How to Start in Canada

How to Start Applying for Canadian Citizenship in Canada

A grant of citizenship starts with 1,095 days in Canada, a tax record, and one complete package sent to Sydney, Nova Scotia. This guide walks through the eligibility checks, the documents, the $653 adult fee, and what happens after you apply.

Written October 29, 2026 · Edited November 7, 2026 · 20 min read

Applies in: across Canada

Applying for Canadian citizenship is a paperwork exercise with a hard edge: an incomplete package comes back, and a package received more than 90 days after the date on the form comes back too. The process rewards one careful pass over the checklist before anything is sent. This guide covers the adult grant of citizenship only, step by step, from the checks that decide whether you should apply at all to the ceremony at the end. It gives no advice on whether you qualify. Where a rule has an exception or a waiver, the guide points at the IRCC form that carries it, because the form is the authority.

Check the descent rule before you start

Some people reading this guide do not need a grant of citizenship at all. Bill C-3, An Act to Amend the Citizenship Act (2025), received royal assent on November 20, 2025, and came into effect on December 15, 2025. It removed the first-generation limit on passing citizenship to children born or adopted abroad, in the situations the Act now covers. In most cases, a person born before December 15, 2025, outside Canada to a Canadian parent is automatically a Canadian citizen, including where the parent became Canadian because of the same rule change. If the change made you a citizen automatically, you do not apply for a grant of citizenship and you do not take the test: you apply for proof of Canadian citizenship, a citizenship certificate, and IRCC reviews that application to confirm the citizenship you already hold.

The position is different for people born or adopted on or after December 15, 2025, to a Canadian parent who was also born or adopted abroad. In those cases the parent must demonstrate a substantial connection to Canada: at least 1,095 days of cumulative physical presence in Canada before the birth or adoption. People adopted abroad before December 15, 2025, by a Canadian parent born or adopted abroad can apply for Canadian citizenship for an adopted child under the new rules. Check the IRCC page on the 2025 rule change first, before you fill in any form. If the descent rule covers you, the rest of this guide is the wrong application. The companion guide on checking whether you are already a citizen under Bill C-3 is the place to start instead, once it is published.

Who can apply

To be eligible for a grant of citizenship as an adult, you must be a permanent resident of Canada. You must have been physically present in Canada for at least 1,095 days in the five years immediately before you apply. You may need to have filed personal income taxes for at least three years within the five-year period, if you were required to file. If you are 18 to 54 years old when you apply, you must demonstrate adequate knowledge of English or French, and adequate knowledge of Canada and the responsibilities and privileges of citizenship, which is assessed after you apply. You cannot have unfulfilled conditions related to your permanent resident status, you cannot be under a removal order, and you cannot be inadmissible or prohibited on criminal or security grounds. And you must be eligible the day before you sign the application form, not merely on the day IRCC receives it.

Two age rules shape the rest of the package. Applicants under 18 and applicants 55 or older are not required to provide language evidence and are not scheduled for the knowledge test, though the rest of the process, including identity and residence verification, still applies. The age that counts is your age when you sign the application. If compassionate grounds prevent you from meeting the language or knowledge requirement, a waiver exists: submit the supporting evidence with your application, including the Waiver Request Form, CIT 0116, and, for a medical condition, the Medical Opinion Form for Citizenship Waivers, CIT 0547, filled out by a medical professional licensed to practise in Canada. Requesting a waiver does not guarantee it will be approved. Waivers are assessed case by case.

Count your days before you touch the form

Run the Online Physical Presence Calculator first, because everything else in the package hangs off its dates. The eligibility period is the five years before the date you sign your application. The minimum is 1,095 days physically present in Canada inside that period, and IRCC encourages applicants to apply with more than the minimum, to account for miscalculated absences or any other aspect that could lower the total below 1,095 days. You must complete and submit the printout of the calculation. If you cannot use the online calculator, complete How to Calculate Physical Presence, CIT 0407, instead. You do not have to sign or date the calculation itself. The date you sign the application must be the same date as the application date used in the calculator, so run the calculator for the date you actually intend to sign.

