- By Andrew Carvajal
Government Makes Radical Changes to Citizenship Rules
This article by Andrew Carvajal was originally published in the summer edition of the BEST Magazine.
There is no better topic to be discussing on the BEST Magazine issue commemorating Canada’s 150 years than citizenship. On June 19, 2017, the long awaited amendments to Canada’s Citizenship Act received Royal Assent. According to the government’s announcement, “Changes to the Citizenship Act reflect the Government’s commitments to streamline the citizenship process, enhance program integrity, and repeal certain provisions of the Act that treated dual citizens differently than other Canadians” (https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/news/2017/06/citizenship_billreceivesroyalassent.html).
It is important to note that while some changes to the Citizenship Act took effect immediately, many changes remain to be implemented in the fall of 2017 or next year. This includes some of the much anticipated changes to the days of residency required to apply for citizenship.
Below I have summarized the most important changes to the Citizenship Act, making comparisons between the former Act and the new one, while noting the proposed timelines for implementation of these changes.
These changes are exciting and will certainly be welcomed by a number of applicants looking to become Canadians in the near future.
Andrew Carvajal is a Toronto lawyer and partner at Desloges Law Group specializing in immigration law, administrative law and Small Claims Court litigation.
Twitter: @CarvajalLaw
Email: acarvajal@desloges.ca
