When Pascal Sud and Meisha Smith got ready in January for the birth of their first child, the decision was straightforward.
Smith would give birth in Jamaica, where she had family support, and then they would return together to Montreal three months later.
At that point, the estimated wait time for the citizenship certificate that their daughter, Sofianne, needed to return to Canada was about four to six weeks.
However, more than eight months have passed and they’re still waiting.
Sud has returned to work in Montreal while Smith and Sofianne remain in Jamaica.
“It’s been very frustrating,” said Sud. “I was fortunate enough to be there for three months … but I’ve missed every moment since then, and being apart from them has been really hard.”
He’s not the only one facing this situation.
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) is struggling with a surge of citizenship applications – many resulting from a change in federal law late last year that allows anyone who can prove they have a Canadian ancestor to apply.
This backlog is hindering Canadians born abroad like Sofianne from returning home.
The department’s latest update on Sept. 3 shows there are 136,000 applications pending processing. Those applying for a citizenship certificate now face an average wait of 33 months.
If this continues at this pace, Sofianne might be over three years old before she can enter Canada.
In light of this delay, Sud applied for a visitor’s visa so Sofianne could come to Canada on her Jamaican passport. But IRCC denied the application – stating she’s Canadian and must travel using a Canadian passport.
Sud feels frustrated when he sees online discussions about people trying to obtain citizenship through Bill C-3 – the new immigration law affecting those referred to as “Lost Canadians.”
A lot of posts come from individuals living in countries like the United States who are tracing their Canadian ancestry to apply for citizenship certificates.
“These aren’t people living in Canada and many aren’t even planning to live here,” said Sud. “There’s no different process if you’re a Canadian residing in Canada.”
Between Dec. 15 and July 31, 6,810 individuals-more than half being Americans-have received Canadian citizenship certificates under Bill C-3. Another 20,515 received certificates under existing provisions recognizing those born abroad to Canadian parents.
Canadian citizenship certificates enable holders to apply for a Canadian passport as well as live and work in Canada.
Christine Beltempo is an immigration lawyer with Mc Carthy Tétrault and chairs the immigration section of the Canadian Bar Association.“We knew since early drafts of Bill C-3 that this would lead to a significant rise in application numbers,” she stated. “This has become evident now. What we’re worried about is how dramatically processing times have increased.”
Taous Ait, spokesperson for Immigration Minister Lena Metlege Diab, mentioned that current processing times stem from an increase in applications for citizenship certificates-but not all arise from Bill C-3.“We understand that long processing times can be difficult for applicants; we’re working hard to ensure these applications are processed efficiently while maintaining Canada’s program integrity,” she wrote in her statement.
“IRCC is actively addressing increased demand by training more staff, improving intake processes, and enhancing workload management.” p >
Conservative immigration critic Michelle Rempel Garner pointed out that Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government ignored warnings when Parliament passed Bill C-3. She noted instead of managing immigration challenges effectively; it created a “dumpster fire.” p >
“Many people have reasonable expectations regarding timely service delivery of documentation which federal authorities should provide,” she said.
“What the government did last fall was implement legislation despite multiple warnings from various stakeholders along with opposition parties-it weakened safeguards that might have prevented this issue.” p >
The Calgary MP emphasized how much this backlog affects residents in Alberta where recent changes regarding driver’s licenses and health cards require verifying citizenship status.
A citizenship certificate can serve as proof for those without passports.
“I’m definitely hearing about this within my caucus,” she mentioned. “The responsibility falls on the immigration minister now; it’s crucial they clear up this backlog we’ve warned her about.” br > br >
NDP immigration critic Jenny Kwan urged the government restore staffing levels as well as resources cut at IRCC labeling these delays “simply unreasonable”and “unacceptable.” br > br >
Michelle Woodrich along with her father plans on flying back home soon but still hasn’t received her own Canadian citizenship certificate (Submitted by Robert Woodrich) br > br >
The Woodrich family also finds themselves caught amid these delays. p >
Woodrich grew up in Windsor Ontario yet has lived outside Canada for several years first moving around Thailand where both his children were born before relocating again-this time settling down Switzerland due its ancestral ties there. In February 2025 , he submitted an application requesting certification documents proving his daughter Michelle’s nationality so they could visit relatives back home. br > br >
Soon after submitting requests concerning his son too-they hold Swiss passports just like Sud ; however according told him they’d need pass verification through valid Canadiancertifications before entering their homeland anyway. They’re set out next week but nearly600 days following initial submissionshe still hasn’t obtained any paperwork granting entry permissions-even unsure whether special authorizations will go through allowing travels via these foreignpassports until right beforehand-this throws doubt into traveling smoothly at all!. br > br >
“These kids are Canadians. They were Canadians day one ,” expressed Woodrich passionately.”All I need nowarethese certifications enabling meto secure passports so they’ll finallymeet granddad overthere !” br > br >
Lately Colin Singer , an expert lawyersaid : since Michelle hasn’t yet receivedanycitizenshiprecords, she technically isn’t recognized legallyas acanadian just quite yet-thus travel shouldn’t pose major problems utilizing Swiss papersto reach Canada instead !Borrelli also stepped forward assistingother families affectedtoo including Robert ‘s case specifically mentioning frustrations arising during lengthywait periods particularly troubling giventhat everyone involvedhas rightful claims towardsobtaining documents quicklyassured alongsideconcernsregardingdifficulties accompanying residencyverification processesin provinces requiringcitizenship confirmations!
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“It seemsthey didn’t prepare adequately nor think ahead since massive influxwas surely predictable basedonprevious events!” ” Borrellistatedfrankly-“Consequently, we find ourselves dealingwith aftermath poor decisions madebyofficials which simply isn’t fair!”
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