Time before permanent residence can help, at half value. Each day spent physically in Canada as an authorized temporary resident or protected person within the last five years counts as half a day, up to a maximum of 365 days toward your physical presence. Temporary resident status includes lawful authorization as a visitor, student, worker, or temporary resident permit holder. Work or study permits issued while a refugee claim or Pre-Removal Risk Assessment was being assessed did not grant temporary resident status, and that time cannot be claimed. A protected person is someone found to be in need of protection or a Convention refugee by the Immigration and Refugee Board, or someone who received a positive decision on a Pre-Removal Risk Assessment; only the time from the positive decision until the day before becoming a permanent resident counts. There are very rare situations where time outside Canada counts, for people employed outside Canada by the Canadian Armed Forces, the federal public administration, or a provincial or territorial public service, or whose spouse, common-law partner, or permanent resident parent was so employed. If any of that applies, complete the Residence Outside Canada form, CIT 0177, and submit the supporting documents it asks for.

Language and knowledge: the two requirements for ages 18 to 54

Language and knowledge are separate requirements, and they are assessed differently. Language is shown with proof submitted with the application. Knowledge is assessed after you apply, through the citizenship test. Both apply only to applicants 18 to 54 when they sign.

For language, Canadian Language Benchmark or Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens level 4 is considered basic proficiency: short everyday conversations about common topics, simple instructions and directions, and basic grammar with enough common words to answer questions and express yourself. Proof can be a degree, diploma, certificate, or official transcripts from a secondary or post-secondary program in English or French, in Canada or abroad; results from an approved third-party language test; or a certificate from a government-funded language program at CLB or NCLC level 4 or higher in speaking and listening. The approved tests named on the CIT 0002 page are the CELPIP General Test or CELPIP-General LS, IELTS General Training, TEF, TEFAQ, or TEF pour la naturalisation, and TCF Canada. If you completed a test in the past for immigration or citizenship purposes, IRCC accepts the previous results even if they have expired. The full catalogue of accepted proof, including the provincial program certificates, belongs to the companion guide on tracking residency days and proving your language level.

For knowledge, applicants 18 to 54 are scheduled for the citizenship knowledge test after IRCC receives the application. The test is 20 questions in 45 minutes, drawn entirely from Discover Canada, and you need 15 right to pass. The exam guide on this site covers the test in full: who takes it, how to study, how the invitation works, and what happens if you fail.

Taxes: the five-year chart and the CRA consent

The form asks about income tax filing for the last five years. Provide your nine-digit social insurance number, temporary tax number, or individual tax number if you have one. For each tax year in the chart, say whether you were required to file and whether you filed. Complete the chart in full even if you did not live in Canada for part of the five-year period. The tax years are generated automatically once you enter your eligibility period. If you were required to file, the expectation is at least three years filed within the five-year period; the Canada Revenue Agency page on newcomers to Canada is where IRCC directs applicants to check whether they were required to file.

You will also be asked to authorize the Canada Revenue Agency to provide your tax filing information, including income, benefit, and residence information, to IRCC. That consent is required under the Citizenship Regulations, and IRCC uses it to determine whether you meet the income tax and physical presence requirements and to support quality assurance in the citizenship program. Answering the tax questions honestly matters more than the answer itself: a year you were not required to file is a legitimate entry, and the chart has a column for exactly that.

Prohibitions and police certificates

Question 16 of the form exists to make sure you are not prohibited from becoming a Canadian citizen under the Citizenship Act. You answer nine situations with yes or no, and if any situation applies to you, you provide details in the explanation box. You cannot become a citizen if any of the situations applies either when you submit the application or while it is being processed. If you are not sure whether a situation applies to you, the form suggests contacting your lawyer or the arresting police officer. IRCC reviews applications case by case, checks records with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, and may require fingerprints, court documents, or an in-person interview. Concealing a situation that applies to you, and then taking the oath, can lead to your citizenship being revoked.

