One time Canadian reapplying for Canadian citizenship - Decision made?????

[Canadian_abroad]

Good day eh, (I have this request in another forum as well, but am unsure if it would perhaps be more appropriate in this section.)

I am a "one-time" Canadian living in Germany. I renounced my citizenship in 2006 for the apparent love of my life in order to become a German citizen. (Big mistake) In May of this year I reapplied for my citizenship with all the necessary documentation and fees etc (Police security check, tax information etc - clean bill of health in all respects) and am already starting to make plans to go home (SW Ontario) - because I simply cannot fathom the idea that I could not be reinstated as a Canadian being I was born and raised there etc. Needless to say, I was totally surprised when I called up the CIC site to check my status and noticed that after only 6 weeks that the process status had already been updated to "Decision made".

I can only assume one of two things.

1) That I have been put into the "fast lane" per say because I was already Canadian and that I had a clean track record and that the decision was easy to make. (I had sent all my old Canadian passports, my parents immigration papers when they arrived in Canada and that they were/are Canadian citizens etc).

2) Someone had their knickers in a knot and said "nope - ain't gonna happen."

Has anyone had any experience with this type of quick decision making and if yes, what is the normal outcome? It has been about a week since the status has changed and I am running to my mailbox everyday hoping that an invitation from the Canadian embassy in Berlin is in it so that I can once again carry my Canadian passport and be a proud Canadian with all that it means. (Even though I have a German passport now; my heart still pumps Maple Syrup and I would be so happy to know that I can leave this country and come home to where I know what it is like to be free and not under the political madness that is taking place - and has been here since in arrived in Germany in 1995 - and I want no more to do with it.)

I'd really appreciate hearing from anyone who can give me some information about the "decision making" - because the CIC site is rather "vague" in what "Decision made" actually means. I feel it would be in the CIC's best interest to at least give a positive or negative notation on the website so that the applicant can make necessary arrangements in either direction if necessary.

Greetings from a Canadian abroad

Earl

 

[scylla]

You should be expecting a refusal. If you really officially renounced your citizenship - then you cannot regain citizenship simply by applying for citizenship directly. You must go through the process of applying for permanent residency first (assuming you qualify). Once you have become a PR, you must then meet the citizenship residency requirement by living in Canada for the required number of years - only then would you once again be able to apply for citizenship again.

It has nothing to do with someone having their knickers in a knot. Renouncing citizenship has consequences. You need to follow the proper rules and procedures if you want to eventually regain citizenship status in Canada. This starts by applying for permanent residency since you are no longer Canadian and need to go through the same process as any other non-Canadian to apply. Start by reading here: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/immigrate/apply.asp I would focus on the Express Entry / Federal Skilled Worker program and also the Provincial Nominee programs.

 

[h3a3j6]

I beg to differ, you CAN resume your citizenship after renouncing it.

Have you used the following form when applying? It should be an application to RESUME Canadian citizenship after renouncing it: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/applications/guides/CIT0301ETOC.asp

However...

As per the CIC's website, it is now taking 16 months on average for an application to reach the decision taken process. With your "short" 6 months, I'd be more inclined to say it was refused.

Are you in Canada or have someone who represents you living here? If yes, you may want to submit an ATIP request to get all the details.

In all cases you'll be getting an official letter soon.

 

[scylla]

I beg to differ, you CAN resume your citizenship after renouncing it.

Have you used the following form when applying? It should be an application to RESUME Canadian citizenship after renouncing it: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/applications/guides/CIT0301ETOC.asp

However...

As per the CIC's website, it is now taking 16 months on average for an application to reach the decision taken process. With your "short" 6 months, I'd be more inclined to say it was refused.

Are you in Canada or have someone who represents you living here? If yes, you may want to submit an ATIP request to get all the details.

In all cases you'll be getting an official letter soon.

See the requirements for resuming citizenship. Here's the direct quote from CIC's site:

Who can apply to resume their Canadian citizenship?

