The Global Case Management System (GCMS) is a system used by the IRCC to process immigration and citizenship applications to Canada. These notes are extremely important to the immigration process as they provide a detailed record of an applicant’s file, correspondence from and to IRCC, documents received from the applicant, detailed notes from the officers reviewing the file at each stage, thus providing valuable information on the current status and future processing of your application for Canadian visa cases such as Express Entry applications, visitor visas, as well as study and work permits.

With your entitlement to a copy of these notes, you may stay up to date on the status of your application and take any required actions to improve the chances of your application being accepted.

How Do I Apply for GCMS Notes?

Your GCMS notes are issued under the Access to Information Act, otherwise known as the Privacy Act. This Act is a law which allows any person access to information about them from the federal government (IRCC).

To apply for the notes, you must be a Canadian Citizen, Permanent Resident, or be in Canada at the time of your request. If this is not the case, you will have to go through a representative who is a Canadian Citizen or Permanent Resident. This person will then apply for an Access to Information Act or Privacy Act request on your behalf.

What Do I Need In Order to Apply for GCMS Notes?

In order to apply, you MUST show your application number. This number will be created once you file your visa application with the IRCC. It is possible to have multiple application numbers depending on the number of applications you have submitted. Your application number(s) will include one letter (this letter will be based on which visa you have applied for), followed by a number of digits (usually 9). Below you can find examples of which letters specify which visa applications:

• Beginning with E (such as E012345678) are economic immigration applications, including Express Entry.
• Beginning with EP (such as EP012345678) are Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) applications.
• Beginning with F (such as F012345678) for family sponsorship applications.
• Beginning with S (such as S012345678) are study permit applications.
• Beginning with W (such as W012345678) are work permit applications.
• Beginning with V (such as V012345678) are temporary resident visa (TRV), visitor record, or Electronic Travel Authorization (eTa) applications.
• Beginning with D (such as D012345678) for temporary resident permit applications. 
• Beginning with C (such as C012345678) for citizenship applications.
• Beginning with H (such as H012345678) are for Humanitarian and Compassionate considerations applications.
• Beginning with L (such as L012345678) for refugee claimant applications.
• Beginning with G (such as G012345678) for refugee resettlement applications.
• Beginning with RHB (such as RHB012345678) for rehabilitation applications.
• Beginning with N (such as N012345678) for removal orders.

The UCI (Unique Client Identifier) number is also asked for more reliable processing of the request but is not mandatory. You will receive this number only after the processing of your application has started, and unlike the application numbers, you will only have one UCI number even if you file more than one application. This number usually contains 8 digits separated by one hyphen (0123-4567) or 10 digits separated by two hyphens (12-3456-7890).

When Should I Order GCMS Notes?

For Canadian permanent residence applications, you can order GCMS notes as soon as the R10 completeness checks stage. This is Regulation 10 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, which is the phase of the processing of your application where IRCC checks that all the information and documentation is complete. This stage is usually done within 1 month of applying to IRCC. The right time to order GCMS notes for PR applications would be around on the 2nd to 3rd months after applying.

If you are applying for temporary residence or your permanent residence has been processed and a decision has been reached by IRCC, you may also order GCMS notes at this time. If your applications for temporary or permanent residence do not qualify, you will be notified of the reason(s) in your GCMS notes.

How Long Will It Take After Ordering My Notes?

Under the Canadian Access to Information and Privacy Act, the IRCC has to respond to a request for GCMS notes within 30 days. However, 40 days is the average processing time after taking into consideration the workload on different offices and the number of pending requests.

Ordering GCMS notes will not delay or have any effect on your file or visa application process.

Below, you can find an example of the AITP form you have to complete in order to obtain your GCMS notes:

Do You Need Assistance in Ordering GCMS Notes?

If so, Contact VisaPlace today. All our cases are handled by competent and experienced immigration professionals who are affiliated with VisaPlace. These professionals consist of lawyers, licensed paralegals, and consultants who work for VisaPlace Legal an award-winning immigration firm that adheres to the highest standards of client service.

Ready for the next step? Book your 1 on 1 consultation now or call us at 1-888-317-5770.

Have a Question related to your Immigration Needs?

Fill out the FREE Immigration Assessment form and get a response within 24 hours to see if you’re eligible.

The assessment form should take approximately 5-7 minutes to complete. We will get back to you within one business day to let you know if we are able to help.

The IRCC has been testing this process over the last few months starting with a small group (roughly 5,000 people) to try it first that already had the in-person citizenship test scheduled prior to the pandemic that might’ve been canceled! All in-person tests and interviews are still canceled, and you must first receive an invite from the IRCC in order to take the citizenship test.

What To Expect During Your Online Citizenship Test

Before the test, those participants will be asked to confirm their identity through personal information, and they will have to take a photo of themselves and their ID documents with a webcam before the test can begin. The online platform will continuously take photos of participants during the test which is a process that has been used to ensure the integrity of other tests that moved online due to the pandemic, such as bar exams or admission tests.

The IRCC will be notifying those invited to take the online test by email.

What If I Don’t Want To Take The Test Online?

You are more than welcome to wait to take the citizenship test in-person but there is no set date when that will be an available option!

Who Can Take The Citizenship Test?

The citizenship test is available to people who:

• are between the ages of 18 and 54
• meet the eligibilities for citizenship
• are applying to retain Canadian citizenship

What Is On The Test?

You will be asked 20 questions (must be completed in 30 minutes) about the rights and responsibilities of Canadians and Canada’s:

• history
• geography
• economy
• government
• laws
• symbols

Check out the Canadian Citizenship Test Study Guide!

Is The Test Open Book?

Unfortunately no, the Canadian citizenship test is NOT open book and you are expected to study on your own prior to testing! The IRCC will provide you with a complete question and answer guide when beginning the process.

Need Immigration Help?

If so, Contact VisaPlace today. All our cases are handled by competent and experienced immigration professionals who are affiliated with VisaPlace. These professionals consist of lawyers, licensed paralegals, and consultants who work for VisaPlace Legal an award-winning immigration firm that adheres to the highest standards of client service.

Ready for the next step? Book your 1 on 1 consultation now or call us at 1-888-317-5770.

Have a Question related to your Immigration Needs?

Fill out the FREE Immigration Assessment form and get a response within 24 hours to see if you’re eligible.

The assessment form should take approximately 5-7 minutes to complete. We will get back to you within one business day to let you know if we are able to help.

Numerous applicants seeking Canadian Citizenship have announced that covering this fee is very challenging at this time especially when spouses and/or dependents are involved.

At this time, the processing fee is $530, which was increased from $100 by the previous Conservative government, plus a $100 “right of citizenship” fee.

Foreign nationals are ready for the government to stick with their word and get rid of these outrageous fees!

Promise to Waive Citizenship Fees

In the Fall 2019 election, the liberal campaign stated,

“Becoming a citizen allows new immigrants to fully participate in Canadian society, and the process of granting citizenship is a government service, not something that should be paid for with a user fee. To make citizenship more affordable, we will make the application process free for those who have fulfilled the requirements needed to obtain it,”

Spokesperson Kevin Lemkay says the government remains committed to this promise but was not able to put a time frame as foreign nationals are getting antsy.

Experienced immigration professionals have noted that it is in Canada’s “best interest to naturalize newcomers as fast and efficiently as possible” and proposed that the government AT LEAST reduce fees for bigger families which is when fees increase a lot and affect families with small budgets.

Immigration professionals and foreign nationals are still currently pushing the government to take action and waive these Citizenship fees.

Interested in Immigrating to Canada?

If you find yourself affected by this announcement and need legal assistance, contact VisaPlace today. All of our cases are handled by competent and experienced immigration professionals who are affiliated with VisaPlace. These professionals consist of lawyers, licensed paralegals, and consultants who work for Niren and Associates an award-winning immigration firm that adheres to the highest standards of client service.

Ready for the next step? Book your 1 on 1 consultation now or call us at 1-888-317-5770.

Have a Question related to your Immigration Needs?

Fill out the FREE Immigration Assessment form and get a response within 24 hours to see if you’re eligible.

The assessment form should take approximately 5-7 minutes to complete. We will get back to you within one business day to let you know if we are able to help.

Before this ruling, the Citizenship Act only allowed for foreign-born children to be automatically recognized as citizens if they shared a genetic link to a Canadian parent.

Now, the government will allow non-biological Canadian parents who are a child’s legal parent at birth to pass down their citizenship.

