Bill C-3 restored Canadian citizenship to people born before December 15, 2025, who can trace an unbroken line of descent to a Canadian ancestor. However, the same law introduced a new restriction for future children born abroad after that date: they will not automatically inherit Canadian citizenship unless their Canadian parent has spent at least 1,095 days physically present in Canada before the child’s birth.
How Bill C-3 affects children born before and after December 15, 2025
Bill C-3 can create different citizenship outcomes within the same family.
A person born before December 15, 2025, who can trace an unbroken line of descent to a Canadian ancestor may be recognized as a Canadian citizen. They do not need to pass a language test or meet special residency requirements, but they must apply for proof of Canadian citizenship and receive a certificate confirming their status.
Children born before December 15, 2025, to a Canadian parent are also automatically Canadian under the restored citizenship rules.
Children born abroad after December 15, 2025, are treated differently if their Canadian parent was also born abroad. In that case, the parent must pass the “substantial connection test” before citizenship can pass to the child.
The substantial connection test
For children born or adopted abroad after December 15, 2025, a Canadian parent who was also born abroad must show at least 1,095 cumulative days of physical presence in Canada before the child’s birth or adoption.
Key points:
- The 1,095 days equal roughly three years.
- The days do not need to be consecutive.
- The days can occur at any point in the parent’s life before the child is born or adopted.
- If the parent has never lived in Canada or spent extended time there, the test may not be met.
- If the test is not met, Canadian citizenship does not automatically pass to the child.
The substantial connection test is a permanent part of the law. It applies to future children born abroad to Canadian parents who were also born abroad.
The test does not affect anyone born before December 15, 2025. Existing children born before that date can still be automatically Canadian if they qualify under Bill C-3.
The multigenerational effect
The law can limit citizenship transmission across future generations born outside Canada.
A child born before December 15, 2025, may be automatically Canadian through a newly recognized Canadian parent. But if that child grows up outside Canada and never accumulates 1,095 days of physical presence in Canada, their own future children born abroad may not inherit Canadian citizenship.
A child born abroad after December 15, 2025, who does not receive Canadian citizenship because the parent fails the substantial connection test has no Canadian citizenship to pass on to future children.
Without someone in the family chain spending enough time in Canada, citizenship by descent may stop transmitting after the current generation.
Birth in Canada as a workaround
Canada grants automatic citizenship to almost anyone born on Canadian soil. This is known as birthright citizenship, or jus soli.
The main exception is for children born to accredited foreign diplomats.
For newly recognized Canadians planning to have children, giving birth in Canada can avoid the substantial connection test. A child born in Canada would be Canadian by birth rather than through descent, making the parent’s previous physical presence in Canada irrelevant.
As Canadian citizens, newly recognized Canadians have the legal right to enter and remain in Canada. A child born in Canada would receive Canadian citizenship from birth regardless of how much time the parent had previously spent in the country.
Effect on U.S. citizenship
Giving birth in Canada does not affect a parent’s U.S. citizenship.
A U.S. citizen does not lose citizenship by having a child in another country. A child born in Canada to an American parent generally also acquires U.S. citizenship by descent, provided the parent meets U.S. physical presence requirements.
This means a child born in Canada to a newly recognized Canadian parent from the United States may hold dual citizenship from birth: Canadian through birth in Canada and American through descent.
Adoption is treated differently
The birth-in-Canada workaround applies to birth, not international adoption.
A child adopted from abroad after December 15, 2025, remains subject to the substantial connection test. Jus soli depends on where the child is born, not where the adoption takes place.
Families considering international adoption should examine how the substantial connection test applies to their specific situation.
What remains unclear
IRCC has not yet published full operational guidance on how the 1,095-day physical presence requirement will be documented or verified.
In testimony before the Senate on November 17, 2025, IRCC confirmed that the days are cumulative and do not need to fall within a specific time window.
The Department of Justice’s legislative commentary supports this interpretation. However, questions remain about what evidence IRCC will accept and whether certain categories of time in Canada, such as childhood visits, will count.
Until further guidance is published, applicants should document all time spent in Canada carefully.
Source article: www.cicnews.com