To qualify to resume your Canadian citizenship you must:

-have been a Canadian citizen;
-have lost your Canadian citizenship by means other than revocation;
-not be under a removal order (asked by Canadian officials to leave Canada);
-have become a permanent resident of Canada after the loss of your Canadian citizenship;
-not have any unfulfilled immigration conditions linked to your permanent resident status;
-have been physically present in Canada as a permanent resident for at least 365 days during the two (2) years immediately before you apply;
-have met any applicable requirement under the Income Tax Act to file income taxes for the taxation year immediately before the year in which you are applying for citizenship;
intend to:
-continue to reside in Canada,
-enter into, or continue in, employment outside Canada in or with the Canadian Armed Forces, the federal public administration or the public service of a province, otherwise than as a locally engaged person, or
-reside with your spouse, common-law partner, or parent who is a Canadian citizen or permanent resident and is employed outside Canada in or with the Canadian Armed Forces, the federal public administration or the public service of a province, otherwise than as a locally engaged person; and
not be subject to any prohibition under the Citizenship Act (see Section 9 of the application).

 

[links18]

See the requirements for resuming citizenship. Here's the direct quote from CIC's site:

Who can apply to resume their Canadian citizenship?

To qualify to resume your Canadian citizenship you must:

-have been a Canadian citizen;
-have lost your Canadian citizenship by means other than revocation;
-not be under a removal order (asked by Canadian officials to leave Canada);
-have become a permanent resident of Canada after the loss of your Canadian citizenship;
-not have any unfulfilled immigration conditions linked to your permanent resident status;
-have been physically present in Canada as a permanent resident for at least 365 days during the two (2) years immediately before you apply;
-have met any applicable requirement under the Income Tax Act to file income taxes for the taxation year immediately before the year in which you are applying for citizenship;
intend to:
-continue to reside in Canada,
-enter into, or continue in, employment outside Canada in or with the Canadian Armed Forces, the federal public administration or the public service of a province, otherwise than as a locally engaged person, or
-reside with your spouse, common-law partner, or parent who is a Canadian citizen or permanent resident and is employed outside Canada in or with the Canadian Armed Forces, the federal public administration or the public service of a province, otherwise than as a locally engaged person; and
not be subject to any prohibition under the Citizenship Act (see Section 9 of the application).

Surely, OP would have seen all this when they applied--unless they just ignored the instructions altogether?

 

[nope]

I sympathize with your situation, I thought about this issue a great deal, since becoming a Canadian citizen; I considered renouncing my American citizenship, and not applying for my kids to receive it either. In the end I didn't, and did apply for my children, simply because citizenship is the only thing that gives you the right to a country -- the right to enter it and live there. Without it, you are always asking for permission.

I suspect that Scylla is right -- if a renounced citizenship could be renewed with so little process, that would be privileging non-Canadians of Canadian origin over everyone else, which wouldn't really have a legal basis. Do you think that you have a chance of qualifying for Permanent Residency?

 

[Canadian_abroad]

Hello,

As h3a3j6 had Indicated, I have filled out the application to RESUME Canadian Citizenship.....which according to instructions, I am allowed to do even after renouncing it previously. I was born and raised by Canadian parents in Canada and did not have my citizenship revoked or any other dubious means, rather renounced it in order to take on a different citizenship which at the time was the only real alternative I had had here in Germany.

I also spoke with the CIC prior to filling out the application and paying the fees, and they confirmed that the application "Resume Canadian Citizenship" was the correct form even if I lived in a different country and that I did not require the PR status. (I have email confirmation from the CIC that this was the correct method)

So naturally this has made me now very unsure as to what has happened with my application. The CIC informed me that it was the proper way and now I am being told in a forum that it was incorrect.

I will of course share the outcome when I receive the paperwork one way or the other. Either the CIC has misinformed me, or certain members in the forum are misinformed.