This change was generated by Elsje van der Ven and Laurence Caron, a same-sex couple whose son was initially denied Canadian citizenship. The couple went through the court system to look for a solution so that parents like them who have used assisted human reproduction can be considered equal to biological parents in Canada.

A news release states “Canadian families are as diverse as Canadians themselves, and everyone deserves the same rights and opportunities, no matter who they love or how they identify.”

Do You Have Questions About Canadian Citizenship?

If so, contact VisaPlace today. All of our cases are handled by competent and experienced immigration professionals who are affiliated with VisaPlace. These professionals consist of lawyers, licensed paralegals, and consultants who work for Niren and Associates an award-winning immigration firm that adheres to the highest standards of client service.

Ready for the next step? Book your 1 on 1 consultation now or call us at 1-888-317-5770.

Have a Question related to your Immigration Needs?

Fill out this FREE Immigration Assessment form and get a response within 24 hours to see if you’re eligible.

The assessment form should take approximately 5-7 minutes to complete. We will get back to you within one business day to let you know if we are able to help.

The Oath of Citizenship is a solemn declaration that citizenship applicants who have been granted citizenship take, promising to obey Canadian laws while fulfilling their duties as Canadian citizens. Taking the Oath means embracing Canadian values and traditions while pledging allegiance to Canada as a democratic constitutional monarchy.

Recently, a federal court has ruled that newcomers must take the oath, not simply complete the rest of the citizenship test, to become Canadian citizens.

Justice Simon Noel stated, “Becoming a Canadian citizen is a privilege. It is a privilege that is only conferred when the oath of citizenship is taken, these 43 words signifying adherence to our constitution and our country.”

“I do not agree with this interpretation where the oath of citizenship is only a ‘formality’,” he wrote. “An applicant for Canadian citizenship must, until the end of the process, demonstrate on request the truthfulness of all the facts underlying the application. An applicant does not acquire an absolute right to citizenship following the granting of a certificate.”

Are You Interested in Becoming a Canadian Citizen?

If so, Contact VisaPlace today. All our cases are handled by competent and experienced immigration professionals who are affiliated with VisaPlace. These professionals consist of lawyers, licensed paralegals and consultants who work for Niren and Associates an award winning immigration firm that adheres to the highest standards of client service.

Ready for the next step? Book your 1 on 1 consultation now or call us at 1-888-317-5770.

Have a Question related to your Immigration Needs?

Click here to fill out the FREE Immigration Assessment form below and get a response within 24 hours to see if you’re eligible.

The assessment form should take approximately 5-7 minutes to complete. We will get back to you within one business day to let you know if we are able to help.

Even in a situation where a child is born to parents who are not Canadian citizens, the child will be automatically granted Canadian Citizenship.

Are People Born in Canada Always Automatically Citizens?

The answer is typically but not always. If a child is born in Canada they are typically granted Birthright Citizenship but there are some exceptions.

For example, there was a son of a Russian spy who was born in Toronto which would typically qualify him for Canadian citizenship. But the authorities ruled that the didn’t qualify for citizenship because of his parents involvement with spying on the Canadian government. Recently the high court rejected the first denial and is allowing him to reside in Canada.

Can a Pregnant Woman Come to Canada to Give Birth?

Yes. Technically the IRCC states that the process of reviewing the applicant for a Canadian visa can only be on the applicant’s income, admissibility factors and country of origin. The fact a woman is pregnant can not be a deciding factor on their application.

Canada Has Considered Removing Birthright Citzenship

There was a formal recommendation from immigration officials submitted requesting to remove birthright citizenship. This idea came from the perceived threat of birth tourism. The idea that pregnant woman would be traveling to Canada to give birth so that their child would receive citizenship.

This is not the first time the federal government has considered removing birthright citizenship. Removing birthright citizenship would require the establishment of a new path for granting Canadian citizenship for those born on Canada soil.

There is no evidence that birth tourism is a large enough issue to remove the program all together.

