Citizenship

Eligibility

To be eligible to become a Canadian citizen, you must:

be a permanent resident
have lived in Canada for 3 out of the last 5 years
have filed your taxes, if you need to
pass a test on your rights, responsibilities and knowledge of Canada
prove your language skills

There are additional or different requirements if you are:

applying for a minor (under age 18)
a Canadian applying for your adopted child born outside Canada
a current or former Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) member applying under the fast-track process
a past Canadian citizen who want your Canadian citizenship back (including current and former CAF members)

Spouses of Canadian citizens

You don’t automatically become a citizen when you marry a Canadian.

If you’re the spouse of a Canadian citizen, you must meet the same requirements listed above (no exception).

Children and grandchildren of Canadian citizens

If you have a Canadian parent or grandparent, you may be a Canadian citizen.

See if you may be a Canadian citizen
To find out for sure, apply for a Canadian citizenship certificate

Permanent resident status

Regardless of your age, if you’re applying for citizenship, you must have permanent resident (PR) status in Canada.

This means you must not:

be under review for immigration or fraud reasons
be asked by Canadian officials to leave Canada (removal order)
have unfulfilled conditions related to your PR status, for example: medical screening

Before applying for citizenship, you should review the documents you received when you became a permanent resident to make sure you’re eligible.

You don’t need a valid PR card to apply for citizenship. You can apply with an expired PR card.

Time you’ve lived in Canada

Adults and some minors must have been physically present in Canada for at least 1095 days during the five years right before the date you sign your application.

We encourage you to apply with more than 1095 days of physical presence to have extra days in case there is a problem with the calculation.

Use a travel journal to record your trips outside Canada. It will help you calculate your physical presence in Canada.

You may be able to use some of your time spent in Canada as a temporary resident or protected person towards your physical presence calculation.

Filing income tax

You may need to file taxes in Canada for at least 3 years during the 5 years right before the date you apply.

Language skills

Canada has two official languages: English and French. If you’re 18 to 54 years of age on the day you sign your application, you must show that you can speak and listen at a specific level in one of these languages.

The ways we measure your language skills in English or French include:

reviewing the proof you send with your application
noting how well you communicate when you talk to a citizenship official anytime during the process
assessing your language level during a hearing with a citizenship official, if necessary

To become a citizen, you need to meet the Canadian Language Benchmarks (CLB) Level 4 or higher. This means you can:

take part in short, everyday conversations about common topics
understand simple instructions, questions and directions
use basic grammar, including simple structures and tenses
show you know enough common words and phrases to answer questions and express yourself

Pass a test on your rights, responsibilities and knowledge of Canada

If you’re 18 to 54 years of age on the day you sign your application, you need to take the citizenship test. You’ll need to answer questions about the rights and responsibilities of Canadians and Canada’s: