New bill makes it easier for children born or adopted abroad to become Canadian citizens

New Canadian citizens take the oath of citizenship during a Canada Day citizenship ceremony at the Assiniboine Park Pavilion in Winnipeg, Man., on Monday July 1, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/David Lipnowski

Ottawa is introducing new legal measures that make it easier for families with adopted children to pass down their Canadian citizenship.

On Monday, Bill C-3, known as An Act to Amend the Citizenship Act (2025) came into effect.

A government press release states that those born before Dec. 15, 2025, “who would not have been citizens if not for the first generation limit or other outdate rules, will be Canadian and can now apply for proof of citizenship.”

The new law allows Canadian parents born or adopted outside of the country to pass on citizenship to their child born or adopted outside Canada. They can do so if they can prove at the time of application that they’ve spent three years in Canada prior to the child’s birth or adoption.

“These changes to our citizenship law reflect how Canadian families live today,” Lena Metlege Diab, minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, said in a release. “Many Canadians choose to study abroad, travel to experience another culture, or relocate for family or personal reasons and still have a meaningful connection to our country.

“This new legislation strengthens the bond between Canadians at home and around the world, and reaffirms the values we hold as a nation,” she continued.

The bill intends to address the issue of so-called “Lost Canadians,” referring to the tens of thousands of children who were born abroad in the past decade and a half. The Parliamentary Budget Officer (PBO) has said that the new law would make at least 115,000 children born outside the country eligible for Canadian citizenship.

The Citizenship Act has been in place since 1947. In December 2023, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice found that aspects of the act, which limited first-generation citizenship by descent, were unconstitutional. Ottawa didn’t appeal the ruling, and Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada introduced an interim measure to assist those impacted by the first-generation limit.

The government said that they will now process applications based on the new rules of Bill C-3, and that people don’t have to submit a new citizenship certificate application.

With files from Kamil Karamali and The Canadian Press