Police certificates are a separate, mechanical rule. Provide a certificate from each country other than Canada where you were present in the past four years for 183 days or more in a row, since the age of 18. Short trips do not add up to trigger the rule; a single stay of 183 days or more does. You do not need a certificate for time in your country of origin immediately before you became a permanent resident and landed in Canada, where that time falls inside the past four years. A certificate must have been issued after the last time you were in that country, or no more than six months before the date you sign your application. If you cannot obtain one, explain why in the explanation box. IRCC may ask for a police certificate at any point during processing, even if you submitted a valid one.

Assemble the package from the checklist

Work from the Document Checklist, CIT 0007, and check off each item as you collect it. The package is: the completed application form for adults, CIT 0002, validated so it generates a barcode page; the printout of your Online Physical Presence Calculation; colour photocopies of all pages of your passport or travel documents covering the five-year eligibility period, including the biographical page, with an explanation if you held no valid passport or travel document during that period; two personal identification documents showing your name, photo, and date of birth, photocopied on both sides where applicable; two identical citizenship photos meeting the specifications in the checklist; proof of English or French if you are 18 to 54; police certificates where the rule applies; the fee receipt; and the completed checklist itself. Add the Use of a Representative form, IMM 5476, if you appointed a representative, and the appendix documents if you changed your name, need a date-of-birth correction, or requested a change of sex or gender identifier.

Two history sections return more applications than any other mistake. The address history must list all addresses inside and outside Canada during the five-year eligibility period, including postal codes, starting with your current home address, with no gaps. You do not need to list addresses where you stayed while on vacation. The work and study history must list all work and study, including English or French language training, for the same five years, accounting for each month, including periods when you were unemployed, studying, retired, caregiving, homemaking, or volunteering, with the location. If either section is blank or has gaps, the application will be returned as incomplete. Fill in the form on a computer, answer every question unless instructed otherwise, and use the plus button to add rows rather than squeezing entries together.

Pay, sign, and send

Pay the fee online only once you are ready to submit, and include the receipt with your application. On October 29, 2026, the official fee list showed $653 for an adult and $100 for a minor. The right of citizenship fee rose on March 31, 2026, from $119.75 to $123, while the $530 processing fee stayed the same, so any guide showing $630 or $649.75 is working from stale figures. Re-check the fee list on the day you pay: the right of citizenship fee is adjusted annually, and the next adjustment falls on March 31, 2027.

Sign and date the form on the day you sign it. Do not use a date in the past or the future, and make sure the signature date matches the application date in your physical presence calculation. An unsigned application, one dated more than 90 days before IRCC receives it, or one post-dated into the future will be returned. After completing the form on a computer, click Validate to generate the barcode page and place it on top of the application. A barcode page does not appear if you fill the form in by hand.

Send the completed form and all documents by mail or courier to the Case Processing Centre in Sydney, Nova Scotia: regular mail goes to Case Processing Centre - Sydney, Citizenship Grants, P.O. Box 7000, Sydney, NS B1P 6V6; courier goes to the IRCC Digitization Centre - Citizenship, 3050 Wilson Avenue, New Waterford, NS B1H 5V8. Send the application as soon as possible after signing. IRCC recommends a postal or courier service with a tracking number so you can confirm delivery. If you submit more than one application at the same time, make sure every application is complete: IRCC returns all submitted applications if at least one is incomplete. Put them in the same envelope if you want them processed together; otherwise they will be processed separately. Giving IRCC your email address authorizes correspondence, including file and personal information, by email, so check the junk folder for messages from addresses ending in @cic.gc.ca, @canada.ca, or @international.gc.ca, and add them to your safe senders list.