Over the past year, 379 foreign nationals were born at Richmond Hospital in Canada to non-Canadian citizens or permanent residents. This is part of an industry known as “birth tourism”, in which a pregnant woman enters Canada to give birth to a child who will then automatically be given citizenship. They typically travel to Canada as a tourist, and either book hospital rooms, rent apartments, or “baby houses” for the birth. These numbers have been growing in recent years, and hospital officials have found that 98% of these births were to Chinese nationals. Xi An, the founder of the Vancouver Post-natal Care Association and owner of the Richmond-based Icy Consulting firm, attributes the growth in birth tourism to a petition raised against it last year in Richmond. This petition gained media coverage and while before birth tourism had been an underground practice with questionable legality, it became clear to interested parents that the government “seem[ed] to be OK with it” (Wood & Xiong, Richmond News).

The idea behind this practice is that once the baby reaches the age of 18, he or she can make the decision to be either a Canadian citizen or a citizen of the country in which they reside. In the case of China, for example, the child would have to get a long-term visiting visa to return to China and apply for a Chinese ID. They would renew this visa every two years and renew their Canadian passport every 5 years. Once the child does turn 18, they will be eligible to sponsor their parents to Canada if they so choose and if they meet all requirements—another benefit for those involved.

While this process provides a great deal of opportunity to foreign parents and their Canadian born children, both the Liberal Canadian government and the Conservatives agree that birth tourism is a problem. Though they have differing opinions on what should be done, overall they see it as an abuse of the immigration system. They hope to convey the message that, if this continues, there will be consequences. Some have advocated for an end to place of birth citizenship rights (a right only provided by the US and Canada), but this has been dismissed. While there is no law stating birth tourism is illegal, immigration consultant Ken Wong sees this “loophole as a threat to the immigration system’s integrity” (Wood &  Xiong). One of the main ways this practice could be stopped, however, is to prove that when the woman enters Canada, she is not declaring her true intention. This kind of misrepresentation is illegal, and though proving it can be difficult, it may become a course of action taken at the border as a reason for inadmissibility.

Are You Interested in Immigrating to Canada in 2022?

If so, Contact VisaPlace today. All our cases are handled by competent and experienced immigration professionals who are affiliated with VisaPlace. These professionals consist of lawyers, licensed paralegals and consultants who work for Niren and Associates an award winning immigration firm that adheres to the highest standards of client service.

Ready for the next step? Book your 1 on 1 consultation now or call us at 1-888-317-5770.

Have a Question related to your Immigration Needs?

Click here to fill out the FREE Immigration Assessment form below and get a response within 24 hours to see if you’re eligible.

The assessment form should take approximately 5-7 minutes to complete. We will get back to you within one business day to let you know if we are able to help.

The Liberal government has been focusing their legislative efforts on improving the existing Citizenship Act in order to allow immigrants to apply for Canadian Citizenship earlier and easier than the procedure currently in place. The goal, according to the chair of the House Immigration Committee, MP Borys Wrzesnewskyj, is for the bill known as C-6 is passed into law by Canada day of this year.

Some of the proposed amendments to the current act include the reduction of the residency obligation for a permanent resident to apply for Canadian Citizenship from four out of six years to three out of five years. It would also consider the time spent by an individual on temporary status in Canada to count towards the time required to apply for Canadian Citizenship. One of the highlights of C-6 is to remove the current provision that allows the citizenship of a dual Canadian Citizen to be revoked if they are convicted of treason, espionage or terrorism.

Here is a list of the proposed changes

1. Repeal of revocation provision

   Current Rules – Authority to revoke Canadian citizenship for certain acts against the national interest of Canada. These grounds include convictions of terrorism, high treason, treason or spying offences.

   Proposed changes – Repeal national interest grounds for revocation.

2. Repeal of intention to reside provision

   Current Rules – In order to be granted Canadian Citizenship, applicants must have the intent of residing in Canada.

   Proposed amendment
   Repeal intent to reside provision.

3. Physical presence in Canada
   

   Current Rules – In order to apply for Canadian Citizenship, an applicant needs to physically be present in Canada for four out of six years before the date of application.

   Proposed amendment – Physical presence for three out of five years before the date of application

4. Counting temporary status
   

   Current Rules- An applicant cannot count the time they spent in Canada on temporary status in the Citizenship application.

   Proposed amendment – Applicants will be able to count each day they were physically present in Canada as a protected person or temporary resident prior to becoming a permanent resident as a half-day toward meeting the physical presence requirement for citizenship, up to a maximum of one year of credited time.

5. Less burdensome annual physical presence requirement

   Current Rules- An applicant must be physically present in Canada for a minimum of 183 days in 4 of the last 6 years.

