Thursday, May 5, 2016

Determining Eligibility For Citizenship Canada

By James Reed


An act on citizenship passed in 2014 made it easier to apply for Canadian citizenship. It also reduced the time taken to complete the process and acquire full status. It is the Act that made citizenship Canada easier for persons serving the crown, the army or living within the country under certain circumstances. Serving in the army became one of the easiest ways to become a citizen.

A person must be 18 years and above to apply. For those below this age, the application can only be done by a parent who is already a citizen, one who is adopting or a legal guardian. Such a child should have acquired permanent residency. The parent making the application is required to be a citizen already or applying concurrently.

Any applicant only qualifies if he or she has acquired permanent residency. Your application or status should be unquestioned meaning that you have met all basic requirements. Persons under immigration review or facing fraud questions are however treated differently during application. Failure to fulfill PR conditions or being ordered to depart the country by an immigration official will affect your application. The PR card is always demanded but an expired one will still be accepted as long as it is clean.

There is a requirement to have lived within the country for 1460 days over the six years being considered. For reviews covering four years, physical presence for 183 days in each of the years is required. Applicants below 18 years and anyone working for a Canadian mission or crown family member abroad is exempted from this rule. The dates are calculated since the day you acquired permanent residency.

Immigration department works closely with the tax department before approving new citizens. There are tax obligations that permanent residents must meet. Before being approved as a citizen, your tax records must be clean. The records checked cover both a four year and six year partial period depending on the details provided during application.

The state demands that you make your residency intentions clear. This means that you intend to live in Canada, be a crown servant in or outside or work for the country abroad. Becoming a citizen allows you to live, work and enter or depart the country at will. You will enjoy similar rights to those enjoyed by native citizens. This explains the stringent measures taken during the process.

To ease communication, you will be required to understand either English or French, the two official languages used in Canada. State officials will test your fluency in the two languages. The tests involve engaging in easy conversations regarding directions, instructions, orders and questions. They also test your tenses, vocabulary and grammar.

There are right and responsibilities enjoyed and demanded of Canadian citizens. They relate to obeying the law and participating in elections. You will be tested in either English or French to determine your understanding of symbols, institutions, values and Canadian history. The test is either written or oral. People in prison, charged or convicted of crimes cannot apply for citizenship.




About the Author:



No comments:

Post a Comment