After you apply

The processing time starts when IRCC receives your complete application and ends when you become a Canadian citizen. It includes the citizenship test and the ceremony where applicable, and it can be longer if the application is non-routine or complex, or if inventory and staffing levels shift. Check the current processing times on the IRCC site; this guide states no processing-time figure because the application page publishes none as a fixed number. Use the application status tracker to follow your file, and keep your contact information current with IRCC so invitations reach you.

If you are 18 to 54, expect the test invitation after your application is received. The exam guide covers the invitation window, the three chances to pass, and the hearing that follows if all three are used. IRCC may invite you to an interview to verify identity, residence, and documents. If your application is approved, you are invited to a citizenship ceremony and take the Oath of Citizenship there. On the form you choose whether your citizenship certificate will be paper or electronic: citizens can hold only one type, and an electronic certificate is a printable PDF that needs an email address on the form. You will also be asked whether IRCC may share your name, address, and preferred official language with your federal Member of Parliament for a letter of congratulations, and whether your information may go to Elections Canada for the National Register of Electors, or to the Chief Electoral Officer of Quebec if you live in Quebec. Answering no to any of those does not affect your application; it only means you register to vote through the ordinary route later.

Figures this guide does not state

This guide states no processing-time figure, because IRCC's application page publishes no fixed number and the figure circulating in secondary guides is unverified. It states no rule for who may apply online rather than on paper, because that eligibility is set out on the How to apply page and changes with the online service; confirm the current route there before you choose. It carries no per-test score tables beyond the CLB level 4 bar and the test names on the CIT 0002 page, and no fee figure beyond the fee list checked on October 29, 2026. Re-check the fee list before you pay. Recheck this guide's fee and descent statements on any IRCC update, and no later than March 31, 2027, when the next fee adjustment falls due.

Related guides

Applying for a grant of citizenship, in five moves

  1. Check the descent rule firstIf you were born abroad to a Canadian parent, Bill C-3 may already have made you a citizen. That is a proof-of-citizenship application, not a grant application.
  2. Run the physical presence calculatorCount 1,095 days inside the five years before you sign. Apply with more than the minimum, because IRCC warns that miscalculated absences can drop you below it.
  3. Assemble the package from the checklistForm CIT 0002, the calculator printout, passport copies, two pieces of ID, two photos, language proof, and any police certificates. Gaps in the five-year history get the package returned.
  4. Pay, sign, and send without delayPay the $653 adult fee online and include the receipt. Sign and date the form the day you sign it, match the calculator date, and send it promptly: IRCC returns applications received more than 90 days after the form date.
  5. Test, interview, and ceremonyAfter you apply, IRCC schedules the knowledge test for applicants 18 to 54, may call you for an interview, and invites you to a ceremony where you take the oath.

Questions people ask

Who can apply for a grant of Canadian citizenship?

You must be a permanent resident of Canada, you must have been physically present in Canada for at least 1,095 days in the five years immediately before you apply, and you may need to have filed personal income taxes for at least three years within that five-year period if you were required to file. If you are 18 to 54 when you apply, you must also show adequate knowledge of English or French and adequate knowledge of Canada and the responsibilities and privileges of citizenship, which is assessed after you apply. You cannot have unfulfilled conditions attached to your permanent resident status, you cannot be under a removal order, and you cannot be inadmissible or prohibited on criminal or security grounds. You must be eligible the day before you sign the application form. This guide covers the adult grant. If you are applying for a minor, start from the same How to apply page on the IRCC site and follow the minor path there.

How do I count my 1,095 days, and what counts before I became a permanent resident?

