FIDERA LAW
Canadian immigration law

Become Canadian›Resumption

Become Canadian · Resumption

Most people who think they need this are citizens already.

Three waves of amendments, in 2009, 2015 and December 2025, restored citizenship to people excluded by older rules. If one of them covers you, you are a citizen now and the application to make is for proof. Resumption is for the smaller group who genuinely lost it and have since become permanent residents again.

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Who this is for, and who does not need it

Resumption is a narrow route with a wide reputation. Most people who think they need it either never lost citizenship at all, or were made citizens again automatically by a change in the law, in which case the application to make is for proof rather than for resumption.

In force 15 December 2025 · verified 19 August 2026

Check first whether you are a citizen already

The change that came into force on 15 December 2025 reached the people who lost citizenship under the twenty eight year retention rule, their descendants, and everyone born or adopted abroad in the second generation or beyond before that date. If you are in one of those groups you are a citizen now, automatically.

Resumption is for someone who genuinely ceased to be a citizen, was not restored by any of the three waves of amendments, and has since become a permanent resident again. It is a smaller group than it was a year ago.

  • The three waves. The 2009 amendments restored a large group and introduced the first generation limit. The 2015 amendments reached pre 1947 cases, and pre 1949 for Newfoundland. Together they restored or conferred citizenship on about twenty thousand people. The 2025 change covered most of those still left out.
  • Resumption runs through permanent residence. You must be a permanent resident again to use it, which for many people is the practical obstacle.
  • 365 days in the last two years. Physically present in Canada as a permanent resident. Less demanding than the 1,095 days a first grant needs.
  • One taxation year, not three. The year immediately before the year of application.
  • Military service replaces the presence requirement. 182 days of service in or with the Canadian Forces in the preceding two years. A person attached or seconded need not be a permanent resident or meet the tax obligation, and none of it survives a release other than honourably.
  • Fees. $530 for an adult and $100 for a minor, which is what the application guide directs. The guide presents the $530 as the total and labels it a processing fee, while the Regulations require evidence of payment of both the processing fee and the right to be a citizen fee, so we confirm the point on each file.
  • A revocation closes this route permanently. A person subject to a revocation decision or declaration cannot resume, and that bar has no time limit. The route back in that situation is permanent residence and then a fresh grant, which carries its own ten year bar.

Requirements checker

A structured way to see where you stand against the published criteria. It returns an indication only, not an eligibility decision, not legal advice, and not a prediction that you will be invited.

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Indication

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    An indication against the published requirements for resumption only, and not a determination of citizenship. If a change in the law has already made you a citizen, resumption is not your route and this checker is not the right question. Not an eligibility decision and not legal advice. Verified 19 August 2026 against the Citizenship Act.

    What we look at before a citizenship file goes in

    Whether you are already a citizen, because since December 2025 a great many people are and do not know it. Whether your days actually add up, since the presence rule counts some time at half and excludes some altogether. And whether anything in your record engages a prohibition, because those stop an application that otherwise qualifies.

    01 / Start here

    Strategy consultation

    A paid session that tests your record against this route and the alternatives, checks how your work is classified, and tells you plainly where you actually stand.

    02 / Review

    Lawyer review, you file

    You prepare and submit; we review the classification, the evidence and the documentation before it goes in, and flag what would be questioned.

    03 / Representation

    Full representation

    We build, document and file the matter as your lawyer of record, and carry it through to the federal permanent residence stage.

    Every matter begins with the strategy consultation. If you instruct us within six months of that consultation for a lawyer review or for full representation, the consultation fee is credited against that work. One credit per person.

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    Frequently asked questions

    Who are the Lost Canadians?

    People who lost citizenship, or never received it, because of rules in earlier legislation that we would now regard as arbitrary. The best known group are those who lost citizenship under the 1977 Act for failing to apply to retain it before their twenty eighth birthday. Others were born abroad before 1947, or were British subjects at the wrong moment, or fell foul of rules about which parent they were born to.

    Which changes restored whom?

    Three waves. The 2009 amendments restored or conferred citizenship on a large group, and simultaneously introduced the first generation limit. The 2015 amendments reached pre 1947 cases, or pre 1949 for Newfoundland. Between them those two restored or gave citizenship to roughly twenty thousand people. The change that came into force on 15 December 2025 covers those still excluded, including the people who lost citizenship under the twenty eight year rule, their descendants, and everyone born or adopted abroad in the second generation or beyond before that date.

    If the 2025 change covers me, do I resume?

    No, and this distinction saves an unnecessary application. If that change made you a citizen, you are a citizen already and there is nothing to resume. What you may need is a certificate proving it. Resumption is for a different group, being people who genuinely ceased to be citizens and later became permanent residents again.

    What does resuming require?

    That you were a citizen and ceased to be one, that you are now a permanent resident with no unfulfilled conditions, that you have been physically present in Canada as a permanent resident for at least three hundred and sixty five days in the two years immediately before you apply, and that you met your tax filing obligations for the taxation year before the year of application. You must not be under a removal order, subject to a revocation decision, or otherwise prohibited.

    Is there a faster route for military service?

    Yes. The three hundred and sixty five day presence requirement does not apply where you have six months, meaning one hundred and eighty two days, of service in or with the Canadian Forces in the preceding two years. A person attached or seconded to the Forces need not be a permanent resident and need not meet the tax obligation. None of it applies if you were released other than honourably.

    What does it cost?

    Five hundred and thirty dollars for an applicant aged 18 or over, and one hundred dollars for a minor. That is what the application guide directs you to pay. Its fee table presents the $530 as the total to be included with the application and labels it the processing fee, so it does not add the $123 right of citizenship fee that a first grant attracts. There is a conflict worth knowing about, because the Citizenship Regulations No. 2 require an application to resume to be accompanied by evidence that the applicant has paid the fees required under both section 31 and section 32 of the Regulations, and section 32 is the right to be a citizen fee. We follow the guide and confirm the point before filing rather than leaving it to be raised afterwards. For the current processing time, use IRCC's processing times tool.

    Where to look next

    Check this first

    Citizenship by descent

    The December 2025 change reached most of the people who were still excluded, automatically.

    See requirements →     If you are already a citizen

    Proof of citizenship

    The certificate that confirms a citizenship you hold, rather than an application for a new one.

    See requirements →