   Proposed amendment – Repeal the minimum 183 days physical presence in 4 of the last

6. Fewer people need to prove language proficiency

   Current Rules – Applicants aged 14-64 are required to meet the language requirements and pass a knowledge test.

   Proposed amendment – Applicants aged 18-54 must meet language requirements and pass the knowledge test.

7. Canadian income taxes

   Current Rules An applicant is required to file Canadian income taxes, if required to do so under the Income Tax Act, for four taxation years out of six years.
   

   Proposed amendment – An applicant should file Canadian income taxes, if required to do so under the Income Tax Act, for three taxation years out of five years.

8. Conditional sentence now a bar
   

   Current Rules – An applicant can count the time spent by them serving a conditional sentence order towards meeting physical presence requirements. Convicted applicants who are serving conditional sentence orders are not prohibited from being granted citizenship or taking the oath of citizenship.

   Proposed amendment – An applicant cannot count the time spent under a conditional sentence order towards meeting the physical presence requirements; nor can those serving a conditional sentence order be granted citizenship or allowed to take the oath of citizenship.

9. Canadian citizenship oath
   

   Current Rulest – There exists a provision prohibiting applicants from taking the oath of citizenship if they never met or no longer meet the requirements for the grant of citizenship. However, this does not apply to any applications that were received before June 11, 2015.

   Proposed amendment – The existing provision will also apply to applications still in process that were received prior to June 11, 2015.

10. New provision to counter fraud
    

    Current Rules – There exists no explicit authority for citizenship officers to seize fraudulent documents related to the processing of applications.
    

    Proposed amendment – Citizenship officers will have the authority to seize documents provided if there are reasonable grounds to believe they are fraudulent, or being used We don’t know whether any or all of these changes will be implemented. We will update you as we learn more.

Need help with Citizenship or Immigration?

Contact us for help with your citizenship case.  Complete a free online assessment here and get the help you need!

Subuhi Siddiqui is a Lead Canadian Immigration Lawyer at Niren & Associates. She has worked on all types of immigration application, and regularly attends the IAD and Federal Court to represent her clients. She currently heads the Permanent Residence Department at the firm.

Read More About Subuhi 

The Canadian citizenship test is required for individuals between ages 18 and 54 applying for citizenship. It is most commonly a written test, but sometimes an applicant will be required to take oral test with a citizenship officer instead. The test focuses on subjects like citizens’ rights, freedoms, and responsibilities, along with democracy, society, geography, history, and politics. You will receive a notice from your local citizenship office with the time and date of your test, and will report to the Department of Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship to take the test. You will bring the original documents you sent with your application and any passport or travel documents you used in the five years prior to applying.

Recommended Resources for Those Taking the Canadian Citizenship Test

If you are studying for your Canadian Citizenship test, you’re most likely going to be reading ‘Discover Canada: The Rights and Responsibilities of Citizenship‘, the one and only official government study guide designed for newcomers.

Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) states: “If you have applied for citizenship and are preparing for the citizenship test, your primary resource should be the official study guide. If you use any other material to prepare for the citizenship test, you do so at your own risk.”

The guide is completely free, and provides everything you need to prepare for the Canadian Citizenship test, along with sections on:

• The history and regions of Canada
• How the Canadian government works, and;
• The various symbols of Canada

The guide is available in print, electronic and audio format, and although CIC note that there are very minor differences in each, these will not affect your ability to prepare for your citizenship test.

Study Questions

Along with important information on the Oath of Canada, modern Canada, the Canadian justice system, and Canada’s history and current economy, the guide will also provide you with some helpful study questions.

The guide states:

“One of the basic requirements of citizenship is to demonstrate that you have adequate knowledge of Canada. The citizenship test is used to assess your knowledge of Canada and the rights and responsibilities of being a citizen in Canada. All the citizenship test questions are based on information provided in this study guide. You will be asked about facts and ideas presented in the guide.” 

The questions included are all very similar to what you will be asked on your Canadian Citizenship test, so it’s wise to use these to get some practice in. If you find you get most of the questions right, it could be a good indicator that you will be able to pass the actual citizenship test.

Sample Questions

• Which province is the only officially bilingual province?
• Who are the Aboriginal peoples of Canada?
• What is the role of the courts in Canada?
• What are the three parts of Parliament?

