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Canada Expands Citizenship-by-Descent, Grants 4,000 Certificates

5/30/2026

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Summary

Story summary

Bill C-3 granted citizenship certificates to over 4,000 people in three months, nearly half U.S.-born.
Canada expanded its citizenship-by-descent law to let descendants of distant ancestors obtain certificates, now in effect.
Immigration Minister Lena Metlege Diab said the government expects tens of thousands of applications with no fiscal surge, noting a backlog of 70,400 pending applications and processing times about 12 months.

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Story summary

Bill C-3 granted citizenship certificates to over 4,000 people in three months, nearly half U.S.-born.
Canada expanded its citizenship-by-descent law to let descendants of distant ancestors obtain certificates, now in effect.
Immigration Minister Lena Metlege Diab said the government expects tens of thousands of applications with no fiscal surge, noting a backlog of 70,400 pending applications and processing times about 12 months.