Question & Answer

Question: Does immigrating lead to Canadian citizenship?

Answer: Immigrating to Canada is the first step to becoming a Canadian citizen. For many, becoming a Canadian citizen is the eventual goal of the immigration process. When an individual first lands in Canada as a permanent resident, he has already been accepted to live and work within this country so long as he shares it peaceably. The final step to accepting Canada and being a Canadian is citizenship.

Permanent residents who have lived for three of the previous four years in Canada can apply for citizenship. Citizenship is granted to people who have used their time as permanent residents to learn to communicate in English or French, to learn about Canada as a country, and to learn about the rights and responsibilities all Canadian citizens share.

All Canadians are privileged with the same freedoms, such as: the right to vote, the right to exit and enter Canada, the right to work and live in any part of the country, the right to be educated in either English or French, and the right to apply for a Canadian passport, among others.

Each year, almost 150,000 permanent residents take the final step and become Canadian citizens who enjoy the same rights as everyone who became Canadian by birth.