politics
Canada Revokes Citizenship Certificates Issued Under Expanded Ancestry Rules
Canadian officials have begun recalling citizenship certificates granted to applicants under a broadened ancestry provision. The action follows a review that found some approvals relied on documents that did not meet required standards.
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Canadian authorities have started notifying some recent citizenship recipients that their certificates must be returned after officials determined the approvals did not meet documentation standards. The notices state that recipients may submit additional evidence for review.
One letter said the government had information indicating the holder might not be entitled to the certificate and required its surrender.
Background on the ancestry rule Canada has long limited citizenship by descent to the first generation born abroad to Canadian parents. A December amendment to the Citizenship Act extended eligibility to later generations, prompting thousands of applications from people previously considered ineligible.
Roughly 4,075 people worldwide received citizenship certificates under the new rules before the current review began, according to reports cited by the source.
Reactions and next steps Recipients have shared copies of the notices online and described confusion over acceptable documents. Some said they had used printouts from genealogy websites or records from archives rather than official statistics offices.
The exact number of certificates affected remains unclear. Many recipients live in U.S. border states and said they were preparing to relocate when the notices arrived.
