Canada recently changed its citizenship-by-descent laws—opening the door for millions of people worldwide to finally claim Canadian citizenship. If you have Canadian parents, grandparents, or close ancestors, you may now qualify—even if you were previously told you didn't.
Major Law Changes in Effect
Canada has made massive changes to citizenship by descent. More generations may now qualify, past rejections may no longer apply, and lost citizenship may be restorable.
In recent years, Canada updated its citizenship-by-descent rules to fix long-standing limitations that blocked many descendants from qualifying.
The updated rules expand eligibility to additional generations, opening doors for descendants who were previously excluded.
Many past decisions are now outdated. New rules equal new opportunities for those who were previously denied.
If citizenship was lost under previous rules, you may now be able to restore it under the updated legislation.
Children born outside Canada to Canadian parents may now have pathways to citizenship that didn't exist before.
Many people who thought "I don't qualify" actually do under the new rules.