{"id":2766,"date":"2025-06-05T14:33:02","date_gmt":"2025-06-05T18:33:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cadimmigration.com\/?p=2766"},"modified":"2025-06-05T14:33:03","modified_gmt":"2025-06-05T18:33:03","slug":"breaking-new-bill-aims-to-restore-citizenship-rights-to-lost-canadians-affected-by-outdated-law","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cadimmigration.com\/?p=2766","title":{"rendered":"BREAKING: New Bill Aims to Restore Citizenship Rights to “Lost Canadians” Affected by Outdated Law"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A newly proposed bill in the House of Commons could restore Canadian citizenship to thousands of individuals previously denied it due to restrictive legislation. If passed, Bill C-3: An Act to Amend the Citizenship Act (2025)<\/strong> will rectify the controversial first-generation limit (FGL)<\/strong> on citizenship by descent and expand eligibility for future generations of Canadians born abroad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This move comes after years of legal challenges, growing public pressure, and a court ruling that declared the FGL unconstitutional.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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What Is the First-Generation Limit (FGL)?<\/mark><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The FGL was introduced in 2009<\/strong> and placed a cap on citizenship by descent. Under this rule, only children born abroad to Canadian citizens who themselves were born in Canada could automatically inherit citizenship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In contrast, children born outside Canada to Canadian citizens who were also born outside Canada<\/strong> were denied citizenship, effectively cutting off the transmission of Canadian nationality after one generation born abroad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This created a class of so-called “Lost Canadians”<\/strong>\u2014people with strong family and cultural ties to Canada but who were excluded from citizenship due to where they were born and where their Canadian parent was born.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Legal Challenge and Court Ruling<\/mark><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In December 2023<\/strong>, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice<\/strong> ruled that the FGL violated the mobility rights<\/strong> and equality rights<\/strong> guaranteed under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms<\/strong>, calling the law discriminatory<\/strong> and unconstitutional<\/strong>. The court concluded that it created a second-tier class of citizens and gave the federal government six months to amend the law<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instead of appealing the decision, the government accepted the ruling and began drafting new legislation to comply with the court’s requirements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Past Attempt: Bill C-71 and Interim Measures<\/mark><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In 2024, the government introduced Bill C-71<\/strong>, which proposed a \u201csubstantial connection to Canada\u201d test<\/strong> for second-generation Canadians born abroad. However, the bill did not pass before Parliament was prorogued in March 2025<\/strong>, and the court later extended the legislative deadline to November 20, 2025<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To prevent a legal vacuum, the government implemented interim measures<\/strong> in March 2025<\/strong>, allowing affected individuals to apply for discretionary grants of citizenship<\/strong> if their Canadian parent had spent at least three years in Canada prior to the child’s birth or adoption<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Bill C-3: What the New Legislation Proposes<\/mark><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Introduced on June 5, 2025<\/strong>, Bill C-3<\/strong> revives and expands upon the previous effort. If passed, it will:<\/p>\n\n\n\n