Two routes, and what renouncing forecloses
Renunciation belongs at the end of this branch rather than among the routes to becoming Canadian, because it is the opposite of them. It is also the one decision here that is effectively permanent.
Renouncing leaves you with no status in Canada
Once the renunciation takes effect you hold no status here at all. To live in Canada again you would apply for permanent residence on the ordinary terms, competing with everyone else, and to visit you would need whatever visa your nationality requires.
The only statutory route back to citizenship is resumption, and resumption requires you to become a permanent resident again first. So the practical position is that this is not reversible on any timescale that matters to most people, and it should not be done to solve a short term problem.
| Ordinary route | Simplified route | |
|---|---|---|
| Who it is for | Any citizen who wishes to renounce | People who became citizens automatically through the 2009, 2015 or 2025 amendments and were not previously granted citizenship |
| Another nationality | You hold one, or will on approval | Same |
| Must you live outside Canada | Yes | No |
| Minimum age 18 | Yes | No |
| Security and criminality conditions | Yes | Not applied |
| Understanding the significance | Required, and waivable by the Minister | Required, and waivable under the Regulations |
| Fee | $100, subject to the footnote on the fee page | No fee |
A person who is a citizen because they were born outside Canada after 14 February 1977 to a Canadian parent, other than an adoptive parent, as a result of the 2009 amendments generally cannot use the simplified route, although the Regulations allow it where the person is a citizen for the sole reason that one or both parents fall within paragraphs 3(1)(k) to (n) of the Act. On the ordinary route the residence requirement and the requirement to understand the significance of renouncing can be waived by the Minister on compassionate grounds. Renunciation applications are not accepted while revocation proceedings are under way.