This site recounts my personal journey to apply for proof of Canadian citizenship. It is not legal advice. For official info check out the Government of Canada’s IRCC
Questions People Ask Me
Check out the Glossary for definitions of commonly used terms
How did I know that I was a Canadian Citizen?
1
In 2025, the Canadian government amended the law and provided new guidance. They said:
1) If you were born before 15 December 2025, the first-generation limit for citizenship by descent (i.e., there is NO generational limit for these people). Note that it says that there’s some different requirements for people who have been adopted or have someone in the family line that was adopted.
2) If you were born after 15 December 2025 (wow look at you reading already!), to a Canadian parent also born or adopted abroad, you must demonstrate that their Canadian parent has spent three years (or 1,095 cumulative days) in Canada when applying for proof of Canadian citizenship, or applying for Canadian citizenship for an adopted child.
I was born well before 2025, and I wasn’t adopted, so my great-grandfather’s Canadian citizenship entitles me to Canadian citizenship!
How did I get started?
2
My Journey was overwhelming at first. But the great thing is that there are already so many free resources available all over the internet. I listed some of the ones that I used on the resources page. Just remember, the Canadian Government (IRCC) is the only source for official information, so make sure to double check any info that you get from other sources!
At a high-level, I started with a family tree, found records to support my claim, got citizenship pictures, and filled out my application. There were a few more things that I did to round out my application package, but you can read all about that in my blog, as well as what I would do differently if I had to do it again.
What did I include with my application for a citizenship certificate?
3
For each applicant, the official IRCC Checklist says that you need:
CIT0001
CIT0014
Two (2) Citizenship Photos
Two (2) Identity Documents
Payment Receipt for $75
Color copies of the records establishing your descent from a Canadian citizen
It seems like a simple list, but putting it all together was wild! There’s more info in my blog about how I navigated each step in the process.
How Long will it take to receive my Citizenship Certificate?
4
Waiting is the worst part! Unfortunately, timelines vary greatly. The IRCC provides official estimates, but these are not guaranteed or maximum times. As of April 2026, for applications that have not yet been submitted, IRCC estimates a 10-month processing time with over 56,000 people waiting for a decision.
The volunteers over at r/canadiancitizenship have been using a spreadsheet to track processing times that I like to check out often, but it’s important to remember that this is all self-reported data and people forget to update status.
I’m hopeful that my certificate will arrive soon, but there are no guarantees, so I’m trying to spend my time helping my community.
Why did I request urgent processing?
5
IRCC offers official guidance on how to request urgent processing for people that meet certain criteria. However, if you do not meet one of these criteria, there is not an option to pay to move up the line and calling the IRCC won’t help (if you don’t believe me, check out my blog about shipping my application and a HUGE mistake that I made.
When I was deciding whether to apply for urgent processing, I asked myself whether I wanted to move to Canada urgently or if just want to have it as an option for the future. In my case, I want to move yesterday, and I met the criteria for multiple factors provided by the Government of Canada.
That said, there’s no penalty for requesting urgent processing and only the IRCC makes the final determination about who receives expedited processing. They might determine what feels urgent to me doesn’t meet their standard. I’ve written more about urgent processing here.
For me, my great-grandfather was Canadian. That makes me a G3 applicant. The only limit is your ability to prove that you were directly descended from a Canadian citizen. Anecdotally, I’ve heard of (self-reported) approvals for up to nine (9) generations back! Holy moly, the people that apply with that many generations must be incredibly resilient or lucky to have had relatives already document their ancestry!
Practically speaking, the further back in time, the more challenging that obtaining records can be. For example, Canada didn’t start issuing birth certificates or conducting national censuses until the mid-19th Century, so you’d have to rely on other types of records like those maintained by churches. Whether those records exist for your family exist is a matter of luck, but if they do, there are lots of resources to find (or get help) what you need to prove your Canadian lineage.
I feel lucky that I only had to go back three generations because that was tough enough for me!
I am NOT an expert and this website isn’t infallible. I am NOT an attorney and I’m definitely not YOUR attorney. The only source for authoritative information is the IRCC.
I went through the process in early 2026 and I found it to be overwhelming. My Autistic brain wanted more detailed instructions that the IRCC didn’t have on their website, or at least the reassurance from someone else that had done it before me. That’s what this site is for: to share my experience. You shouldn’t take it as gospel truth and I try to be upfront about that by explaining what I did and why I did it that way. If the IRCC tells you something different from what is here, definitely trust them over this website.
I hope that sharing my journey will be inspirational, but we’re all responsible for our own decisions and that includes the responsibility to verify any/all of the information that you read on this site. You can read more about me here.
My experience hiring an immigration attorney was not only not helpful, it was harmful. They provided misinformation, stressed me out, and delayed my process. The only thing that they did was have a meeting with me to tell me incorrect things and cause me to take actions that increased my timeline and expenses. We parted ways before I submitted my application and I was able to get a refund of my almost $10k CAD fees (thank dog), but I wish I had never hired them. Later, I found out that how exorbitant those fees were, especially given that my case was very straightforward.
Unfortunately, my story is far from the only one. There are countless anecdotes that seem to indicate that a lot of Canadian immigration attorneys don’t have a handle on descendent citizenship, but it hasn’t stopped many of them from targeting vulnerable people to scare into paying obscene legal fees.
I was advised by many people who had completed the process before me that I didn’t need an attorney, but I hired one anyway because I thought that it would be an extra layer of security. I was wrong and I paid for it.