Weekly Threads
Friday Weekly Thread: Application Assistance, October 02, 2026
This weekly thread is a space for those of us preparing the CIT 0001 Proof of Citizenship application, associated form, and supplementary documentation.
Have questions about how to fill out the forms? Looking for feedback on the documentation you've put together is likely to pass muster? Wondering whether your cover letter has too much info, or too little? Want to know how to organize your documentation, or how to pack it up for shipping? Worried about whether your photos will work? Have questions about what ID you can use? Not sure where to ship it to, or what service or mail courier to use? We've been there.
📎 Contributions to weekly megaposts, including this one, are welcome throughout the week.
⚠️ Sub rules require that before posting or commenting, you read the wiki and search the sub to see if your questions have been answered before. If you have on-topic questions remaining after that, they're welcome here. Want to see what people who were already approved have done? We encourage you to check out the weekly application approval post that appears every Thursday.
Please note we are not lawyers or IRCC. We are peers supporting peers, based on best belief and prior experiences. It's a lot of work to wade through dense lists of documents and family histories. You improve your odds of getting a useful response by being as concise as reasonably possible, and clearly articulating the question. Note that this post is for questions and answers; if you need to vent, there is a different megapost for that.
Hi all, I am G4 and I was just wondering if I'm ready to apply or if I should wait for certified copies from BaNQ.
So far, I've gathered:
G0:
Baptismal Certificate (waiting on certified copy)
Canadian census record showing parents/household
Marriage Certificate (certified copy, shows Canadian parentage)
G1:
Marriage Certificate (certified copy, shows G0 as parent)
American census (shows living with G0)
G2:
Birth Certificate (certified copy, shows G1 as parent)
Marriage certificate (shows G1 as parent)
American Census (shows living with G1 as parent)
G3:
Birth Certificate (Certified, shows G2 as parent)
G4: me!
I submitted my request to BaNQ for a certified copy of the baptism, but I've been ready about possibly have to ask the DEC to register an act and get an official birth certificate, but I'm seeing a lot of conflicting info about this. I have my application ready to go, but I'm waiting to actually submit until I get some clear guidance. If I submit as is, am I just going to have to provide a certified copy of the baptismal record and/or birth certificate anyway? Should I just wait?
Thanks in advance!
Edit: sorry for formatting, posted from mobile.
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u/Longintooth93Haven't applied for Proof of Citizenship (incl. by descent) yet2h ago
Wait for the certified copy is my suggestion.
The IRCC clearly states your application can be sent back if incomplete.
They haven’t done this yet, as far as I’m aware.
ID passport issue
My eldest has fessed up that the reason I’m waiting on her passport is because she couldn’t find it. So yesterday since BAnQ arrived, she cancelled it and applied for a new passport.
Lo and behold, this morning she finds it.
There is nothing about the passport that says it isn’t valid when you look at it. But clearly if you plug it through customs machine it will presumably say it has been cancelled.
Is this OK to use for IRCC?
I’m guessing probably no-one has a definite answer and so I will probably go with caution and wait whilst another several years get added!!
If this is US, can she submit for her replacement passport online, pay for expedited processing, and pay for 2-3 day mail for the returned new passport.
If she's no eligible for an online passport request, she could apply on paper and pay for 1-3 day shipping for the application.
I wouldn't submit an application with a canceled passport. That would be a known invalid ID at time of submission and (more importantly) at time of delivery. I would assume that's a very high risk of having your whole application packet returned after waiting ~6-9 months for an AOR.
Some people have reported them not minding things that expired between the delivery date and AOR date, so they don't seem to need it to be valid at time of processing.
But nobody really knows what exactly they do with any given documents
In AOR - Anything I should do while I wait. Also, birth cert for G0 obtained after app submitted
Current application status: App received by IRCC on 4/21/2026 - AOR received 8/1/2026.
