July 19, 2017 – The Federal Court has quashed government proceedings that meant more than 300 Canadians faced having their citizenship revoked without a hearing.
The move comes after a previous judgement deemed unconstitutional Citizenship Act changes made under the previous Conservative government.
Under Stephen Harper, changes were made that said individuals who has misrepresented themselves in the citizenship application process could be stripped of their citizenship without a hearing.
But in May, the Federal Court ruled this was unlawful, saying all citizens had the right to an oral hearing before being stripped of their citizenship.
Now the decision to revoke citizenship has been reversed for 312 Canadians who had been told they would lose their status.
Historically, Canadian law allowed citizenship to be revoked with due process on the grounds of fraud and false representation, but the former Harper government introduced reforms to transfer this authority to immigration officials. Many will now be entitled to full hearings and may be able to get back their revoked citizenship.
Liberal Citizenship Act Changes
The return of authority to strip citizenship in cases of fraud will be returned to the Federal Court following the passing of Bill C-6 in June.
A series of changes will be made in several areas following the passing of the Citizenship Act legislation.
The changes will happen on a staged basis, with the transfer of revocation power back to the Federal Court slated for early 2018.
Under the new bill the federal government also loses the power to strip citizenship from dual nationals accused of national security offences.
Elsewhere, the bill also reduces the time a permanent resident of Canada must physically reside in the country to be allowed to become a citizenship. Previous Conservative changes had raised the bar to four years in six, but that will now be reduced to three years (1095 days) in five.
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Benefits of Canadian Citizenship
Benefits of Canadian Permanent Residency
A further change allows citizenship applicants to count up to a year of time spent in Canada as a non-permanent resident towards their physical presence total.
A requirement that applicants must be physically present in Canada for at least 183 days in each of the qualifying years has been repealed.
Language testing age requirements will also change. Previous law required applicants between the ages of 14 and 64 were required to take the test. That age range will now include those between 18 and 54. A Senate amendment had sought to raise the upper limit to 60, but that was rejected in the House of Commons and that has been accepted in the upper house.
The change will also mean citizenship applicants no longer have to declare their intention to reside in Canada as part of the application process.
When Will Citizenship Act Changes Happen?
Immediate Changes (As of June 19, 2017)
Previous Citizenship Act | Citizenship Act with Bill C-6 Amendments |
Citizenship could be revoked from dual citizens convicted of treason, spying and terrorism offences, depending on the sentence received, or who were a part of an armed force of a country or organized group engaged in conflict with Canada. | This provision is repealed. Dual citizens living in Canada who are convicted of these crimes will face the Canadian justice system, like other Canadian citizens who break the law. |
Applicants were required to intend to continue to live in Canada if granted citizenship. | This provision is repealed. Applicants are no longer required to intend to continue to live in Canada once granted citizenship. This provides more flexibility to Canadians who may need to live outside of Canada for work or personal reasons. |
The Minister had the discretion to waive certain requirements under subsection 5(1) of the Citizenship Act so a minor could obtain citizenship without a Canadian parent. | Minors can now apply for citizenship without a Canadian parent, as the age requirement for citizenship has been removed under subsection 5(1). A person having custody of the minor or empowered to act on their behalf by court order, written agreement or operation of law, can now apply for citizenship on behalf of the minor, unless that requirement is waived by the Minister. |
No provision existed to prevent individuals serving a sentence in the community (a conditional sentence order) from being granted citizenship, taking the Oath of Citizenship or counting this time towards meeting the physical presence requirements for citizenship. | Individuals serving a conditional sentence will not be granted citizenship, take the Oath of Citizenship, or be able to count this time towards meeting the physical presence requirements for citizenship. |
The Minister has the discretion to grant citizenship to a person to alleviate cases of special and unusual hardship, or to reward services of an exceptional value to Canada. | Statelessness has been added as a stand-alone ground that can be considered for a discretionary grant of citizenship. |
The Department has reasonable measures to accommodate the needs of citizenship applicants. However, there was no explicit reference to accommodate persons with disabilities in the Citizenship Act. | The requirement to take into consideration reasonable measures to accommodate the needs of a citizenship applicant who is a disabled person is now included in the Citizenship Act. |
The requirement for applicants to maintain the requirements for citizenship from the time they apply for citizenship until taking the Oath of Citizenship only applied to applications received on or after June 11, 2015. | This requirement now also applies to all applications, including those received before June 11, 2015. |
Changes to Take Effect Fall 2017
Previous Citizenship Act | Citizenship Act with Bill C-6 Amendments |
Applicants had to be physically present in Canada for four out of six years before applying for citizenship. | Applicants must be physically present in Canada for three out of five years before applying for citizenship. |
Applicants had to file Canadian income taxes, if required to do so under the Income Tax Act, for four out of six years, matching the physical presence requirement. | Applicants must file Canadian income taxes, if required to do so under the Income Tax Act, for three out of five years, matching the new physical presence requirement. |
Applicants had to be physically present in Canada for 183 days in four out of the six years preceding their application. | This provision is repealed. Applicants no longer have to meet this requirement. |
Time spent in Canada prior to becoming a permanent resident did not count towards the physical presence requirement for citizenship. | Applicants may count each day they were physically present in Canada as a temporary resident or protected person before becoming a permanent resident as a half-day toward meeting the physical presence requirement for citizenship, up to a maximum credit of 365 days. |
Applicants between 14 and 64 years had to meet the language and knowledge requirements for citizenship. | Applicants between 18 and 54 years must meet the language and knowledge requirements for citizenship. |
Changes to Take Effect Early 2018
Previous Citizenship Act | Citizenship Act with Bill C-6 Amendments |
The Minister was the decision-maker for most cases of citizenship revocation on the grounds of false representation, fraud, or knowingly concealing material circumstances. The Federal Court was the decision-maker for citizenship revocation cases involving false representation, fraud, or knowingly concealing material circumstances related to security, human or international right violations, and organized criminality. | The Federal Court is the decision-maker in all revocation cases, unless the individual requests that the Minister make the decision. |
There was no clear authority for Citizenship Officers to seize fraudulent or suspected fraudulent documents provided under the Citizenship Act. | Clear authority for Citizenship Officers to seize fraudulent or suspected fraudulent documents is provided under the Citizenship Act. |
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