The eligibility period is the five years before the date you sign your application, and the minimum is 1,095 days physically present in Canada inside that period. IRCC encourages applicants to apply with more than the minimum, to allow for miscalculated absences or anything else that could lower the total below 1,095 days. You must complete and submit the printout of the Online Physical Presence Calculator, and IRCC strongly encourages using the online calculator because it is the most accurate way to check. Time in Canada as an authorized temporary resident or protected person before you became a permanent resident can count at half value, up to a maximum of 365 days. Each day spent physically in Canada as a visitor, student, worker, or temporary resident permit holder counts as half a day. Time on a work or study permit issued while a refugee claim or Pre-Removal Risk Assessment was being assessed does not grant temporary resident status and cannot be claimed. The companion guide on tracking residency days and proving your language level covers the counting in detail.

What documents go in the application package?

Work from [the Document Checklist, CIT 0007](https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/application/application-forms-guides/cit0007.html), in the application package, and treat it as the controlling list. The package centres on [the application form for adults, CIT 0002](https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/application/application-forms-guides/cit0002.html), plus the printout of your [Online Physical Presence Calculation](https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/application/application-forms-guides/cit0002.html). You also provide colour photocopies of all pages of your passport or travel documents covering the five-year eligibility period, including the biographical page; two personal identification documents showing your name, photo, and date of birth, photocopied on both sides where there is information on both sides; and two identical citizenship photos that meet the specifications in the checklist. If you are 18 to 54, include your proof of English or French. If the police-certificate rule applies to you, include those certificates. Include the fee receipt, the completed checklist itself, and [the Use of a Representative form, IMM 5476](https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/application/application-forms-guides/imm5476.html), if you appointed a representative. If you changed your name, corrected your date of birth, or changed your sex or gender identifier since becoming a permanent resident, the appendixes in the instruction guide list the extra documents for each case.

Do I need police certificates, and from which countries?

You need a police certificate from each country other than Canada where you were present in the past four years for 183 days or more in a row, since the age of 18. The rule turns on consecutive days in a single country, not total days abroad: ten short trips totalling 210 days do not trigger it, while one stay of 200 days does. You do not need a certificate for time in your country of origin immediately before you became a permanent resident and landed in Canada, where that time falls inside the past four years. A certificate must have been issued after the last time you were in that country, or no more than six months before the date you sign your application. If you cannot get a certificate, explain why in the explanation box on the form. IRCC may request a police certificate at any point during processing even if you submitted a valid one with your application, and it checks records with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Canadian Security Intelligence Service as part of the prohibitions check.

How much does it cost, and how do I pay?

Check the fee list on the IRCC site before you pay, because the right of citizenship fee is adjusted annually. On October 29, 2026, the official fee list showed $653 for an adult grant of citizenship, which includes the processing fee and the right of citizenship fee, and $100 for a minor. The processing fee is $530 and has not changed. The right of citizenship fee rose from $119.75 to $123 on March 31, 2026, which is why older guides still show $630 or $649.75: both figures are stale. You pay online, only once you are ready to submit, and you include the receipt with your application. If you submit more than one application at the same time, you can pay all the fees together on one receipt or separately. The right of citizenship portion is remitted if citizenship is not granted. Confirm the current amounts on the fee list on the day you pay, since the next annual adjustment falls on March 31, 2027.

What happens after I send my application?

The processing time starts when IRCC receives your complete application, with no missing information or documents, and ends when you become a Canadian citizen. It includes the citizenship test and the ceremony where applicable, and it can be longer if the application is non-routine or complex. IRCC does not publish a single processing-time figure on the application page, so this guide states none: check the current processing times on the IRCC site before you plan around a date. Use the application status tracker to follow your file. If you are 18 to 54, IRCC schedules you for the citizenship knowledge test after receiving your application; the exam guide on this site walks through the test itself. IRCC may also invite you to an interview to verify identity, residence, and documents, and may ask for fingerprints or court documents as part of the prohibitions check. If your application is approved, you are invited to a citizenship ceremony, where you take the Oath of Citizenship. You choose on the form whether your citizenship certificate will be paper or electronic; you can hold only one type, and an electronic certificate needs an email address on the form.

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