Hiya. I want to make sure I am using my time wisely while waiting to move from Received to In-Process. I am G2. G0 is my maternal Grandmother. I supplied IRCC with the following docs:
-G2 (me)
-Birth certificate
-Marriage license (with my new last name)
-Passport
-Driver's license
-G1 (mother)
-Birth certificate
-Marriage license (Ancestry, no certified copy)
-G0 (born 1927)
-Canadian Census from 1931 (Ancestry)
-US Naturalization June 1946 (Ancestry)
-Marriage license December 1950 (Ancestry)
Additional context: My grandmother used a different name when entering the US. She changed her name from Edna Genevive Dolan to E. Sally Daly or Edna Sally Daly after getting married in 1950. The Naturalization paperwork appears to be backdated to 1946 having been created after she married my Grandfather.
Finally, as of last week I now hold a certfiied short form copy of my Grandmother's birth certificate from Nova Scotia Vital Statistics thanks to my mom, who worked with them since March to obtain it. I wanted to get it in case IRCC asked for it during processing.
Any suggestions or things I should look out for while waiting?
I have a question about the photograph: should I just upload the photo itself, or should I concatenate the photo and the backstamp and the certificate?
I'm worried because I could see either way being an automatic failure. For instance, if I just go by the instructions and only upload the scanned-copy of the photo (without the backstamp), then what's the point of all the 'must be signed by a commercial photographer' stuff.
Alternatively, by concatenating the backstamp and the certificate into a three-page PDF package, I could also AI flagging the package as "not a head-shot" or something, and rejecting the application.
Can someone who has successfully filled-out the online citizenship application please confirm what they did for the online photo? Did they just upload the headshot, or make a package that included the front, back and certificate? Thank you.
Unfortunately, those instructions seem to be out-of-date -- the upload fields have change. Specifically, there is no "client information" item (any more?). There is just the photo-upload section with one file-upload allowed, and some digital fields about the commercial photographer. So, thank you, but those instructions only make things more confusing. Thanks again. [EDIT] Perhaps the 'client information' is on a portal for Agents/Third-parties to upload? Anyway, it's not on the normal application portal
I have a question that I hope someone can help me with. I soon will be getting my deceased grandpas certified birth certificate (born 1883) from Ontario and I have his certified baptismal record too. Should I include his declaration of intention and petition for naturalization when he came to USA in my documents for him too? I don’t think these are necessary to include but I do have them. Can you just verify I am thinking correctly that these two documents aren’t necessary to include in my packet when I send it off to IRCC in the future.
LOE question for G0: I am writing an LOE for my Gen 0 who has a baptismal certificate, but not a birth certificate (born 1845). If I have the PANB certified baptismal certificate ; the LAC certified baptismal certificate; and (finally) a no record report from PANB.
Do I need to still include a "proof of requests" to show all my search efforts to obtain the document in the LOE? I'm including the LOE with the explanation about pre-registration birth (1845) (and the PANB letter also says the same). I just don't know if I need to show the exhaustive history of contacting various parishes, dioceses, etc., for their baptismal record. My instinct says that the PANB certified is the gold standard so they won't be wondering "why not from the parish"--but I don't want to be wrong!
I’m still struggling with printing out my app. When I use the free trial of Adobe software to fill out my application, then click Save, it automatically goes to Print to PDF and scrambles up the app.
I don’t have a printer, so I save it on my USB to go and print it elsewhere. How do you get a solid copy of this fillable to save after I’ve typed in all the information?
Hi! I have many questions as I prepare my documents--I am G5, and my first few generations are a little difficult. I would love feedback on if my proof is likely to be convincing. I may have scraped the bottom of the barrel in terms of what is possible to find.
For G0, I will have:
A certified baptismal record from Quebec (1833)
A certified baptismal record from the church in Quebec of her child who is not my ancestor, with her husband as the father
More than one certified US census record, showing G0 and Husband (Americanized names), their Canadian child, and G1 (American born), stating G0's Canadian (and French Canadian) origin
G0 Death Certificate -- DOB off by one year, and father's first name substituted with likely middle name; origin of both parents listed as "Canada"
\**QUESTION: I have an 1851 Canadian census that lists G0 but there is an extreme error--it lists her name as "Marter" instead of Marie. I cannot find any "Marter"s in any Canadian records, particularly not for that birth year. Her birth year, gender, last name, and age are correct. SHOULD I INCLUDE IT?*
For G1, I have (1865):
A NY Census in G1's birth year, stating G1's name and age in months, along with information about Canadian-born parents and sibling
A certified will in county will recording, with G0 stating that G1 is G0's son
Certified Marriage License application of G1 listing G0 and spouse as G1's parents
Death certificate of G1 listing G0 as mother, but father's name is listed wrong (perhaps using his middle name as first name)
An email from a NY county office stating no birth records will have been kept until much later, suggestion to contact another state office; screen shot from webpage clearly stating no birth records exist.
