citzenship by descent help!

[cmckenzie]

Hello,
I am at the beginning of my journey to apply for proof of citizenship. My father was born in Canada but moved to the US as a child. He has only permanent residency in the US. He does not have his Canadian citizenship ID, but has his original hospital birth certificate. Am I eligible to become a citizenship through decent? If so how do I find my fathers ID and or proof of Canadian citzenship. I am not sure where to start in this process so any feedback helps. Thank you!

 

[Seym]

You're probably a canadian citizen. Check the tool here to confirm : https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/canadian-citizenship/become-canadian-citizen/eligibility/already-citizen.html

If so, you'll need to ask for a proof of citizenship, for which you probably don't need your father's canadian citizenship certificate. Sending your application with a certified copy of both your dad's provincial birth certificate and your own birth certificate listing him as your father should do. Everything you need to know is explicited here :
https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/canadian-citizenship/proof-citizenship.html

 

[screech339]

Hello,
I am at the beginning of my journey to apply for proof of citizenship. My father was born in Canada but moved to the US as a child. He has only permanent residency in the US. He does not have his Canadian citizenship ID, but has his original hospital birth certificate. Am I eligible to become a citizenship through decent? If so how do I find my fathers ID and or proof of Canadian citzenship. I am not sure where to start in this process so any feedback helps. Thank you!

I don't think CIC will accept a hospital birth certificate. They will be wanting your father's birth certificate issued by the province your father was born in. Note below it does not list hospital birth certificate as one of the accepted IDs.Your father would have to apply for a new birth certificate. Once he has that, you can use it to apply for your own Canadian citizenship through descent.

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/helpcentre/answer.asp?qnum=371&top=5

What documents should I send with my application for a citizenship certificate (also known as proof of citizenship)?
When you apply for a citizenship certificate, you must include supporting documents. See Documents You Must Send With Your Application for the complete list.

If you are applying for a citizenship certificate for the first time, you must send original documents or certified photocopies. If you are applying for a replacement certificate, you can send photocopies of your documents.

If you are a Canadian citizen because you were born outside Canada to a Canadian parent, you will have to provide:

• A birth certificate that was issued by the government in the country where you were born and that lists your parents’ names;
• Evidence that one parent was a Canadian citizen at the time of your birth.

If you were born in Canada, the birth certificate issued by the province or territory where you were born is your proof of Canadian citizenship.

Birth certificates issued by the Government of Quebec before January 1, 1994, are no longer accepted when you apply for a citizenship certificate. For more information, contact the Directeur de l’état civil du Québec.

 

[alphazip]

You did not give your date of birth, but if your father never ceased being a Canadian citizen, you may have been a Canadian citizen from birth. If not, you became a Canadian citizen due to citizenship legislation that took effect in 2009. Again, depending on your date of birth, if you have any children born before April 17,2009, they may also be Canadian citizens (if they hadn't reached the age of 28 by that date). If you have children, please supply dates of birth (yours and theirs) to learn more.

Do a search on the province where your father was born and "birth certificate" to find the provincial office where your father needs to apply for his birth certificate. You will need to send the original or a certified copy with your proof of citizenship application.

 

[screech339]

You did not give your date of birth, but if your father never ceased being a Canadian citizen, you may have been a Canadian citizen from birth. If not, you became a Canadian citizen due to citizenship legislation that took effect in 2009. Again, depending on your date of birth, if you have any children born before April 17,2009, they may also be Canadian citizens (if they hadn't reached the age of 28 by that date). If you have children, please supply dates of birth (yours and theirs) to learn more.

Do a search on the province where your father was born and "birth certificate" to find the provincial office where your father needs to apply for his birth certificate. You will need to send the original or a certified copy with your proof of citizenship application.

You only need to send certified copy of birth certificate, original birth certificate not required to send. They will not return any documents.

 

[alphazip]

You only need to send certified copy of birth certificate, original birth certificate not required to send. They will not return any documents.

While the applicant only needs to send a certified copy, in many U.S. states a notary is not allowed to make a certified copy of a birth certificate (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Certified_copy). The person may be able to find a notary who, possibly ignorant of state law, will do so anyway, or he/she can book an appointment with a Canadian consulate and have the certification done there. For many people, the simplest course of action is to send the original of the birth certificate as received from the vital statistics office, though it will not be returned.