 

[alphazip]

Hello,

As h3a3j6 had Indicated, I have filled out the application to RESUME Canadian Citizenship.....which according to instructions, I am allowed to do even after renouncing it previously. I was born and raised by Canadian parents in Canada and did not have my citizenship revoked or any other dubious means, rather renounced it in order to take on a different citizenship which at the time was the only real alternative I had had here in Germany.

I also spoke with the CIC prior to filling out the application and paying the fees, and they confirmed that the application "Resume Canadian Citizenship" was the correct form even if I lived in a different country and that I did not require the PR status. (I have email confirmation from the CIC that this was the correct method)

So naturally this has made me now very unsure as to what has happened with my application. The CIC informed me that it was the proper way and now I am being told in a forum that it was incorrect.

I will of course share the outcome when I receive the paperwork one way or the other. Either the CIC has misinformed me, or certain members in the forum are misinformed.

Sorry, but I agree with scylla. See: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/resources/tools/cit/acquisition/resumption.asp

"Who can resume citizenship?

Any person who was previously a Canadian citizen, other than a person whose citizenship was revoked under the former or present Citizenship Act, can resume citizenship under subsection 11(1) if they have since acquired permanent resident status and meet the other requirements for resumption."

You have not acquired PR status, so you do not qualify.

Renouncing one's citizenship is a big step that should never be taken if there is any chance that you will need it again. (Just ask Conrad Black!) If you are determined to return to Canada, you will need to be accepted as a permanent resident, then live here for one full year (much less time than for other immigrants) before applying for resumption.

 

[canuck_in_uk]

I also spoke with the CIC prior to filling out the application and paying the fees, and they confirmed that the application "Resume Canadian Citizenship" was the correct form even if I lived in a different country and that I did not require the PR status. (I have email confirmation from the CIC that this was the correct method)

So naturally this has made me now very unsure as to what has happened with my application. The CIC informed me that it was the proper way and now I am being told in a forum that it was incorrect.

This forum is full of people who received bad information from the CIC call centre. Call 3 times and you will get 3 answers.

Here is the actual text from the Citizenship Act:

http://laws.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/C-29/page-5.html#h-5

Resumption by application

11 (1) The Minister shall grant citizenship to any person who, having ceased to be a citizen,

(a) makes an application for resumption of citizenship;

(b) is not the subject of an order made under section 10, as it read immediately before the coming into force of section 8 of the Strengthening Canadian Citizenship Act, a decision made under section 10, a declaration made under section 10.1 or an order made under section 18 of the former Act;

(b.1) is not the subject of a declaration made under section 20;

(c) is not under a removal order;

(d) has become a permanent resident within the meaning of subsection 2(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, has, subject to the regulations, no unfulfilled conditions under that Act relating to his or her status as a permanent resident and has, since having ceased to be a citizen and become a permanent resident,

(i) been physically present in Canada for at least 365 days during the two years immediately before the date of the application, and

(ii) met any applicable requirement under the Income Tax Act to file a return of income in respect of the taxation year immediately before the year in which the application is made; and

 

[alphazip]

It appears that Conrad Black's lawyer realizes that Black has to become a PR (normally closed to those with criminal records) before applying to resume his citizenship:

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/cra-put-liens-on-conrad-black-home-fearing-flight-from-tax-debts/article30462150/

"Mr. Nathanson acknowledged Mr. Black faces financial difficulties, but he insisted his client plans to apply for permanent residency and eventually his Canadian citizenship."

Black says that his plan all along was to renounce his Canadian citizenship "temporaily", then apply to get it back:

http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/conrad-black-meant-to-renounce-canadian-citizenship-temporarily-1.2094865

 

[Loulou79]

Surely, OP would have seen all this when they applied--unless they just ignored the instructions altogether?

OP stands 4 what? thanks

 

[pie_vancouver]

^original poster

 

[Loulou79]

^original poster

lol thanks!