an orphan (both parents deceased)? Who has been taking care of her while you and your wife have been living in the US?
Why did you adopt her? Is she an orphan (both parents deceased)? Who has been taking care of her while you and your wife have been living in the US?
Both of her parents abandoned her, and she has been living with my sister in law. It wasn't a way to get her into Canada because we don't even live there. It was a way to unite her with us, with the possibility of all of us moving to Canada in the future. I was straightforward with CIC about everything, and never misrepresented anything whatsoever. The orphan rule only applies to the idiot policies of the US Immigration System. My daughter has a right to be a Canadian Citizen because I was freaking born in Canada. I'm really fed up with ridiculous rules, which do nothing except obstruct us in doing the right thing, and I'm fed up with dumb bureaucrats interfering in our lives. I've never heard of a country canceling citizenship, with no due process, and not even a notification? Those are the policies of the Soviet Union and Communist China. I'm so pissed off about this.
First you need to find out what happened. Then you need a lawyer. It is possible that they felt the the adoption was just in order to get her a passport. You can appeal this. You could also go to the media but you should find out what happened before you do. It would look stupid to go to the media and then find out it was all a misunderstanding.
We adopted her almost 8 years ago, so it has nothing to do with a passport. We've gone through both the US Immigration System to no avail due to a 2 year residency requirement before they will issue a visa, and now Canada, which I thought was more enlightened. Looks like I was wrong on both counts. It's just typical, that when you try to do something worthwhile and good, that government steps in the way and screws it all up.Leon said:
I have heard that some people who file for citizenship for an adopted child do have some difficulty in getting a passport, for reasons I don't know. Whether that's true or not, I guess I'll find out, if they ever answer my letters.
One thing I would ask, is if someone thought that she shouldn't get Citizenship, then why issue the Citizenship Certificate? Another thing I would ask, is why weren't we informed about anything? It's ok for her to be a Canadian Citizen, but not get a passport? This whole thing is giving me a headache...it's all way too stupid. What's next? Are they going to cancel my birth certificate and my Canadian Citizenship too? What the hell is this, the Twilight Zone?
This is a more complicated case that needs legal attention. With adoption your province or territory in Canada would be involved with approval as part of the process. Do you have a record of this approval from the province in additon to the other paperwork used for the application to CIC?
I'm a Canadian abroad. My wife and I live in the USA. We met all adoption requirements in the US except an impossible 2 year straight residency requirement to live with her in the Philippines. That requirement is stupid and impossible to accomplish since I would lose my job. CIC had everything....and they issued her a Citizenship Certificate, so I don't understand what the hell their problem is. What is it they do back there anyway? Just print up Certificates and mail them out even if they're not valid? I thought the US Immigration system was goofy and lame.....I beginning to think Canada is worse, and a damn sight less professional.Msafiri said:
There is a paper trail for this and the first thing would be to retrieve it so as to better understand what is going on.
CIC can and does err in processing applications - there may have been an incorrect approval (this is my initial impression) or they may have mixed up details at either CIC or the passport office. Go to the CIC site and review the process for obtaining your personal information on your application then send a request for this pending a response from the Canadian visa.
Out of interest how much contact by way of visits do you have with your adopted daughter?
CIC can and does err in processing applications - there may have been an incorrect approval (this is my initial impression) or they may have mixed up details at either CIC or the passport office. Go to the CIC site and review the process for obtaining your personal information on your application then send a request for this pending a response from the Canadian visa.
Out of interest how much contact by way of visits do you have with your adopted daughter?
So neither of you have spent much time with your daughter after the adoption because you can not get her to the US? I think immigration would look at that you adopted her but you continue to live in the US and she is over there. They look at that it is your wife's niece and they figure you are still seeing her as your niece and not your daughter because you are not willing to drop everything to stay with her. Would it be enough if your wife stayed with her for 2 years?
I have no idea what happened with Canadian immigration. Have you talked to a lawyer? I don't think they can issue a citizenship certificate and then just revoke it without even telling you.
I have no idea what happened with Canadian immigration. Have you talked to a lawyer? I don't think they can issue a citizenship certificate and then just revoke it without even telling you.
Lightfoot44,
Part of the requirements when applying for an adopted minor where the sponsor (you) is not residing in Canada or where the adopted child will not be returning to Canada are covered under 5.1 of the Citizenship Regulations i.e.
(c) whether, in all other cases,
(i) a competent authority has conducted or approved a home study of the parent or parents, as the case may be,
(ii) before the adoption, the person’s parent or parents, as the case may be, gave their free and informed consent to the adoption,
(iii) the pre-existing legal parent-child relationship was permanently severed by the adoption, and
(iv) there is no evidence that the adoption was for the purpose of child trafficking or undue gain within the meaning of the Hague Convention on Adoption.
Did you have (i), (ii) and (iii) in your case?
Part of the requirements when applying for an adopted minor where the sponsor (you) is not residing in Canada or where the adopted child will not be returning to Canada are covered under 5.1 of the Citizenship Regulations i.e.
(c) whether, in all other cases,
(i) a competent authority has conducted or approved a home study of the parent or parents, as the case may be,
(ii) before the adoption, the person’s parent or parents, as the case may be, gave their free and informed consent to the adoption,
(iii) the pre-existing legal parent-child relationship was permanently severed by the adoption, and
(iv) there is no evidence that the adoption was for the purpose of child trafficking or undue gain within the meaning of the Hague Convention on Adoption.
Did you have (i), (ii) and (iii) in your case?