Any one of these situations can help you dodge the 33-month-wait to prove Canadian citizenship by descent

As of September 3, a new application for proof of Canadian citizenship takes 33 months to process. That's an eight-month jump from the August estimate.

With more than 136,000 people in the queue, new Canadians by descent face close to three years before they can prove their status and access the rights that come with it.

Canada's citizenship department will move some files ahead of the rest. It gives nine examples of situations that can qualify for urgent processing.

Get a Lawyer Consultation to Find Out Whether You Qualify for Urgent Processing

This article covers who qualifies and how to make the request—and includes a free tool through which you can assess if your situation meets urgent processing eligibility.

What can urgent processing do for my application?

You attach an urgent processing request to a complete application for a certificate.

An approved request moves your file ahead of others in the 33-month-long queue. The same standard of evidence applies, and Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) will return an incomplete file rather than process it.

The department is direct about the limits. A qualifying request carries no guarantee, and IRCC may finish your file too late to help your situation.

How fast is urgent processing, and what will I hear?

IRCC publishes no timeline. Even where an applicant has a valid basis for the request, both the decision and the speed of it rest with the officer reviewing the file.

The turnaround can be short. Cohen Immigration Law filed a proof of citizenship application in May with an urgent processing request, based on the applicant starting school in Canada. IRCC approved the application by the end of August.

This case should not be taken as a service standard—an application with similar facts could take shorter or longer, depending on the officer's discretion and the complexity of each case.

Expect silence in the meantime. IRCC sends no message confirming that a request has been granted, so the next thing most applicants hear is the decision itself. The one exception comes when the department asks for confirmation documents, and it gives a short deadline when it does. Keep an eye on the email address you put on your application.

What situations will IRCC consider for urgent processing of a citizenship certificate?

Most of the reasons IRCC accepts require a pressing date, along with paperwork supporting the urgency attached to that date. Our free tool below can help you assess whether your situation meets any of those deemed eligible by Canada's citizenship department:

Does your situation meet IRCC's criteria for urgent processing?

Answer four questions to compare your situation with the criteria IRCC publishes.

Move between steps

Question 1 of 4Question 2 of 4Question 3 of 4Question 4 of 4Your result

Question 1 of 4

Your reason

Why do you need your citizenship certificate sooner?

A job I'm applying for A job I already have and could lose A place at a school, college, or university A death or serious illness in my familyI also can't get a passport in my other nationality Giving up another citizenship by a fixed deadline Moving my minor child to CanadaMy child was born outside Canada to a Canadian parent A pension, health care, or a social insurance number I'm stateless Harm or hardship tied to who I amBased on race, religion, nationality, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or membership in a particular group None of these describes my situation

Next

Question 2 of 4

Dual citizens

Do you have another citizenship and a trip to Canada booked?

IRCC runs a separate route for dual citizens, and it applies when both of these are true. Tick every box that applies, or leave them all empty and continue.

I'm a citizen of a visa-exempt country as well as Canadian I have proof of air travel to Canada within six months of my application date

BackNext

Question 3 of 4

Your evidence

Can you show a document with the date on it?

IRCC asks for evidence of the deadline or event behind your request.

Yes, I have one Not yet, but I can get one No, and I don't think I can get one

BackNext

Question 4 of 4

Where you are

Where are you in the process?

I haven't applied yet, and I'll apply online I haven't applied yet, and I'll apply on paper I've already applied, and I'm in Canada or the United States I've already applied, and I'm outside Canada and the United States

BackSee my result

Your result

Based on IRCC criteria

Your situation appears on IRCC's list

IRCC lists your reason among the situations where it may process an application urgently. Your reason turns on a date, so your request needs a letter explaining the situation and a document showing that date.

Your situation appears on IRCC's list, and your letter carries the request

IRCC lists your reason among the situations where it may process an application urgently. Your reason describes a condition rather than a deadline, and IRCC names no document for it, so your letter does most of the work.

IRCC's examples don't cover the situation you chose

A long wait doesn't qualify on its own. Ordinary travel and a wish to receive the certificate sooner don't qualify either.

IRCC introduces its list with the words "reasons such as," so the examples aren't a closed set. A situation outside them may still be worth explaining, though the examples show the kind of case the department has in mind.

Your application continues at the standard pace, and asking costs you nothing beyond the time it takes. If a deadline appears later, you can request urgent processing then.

The dual-citizen travel route also applies to you

You've ticked both conditions IRCC sets for this route, so you can request urgent processing on that basis, regardless of your answer to question 1.

There's one thing to know if your other citizenship is American. Canadian-American dual citizens can fly to Canada on either a valid US passport or a valid Canadian one, so you don't need the certificate to board. Travelling on the US passport alone means carrying identification that shows your Canadian citizenship, and you may go through immigration screening. The certificate is that identification.

What to send

A letter explaining why you need urgent processing, plus evidence of the date. IRCC's list of supporting documents includes a letter from an employer. Yours should name the start date or the deadline attached to the offer.

A letter explaining why you need urgent processing, plus evidence of the date. IRCC's list of supporting documents includes a letter from an employer. Yours should name the date your job is at risk.

A letter explaining why you need urgent processing, plus evidence of the date. IRCC's list of supporting documents includes a letter from a school. Yours should name the date your term or program starts.

A letter explaining why you need urgent processing, plus evidence of the date. IRCC's list of supporting documents includes a doctor's note, a death certificate, and a plane ticket or itinerary with proof of payment.