See discussion here: https://www.canadavisa.com/canada-immigration-discussion-board/threads/who-can-certify-documents-in-the-us.472960/

 

[screech339]

While the applicant only needs to send a certified copy, in many U.S. states a notary is not allowed to make a certified copy of a birth certificate (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Certified_copy). The person may be able to find a notary who, possibly ignorant of state law, will do so anyway, or he/she can book an appointment with a Canadian consulate and have the certification done there. For many people, the simplest course of action is to send the original of the birth certificate as received from the vital statistics office, though it will not be returned.

See discussion here: https://www.canadavisa.com/canada-immigration-discussion-board/threads/who-can-certify-documents-in-the-us.472960/

You got a point there. Forgot that the father is in the US. Strange that I was able to certify my copy of birth certificate without any issues in NJ while there. Perhaps it is either NJ is one of the states allowed or the notary wasn't aware of the NJ state law. Maybe it was allowed if it was a Canadian birth certificate as oppose to US birth certificate.

 

[alphazip]

You got a point there. Forgot that the father is in the US. Strange that I was able to certify my copy of birth certificate without any issues in NJ while there. Perhaps it is either NJ is one of the states allowed or the notary wasn't aware of the NJ state law. Maybe it was allowed if it was a Canadian birth certificate as oppose to US birth certificate.

New Jersey notaries are not allowed to make true copies of any document, but that's not to say that you can't find one who doesn't know (or doesn't care) about that rule.

 

[cmckenzie]

While the applicant only needs to send a certified copy, in many U.S. states a notary is not allowed to make a certified copy of a birth certificate (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Certified_copy). The person may be able to find a notary who, possibly ignorant of state law, will do so anyway, or he/she can book an appointment with a Canadian consulate and have the certification done there. For many people, the simplest course of action is to send the original of the birth certificate as received from the vital statistics office, though it will not be returned.

See discussion here: https://www.canadavisa.com/canada-immigration-discussion-board/threads/who-can-certify-documents-in-the-us.472960/

This was my next question! I can’t seem to find someone who will certify a birth certificate, so it would probably be easier to just obtain a new one and send that in. Thanks for your help!

 

[cmckenzie]

You did not give your date of birth, but if your father never ceased being a Canadian citizen, you may have been a Canadian citizen from birth. If not, you became a Canadian citizen due to citizenship legislation that took effect in 2009. Again, depending on your date of birth, if you have any children born before April 17,2009, they may also be Canadian citizens (if they hadn't reached the age of 28 by that date). If you have children, please supply dates of birth (yours and theirs) to learn more.

Do a search on the province where your father was born and "birth certificate" to find the provincial office where your father needs to apply for his birth certificate. You will need to send the original or a certified copy with your proof of citizenship application.

Thank you for your response! I was born in 1991, and do not have any children. My father was in the United States when I was born, however never renounced his Canadian citzenship. He is still only a permanent resident in the US. He did leave Canada before 1977, so I am not sure if that makes a difference. He was born in Quebec, and it looks like he only has his hospital birth certificate. So I guess my next step is to retrieve a certificate from Quebec? Thanks again for your help

 

[hawk39]

He did leave Canada before 1977, so I am not sure if that makes a difference.

Nope, as long as he did not officially renounce his citizenship, it does not make a bit of difference. As a first generation born abroad, you are a Canadian citizen by descent.

He was born in Quebec, and it looks like he only has his hospital birth certificate. So I guess my next step is to retrieve a certificate from Quebec?

Unfortunately, Quebec birth certificates before 1994 are not recognized by IRCC. Per the instructions:

Quebec government documents
The following documents issued by the government of Quebec before January 1, 1994 are not acceptable documents in support of an application for a citizenship certificate.

• baptismal certificates
• birth certificates, and
• marriage certificates.

For more information. If you are currently in possession of one of these certificates you must obtain a new document by contacting the office of the Directeur de l’état civil du Québec

You'll need to apply for a new birth certificate from the Quebec government to use with your application. Use the link provided above to do so.