Further Guidance

If you think you’re in need of further guidance, ‘Discover Canada’ also provides a section to help you find other resources so that you can be fully prepared for the Canadian Citizenship test. This includes help searching for citizenship classes in local schools, colleges and community centres, as well as how you can find further books and videos about Canada.

Some of the recommended library reading includes:

• Canada: A Portrait (Statistics Canada)
• The Canada Yearbook (Statistics Canada)
• The Canadian Encyclopedia
• Canada: A People’s History (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation)
• How Canadians Govern Themselves (Eugene Forsey)
• A Crown of Maples (Canadian Heritage)
• Symbols of Canada (Canadian Heritage)

Are you Preparing to Sit the Canadian Citizenship Test?

You can download the full guide from CIC here.

Applying for a visa in any country can be daunting, and if you have been rejected, you may feel even more disheartened. We can help.

Trust the staff of Niren and Associates. Michael Niren is a member of the Law Society of Upper Canada, the Canadian Bar Association’s Citizenship and Immigration Section and the American Bar Association. He is frequently called upon to appear in the media to discuss Canadian and US immigration issues effecting North Americans.

To speak with a member of our staff, free eligibility online assessment form here and then one of our immigration professionals will get back to you.

According to former citizenship director-general Andrew Griffith, the massive decline is due to the government’s recent fees and rules regarding Canadian citizenship.

He said: “These charges have made it harder and prohibitive for some to acquire citizenship, turning Canada into a country where an increasing percentage of immigrants are likely to remain non-citizens, without the ability to engage in the Canadian political process.”

Stepping Stone to Immigrant Integration

Griffith also noted that previously, citizenship had always been seen as a stepping stone for immigrant integrating into society. The drop reportedly happened between 2000 and 2008. In 2007 alone, the percentage fell to 44%.

Currently, the residency rules state that you must be a resident in Canada for at least three out of four years, however this is set to change in June to four out of six years. The age of exemption from citizenship and language tests will also be raised from 55 to 65.

Since 2010, regulations have become increasingly stringent, including the introduction of a Canadian citizen test to measure applicants’ knowledge of the country’s culture, history and values. In order to pass, you need to earn a score of 75 per cent – up from a previous 60 per cent – this means applicants need to pass at least 15 multiple choice questions out of the total 20.

A Direct Impact

According to Griffith, the new passing rate had a direct impact on the number of people gaining citizenship, with immigrants from the Caribbean alone seeing their pass rates fall by nearly 20%. Meanwhile, immigrants from Southern and East African areas, along with immigrants from South Asian, all experienced a decline of over 15 per cent in pass rates.

Johanne Nadeau, spokesperson for Citizenship and Immigration Canada, stated that the new citizenship test is exactly the same for every applicant, and is “neither too easy nor too difficult”. In order to pass the test, immigrants must have a comprehensive understanding of Canada’s history, identity and values.

The matter of fees is also a concern for many potential citizens. In 2014, the fees increased from $100 per adult, to $530 – not including the additional $100 “Right of Citizenship” fee that must be paid by successful candidates.

Griffith said: “When you make it more difficult for some communities to become citizens, you are going to create issues with their engagement, attachment and identity of Canada.”

Are You Interested in Immigrating to Canada?

If you’re interested in immigrating to Canada, we at Visaplace can help you. We have literally helped thousands and thousands of people successfully immigrate to Canada, so they can visit, work, study or live, and we certainly can help you too!

The first step towards moving to Canada is to get an assessment of your specific situation. All you need to do is use our free online immigration assessment form here or contact us here.

There are many steps you must take and requirements must meet in order to become a Canadian citizen. But it’s common to have many questions about what exactly happens after you apply.

Understanding Canada’s Citizenship Processing Times

After you apply for citizenship, you must wait to take the citizenship test. The time between submitting your application and writing the citizenship test can be different for everyone. Everything will depend on your personal case and the Canada visa processing times for 2021.

The good news is that Citizen and Immigration Canada has seemed to have reduced the processing time over the years. Their target is generally for 12 months or less from when they begin processing a complete application to when you actually become a Canadian citizen. Application processing times are going down which is great news for applicants. It’s also great news for us.

How to Ensure Faster Canada Visa Processing Times for Applications

In order to speed up your application, the best practices must be followed. These include:

• a complete application
• making sure that the forms are filled out properly will give you a great head-start.
• make sure your government fees are paid and that everything is done the way it should be done.