A letter explaining why you need urgent processing, plus evidence of the date. IRCC names no specific document for this situation, so send written confirmation of the deadline from whoever set it.

A letter explaining why you need urgent processing, plus evidence of the date. IRCC names no specific document for this situation, so send whatever shows when the move happens.

A letter explaining why you need urgent processing, plus evidence of the date. IRCC names no specific document for this situation, so send whatever the pension, health, or social insurance authority has given you in writing.

A letter explaining your circumstances. IRCC names no specific document for this situation, so include whatever supporting material you hold.

A letter explaining your circumstances. IRCC names no specific document for this situation, so include whatever supporting material you hold.

Your evidence. You said you have a dated document or can get one. That's the kind of proof IRCC asks for.

Your evidence. You said you can't get a dated document. Ask whoever set the deadline to put it in writing before you send the request, because without a date an officer has nothing to weigh against your letter.

IRCC names five kinds of supporting document: a plane ticket or itinerary with proof of payment, a letter from an employer, a letter from a school, a doctor's note, and a death certificate. The department doesn't say which document belongs with which reason.

How to send it

Where your request goes depends on whether you've already applied and where you are.

Not everyone can apply online. IRCC runs a short eligibility check first, and applicants who don't pass it apply on paper. If you do qualify, the online application asks whether you need urgent processing. Answer yes, explain why, and upload your supporting documents there.

Put your letter and supporting documents in the application package. Write Urgent – Citizenship Certificate (Proof) in large, dark letters on the envelope.

Use IRCC's web form. Begin your message with Request for urgent processing, and include your full name, date of birth, email address, and telephone number, along with your supporting documents.

Include your UCI or application number. Without one, IRCC can't find your file. Don't send a second application, because IRCC won't process a duplicate.

Contact the Canadian embassy, high commission, or consulate where you filed your application.

Include your UCI or application number. Without one, IRCC can't find your file. Don't send a second application, because IRCC won't process a duplicate.

What IRCC warns

• Meeting the criteria doesn't guarantee that IRCC will process your application urgently.
• Even where IRCC agrees, it may not finish your application in time to help your situation.
• IRCC won't process an incomplete application at all, whether or not you ask for urgent handling.
• A request that falls outside the criteria costs you nothing. Your application carries on at the normal pace.

Make the strongest version of your request

A request stands on the letter and the documents behind it.

Cohen Immigration Law can review your situation, tell you what your file is missing, and help you assemble the request before you send it.

Get Help With Your Proof of Citizenship Application

Start with whether you're Canadian

Urgent processing decides how fast IRCC looks at your file, not whether you're a citizen. If you're unsure about your own status or the strength of your documents, that's the question worth settling first.

Get Help With Your Proof of Citizenship Application

BackChange my answers

About this tool. It compares your answers with the criteria IRCC publishes for urgent processing of a proof of citizenship application. IRCC reviews each request on its own facts and makes the decision. For advice on your own circumstances, speak to an immigration lawyer.

How do I request urgent processing with a new application?

Attach a letter and supporting documents to your application for proof of citizenship.

Your letter needs to name the consequence, give the date, and point to the document that proves the date. Without a dated document behind it, your letter gives the officer nothing to act on.

On paper, the letter and supporting documents go in the application package. IRCC instructs applicants to write "Urgent – Citizenship Certificate (Proof)" in large, dark letters on the envelope.

Not everyone can apply online. IRCC runs a short eligibility check first, and applicants who don't pass it apply on paper. If you do qualify, the online application asks whether you need urgent processing. Answer yes, explain why, and upload your evidence to IRCC's client portal.

IRCC charges no separate fee for an urgent request.

Make sure your application is complete. Urgent processing speeds the review of a file, so gaps in your evidence of descent will sink the request anyway.

Can I request urgent processing if I have already applied for proof of citizenship?

Applicants who have already submitted a complete application for proof of Canadian citizenship can request urgent processing after the fact. The route runs differently.

Applicants in Canada or the United States use IRCC's web form. The department instructs applicants to begin the message with "Request for urgent processing," and to include your full name, date of birth, email address, phone number, and application details.

Applicants outside Canada and the US should contact the embassy, consulate, or high commission where they filed.

Include your Unique Client Identifier (UCI) or application number. Without one, IRCC can't find your file.

IRCC specifically asks applicants to avoid sending a second application to speed things up. The department won't process the duplicate.

What happens if IRCC refuses my urgent processing request?

Your application continues at the standard pace, and you lose nothing by asking.

The usual factors still apply. A clean file that documents its gaps and explains them plainly moves faster than one that leaves an officer guessing.

Missing records and name mismatches across generations send applications back for more documentation, and each round trip adds to your wait.

The consequences of being dishonest on an urgent processing request

A long wait and a narrow route tempt applicants to stretch the facts. An employer letter that overstates a deadline. An itinerary for a trip nobody plans to take.

Stretching the facts means giving false information to IRCC, which counts as misrepresentation.

Misrepresentation is a form of fraud, and the Government of Canada lists the consequences: refusal, a five-year ban on applying for citizenship, a permanent fraud record with IRCC, and in some cases the loss of status granted on false information.

IRCC suspended some approved citizenship by descent certificates over documentation concerns in June.

Before you apply

If your situation carries a date, the request costs you a letter and some paperwork. Canada is already expediting certificates for people planning to study in the country, and the same reasoning runs through the rest of the list.

If you're unsure whether you're already Canadian, check with CanadaVisa's citizenship by descent eligibility checker.

Get a Lawyer Consultation to Find Out Whether You Qualify for Urgent Processing