One in seven Rhode Islanders now eligible for Canadian passports

Around one in seven Rhode Islanders qualifies for U.S.-Canadian dual citizenship, following a recent change to Canadian law.

The law, Bill C-3, eliminated the first-generation limit to inheriting Canadian citizenship, putting Rhode Island, with its French-Canadian/Franco-American heritage, among the shortlist of the most eligible regions in the United States.

Today, any American born before December 15, 2025 who can trace a continuous line of descent from a Canadian ancestor is now legally recognized as a U.S.-Canadian dual citizen.

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With the appropriate documents proving their Canadian ancestry, Rhode Islanders who are now legally considered U.S.-Canadian dual citizens can apply for proof of Canadian citizenship and obtain Canadian passports.

Why so many Rhode Islanders qualify

Rhode Island's eligibility stems from one of the most concentrated pockets of French-Canadian settlement in the United States.

Between 1840 and 1930, nearly 900,000 French-speaking Canadians left the Canadian province of Quebec for New England's mill towns — and Rhode Island, particularly the Blackstone Valley, was among their most popular destinations.

By 1900, French Canadians comprised 60% of the population of Woonsocket, a city in northern Rhode Island that still refers to itself as la ville la plus française aux États-Unis — the most French city in the United States. As recently as 1980, 70% of Woonsocket's residents were of French-Canadian descent.

Based on research by Patrick White, professor of journalism at the Université du Québec à Montréal, and adjusted against the US Census Bureau 2024 five-year estimates of self-reported Canadian ancestry in Rhode Island, approximately one in seven Rhode Islanders* — an estimated 150,000 people — are of French-Canadian descent, and therefore qualify for Canadian citizenship under the new law.

What this means for eligible Rhode Islanders

Rhode Islanders born in the United States with the appropriate ancestry are already U.S.-Canadian dual citizens under Canada’s new citizenship law, but cannot apply for Canadian passports straight away.

To get a Canadian passport, an eligible American must first apply for and obtain a proof of Canadian citizenship certificate, an official document issued by Canada’s citizenship department.

To receive a Canadian citizenship certificate showing proof of citizenship, an American must submit an application to Canada’s citizenship department containing copies of official documents proving their continuous chain of descent from at least one Canadian ancestor.

The core documents are typically

Birth certificates;
Baptismal records;
Marriage certificates; and
Death certificates

One set of each must be submitted for every generation between the applicant and their Canadian-born ancestor. Because most eligible Rhode Island applicants will likely trace their ancestry to Quebec, many will need to request records from Quebec's vital records registry.

Quebec's national archives, the Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec (BAnQ), has reported a 3,000% increase in requests since the law changed. BAnQ prioritizes requests made by Quebec-based residents, which means applicants working with a Quebec-based licensed representative may have their requests processed faster.

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Eligible Americans can handle their applications themselves or hire a representative legally authorized by the Canadian government, such as a Canadian immigration lawyer, to manage the process on their behalf and assist with the submission of a complete, error-free application.

As of the time of writing, the processing time for proof of citizenship certificates sits at 10 months. Once they’ve received their proof of citizenship certificate, a U.S.-Canadian dual citizen can apply for a Canadian passport. As of the time of writing, Canadian passport applications are being processed within 10 to 20 business days, with a recently implemented 30-day money-back guarantee on processing time.

As U.S.-Canadian dual citizens, eligible Rhode Islanders hold the full rights and privileges of both citizenships, including the right to

Enter, live, and work in Canada permanently;
Vote in Canadian elections (provided they meet residency criteria); and
Run for Canadian political office.

In fact, the majority of Americans currently applying for proof of Canadian citizenship have no immediate plans to move. Most are well-off, semi-retired professionals whose families have lived in the United States for generations. They want it as a backup option.

Americans who apply for proof of Canadian citizenship take on no additional tax obligations as a result.

Who has a higher chance of qualifying?

The most common indicators of French-Canadian ancestry in Rhode Island are surnames and language. French-Canadian surnames — Tremblay, Gagnon, Côté, Bouchard, Pelletier, Lavoie — are a strong signal.

In addition, many families anglicized their names over generations:

Charpentier turned into Carpenter;
Leblanc turned into White; and
La Rivière turned into Rivers.

The further back in your family history that you are able to delve, the higher your likelihood of finding a Canadian ancestor.

Rhode Islanders have an advantage in this regard when beginning their research locally.

The American-French Genealogical Society, headquartered in Woonsocket, holds over 20,000 volumes of vital statistics, family genealogies, and historical records focused specifically on French-Canadian descent — making it one of the most relevant genealogical resources in the country for this type of search.

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*Methodology:

In a 2020 presentation to the Rhode Island historical society, Patrick White estimates a 20% or greater incidence of Canadian across present-day New England as a whole. In Vermont, the incidence is estimated at 30%, according to Ed McGuire, former president of the Vermont Genealogy Library. Adjusting these estimates proportionate to the U.S. Census Bureau’s incidence of self-reported Canadian ancestry among Rhode Islanders compared to other New England states, yields approximately 14%, or one in seven, for the incidence of Canadian ancestry among Rhode Islanders.