Canada set to overhaul citizenship-by-descent rules, offering relief to Indian-origin families

Canada has taken a major step towards overhauling its citizenship-by-descent framework, with Parliament passing Bill C-3 and the legislation receiving royal assent, a development expected to bring significant relief to thousands of Indian-origin families affected by long-standing rules.

Bill C-3, An Act to amend the Citizenship Act (2025), seeks to address inequities created by the “first-generation limit” introduced in 2009. Under the existing system, a child born or adopted outside Canada is not automatically a Canadian citizen if their Canadian parent was also born or adopted abroad. This provision has prevented many Canadians particularly those born abroad themselves from passing on citizenship to their children born overseas.

The new law will remove the first-generation limit and other outdated rules that prevented some children born abroad from becoming Canadian citizens. Once it comes into force, these individuals will automatically become eligible for citizenship. Going forward, Canadian citizens born or adopted abroad can pass citizenship to their children born or adopted overseas, as long as they show a “substantial connection” to Canada. This usually means being physically present in Canada for at least 1,095 days (about three years) before the child’s birth or adoption. The law will also retroactively restore citizenship to many “Lost Canadians” who were excluded under the old rules.

These changes are particularly beneficial for Indian-origin Canadians, many of whom live and work abroad in countries such as the UAE, Qatar, Singapore, and the UK. The first-generation limit had resulted in split-status families and forced parents to navigate temporary visas or sponsorships for children who, but for the arbitrary birthplace rule, would have been entitled to Canadian citizenship. The updated law ensures that globally mobile Canadian families including those of Indian origin will no longer face such disadvantages.

Momentum for reform strengthened after a landmark ruling on December 19, 2023, when the Ontario Superior Court of Justice declared the first-generation limit unconstitutional. The court found the provisions discriminatory, holding that they created unequal classes of citizens based solely on birthplace. The federal government chose not to appeal, acknowledging that the law had produced unfair outcomes for children of Canadians living abroad.

Lena Metlege Diab, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, said the amendments would “restore fairness” and better reflect “how modern Canadian families live globally”. Don Chapman, founder of the Lost Canadians advocacy group, welcomed the move, calling it a long-overdue correction.

Although Bill C-3 has received royal assent, it will come into force only after the government issues an Order in Council setting the effective date. Until then, interim measures will continue for those affected by the current first-generation limit.