If this is not the case, what ends up happening is that you file your application and then you will be sent a letter asking you for additional information or clarification.

That letter could cost you delays in an amount of months and sometimes years. So, regardless of their processing times, you have to play your part and make sure that your application package, when you submit it, is solid and complete.

Taking the Citizenship Oath

Reminder: Due to the spread of Coronavirus, the Canadian government announced it would be hosting virtual citizenship ceremonies for certain individuals. They will be inviting citizenship candidates to take their oath of citizenship online until further notice.

The very last step to becoming a Canadian citizen is taking the Oath of Citizenship at a citizenship ceremony. These ceremonies typically take place across the country and at all times of the year.

The IRCC will send you a notice with the date, time and location for your citizenship ceremony about 1-2 weeks before it will take place.

Do You Need Help Processing Your Immigration Applications?

Book a consultation today with an immigration professional! One of our Canada immigration professionals will determine exactly how long it will take for you to receive your Canadian visa and put you on the right track to a successful visa application.

Use the IRCC Processing Time tool to determine how long your Canada visa processing time may take.

According to the RCMP, the judge allegedly passed these tests onto an immigration consultant in order to help their clients attain Canadian citizenship. The judge himself has been charged with breach of trust, theft and fraud while two others, who are immigration consultants in Scarborough, have been charged with possession of stolen property.

The Canadian Citizenship test is an important component of the citizenship process. It discusses Canadian symbols and things like history, geography and government, while if someone fails the written exam they will have an interview with a citizenship judge.

Immigration Fraud is Never Worth it!

In order to become a Canadian citizen, one must be a Canadian permanent resident who has lived in Canada (physically resided) for three of the four years before the application for citizenship. They must also pass the citizenship test.

Creating Awareness About Immigration Fraud

The Canadian immigration department is taking immigration fraud very seriously, with new television ads to raise awareness about immigration fraud. In addition, this particular investigation has been very in-depth and the investigators will eventually catch up with anyone who obtained their citizenship fraudulently. Even if you are a Canadian citizen, if you’ve obtained your immigration status through any kind of fraud you are at risk of having it revoked and having it seriously impact your future in Canada.

Interested in Applying for Canadian Citizenship?

Become a Canadian citizen the right way! Contact our immigration law firm for assistance.

Will the New Restrictions on the Age of an Immigrant Dependant Affect You?

The new change will take effect on January 1. In doing so, approximately 7,000 immigrant dependant children will now be unable to come to Canada based on the immigration statistics from 2012, where about 10 per cent or 7,237 dependents who came to Canada were over the age of 19. The information comes from an outline of a government plan, which states that these older children could consider coming to Canada as international students and then applying to immigrate to Canada on their own. In addition, The Star reported that Citizenship and Immigration Canada said Canadian citizenship applications for older children takes a lot longer.

How Do These Changes Affect Your Dependants Immigration Process?

Immigration applications that are already in process will not be affected by the new rule change for immigrant dependants, but any applications filed on or after January 1st will be bound by the new rules. Are you concerned about these rule changes? Are you an immigrant who wants to bring your dependent children to Canada, or someone over the age of 19 who wants to come to Canada as an international student? We can help you! Fill out our Free Online Eligibility Assessment or Book a Consultation with one of our experienced immigration lawyers who can help you bring your family to Canada as immigrant dependants.

Canadian citizenship is sometimes considered the final step in the immigration process, but it is not an easy one. There are several requirements you must meet.

What’s needed to become a citizen of Canada

1. People applying for Canadian citizenship must be over the age of 18 and must be permanent residents.

2. People applying for Canadian citizenship need to be able to demonstrate that they can speak English or French, and may have to undergo a language test.

3. Demonstrating your knowledge of Canada is an important component of becoming a Canadian citizen. You will be given a Canadian citizenship test, either verbally or written. You are required to pass the test in order to become a Canadian citizen.

4. You must meet a residency requirement. As a permanent resident you are likely used to having to meet a residency requirement already. For permanent residents, this requirement is two of every five years that must be spent in Canada.

For permanent residents who are applying for citizenship, they must spend three of the last four years in Canada. If not all of that time was spent as a permanent resident, pre-permanent resident days count as half-days.