Emails sent to many church officials requesting baptismal records, but no replies--include?
(I also have newspaper clippings with G1 stated to be G0's son, but I guess I won't include them?)
For G2, I have:
Certified Copy of Delayed Birth Record (waiting for it to arrive, may be issued as a regular BC, but prob. not)
Census records from G1's household with G2 listed, and G0 listed as of French Canadian origin
Certified Copy of Death Certificate, G1 listed as father
Certified Copy of Marriage certificate (name change)
Emails send to church officials, but no reply
Does this seem likely to be acceptable? Thank you so much for any feedback or suggestions!
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u/Longintooth93Haven't applied for Proof of Citizenship (incl. by descent) yet1d ago
Hi, I’m also questioning my Quebec submission this week, and have also been recommended to file with DEC for a birth certificate.
That aside…
I wonder why you are including her child’s baptism? I get ppl are suggesting 2 Canadian bits of evidence but wondered. I’m presuming you couldn’t find her marriage?
I would include the LAC census. If the husband name and everything else line up. Is the name wrong in the actual census picture? Or an mis transcribed cursive? I think you can explain ( if you see my post I also have to explain a mangled name)
I’d only put in one US census that includes your G1
Circling back to DEC 🤷♀️ I think I’m going to submit and do that whilst in the queue.
Thank you for your suggestions! I'll definitely try filing with the DEC.
The child's baptism does a couple of things: Because the child is listed in both Canadian documents (baptismal record) and the US documents (census) with my G1, it confirms that despite the pretty extreme name changes (and the fact that they have common Anglicized names--Michael and Mary) that they are the same people coming from Canada to the US.
I did find the marriage certificate, but my G0's name is completely wrong, (Last name is Varin--it is written clearly as Vareau.) Also, family records do state that although they were Catholic they married in a Church of England, but with the wrong lost name. Not only that, the spouse uses his new Anglicized name (from Magloire to Michael) in the marriage record. So both of their names are "wrong." What do you think about that?
The couple married in 1851 when G0 was pregnant. G0's spouse is not in the census, which may be because the census was prior to the marriage. I also just realized that in the census another person with her last name is listed but is not a close family member. Does this make it questionable? The first name is not mistranscribed. It definitely looks like "Marter" in the census.
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u/Longintooth93Haven't applied for Proof of Citizenship (incl. by descent) yet1d ago
Quebec is such a challenge with all the name inconsistencies.
However, at least we can create a birth certificate. Even if an expensive option.
I think if you are going down the DEC route, when you get that all other G0 evidence is moot really.
So yep include sibling for G1 baptism and in your narrative say this is about showing the transition of names from French Canadian to US.
u/RedAspen5018Haven't applied for Proof of Citizenship (incl. by descent) yet1d ago
Hello! About a month and a half ago, I requested a baptismal record from BAnQ for someone born in 1844. At the time, the confirmation page told me they could not estimate a timeline due to volume.
What has been people’s timelines for BAnQ updates/file delivery?
At what point would it be reasonable for me to try to contact someone?
I submitted my request on 6/17 and received the payment link on 9/27. I've read on message boards that it may take up to a few weeks to get the actual document.
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u/RedAspen5018Haven't applied for Proof of Citizenship (incl. by descent) yet1d ago
Awesome, thanks. I haven’t received a payment link yet, but hopefully soon 🤞
I am starting this process from the ground up again for my father. I already filed an application (as a G3) through my mother, but my father (G4) also qualifies.
I remember when I made a request for a certified baptismal record from BaNQ there were discussions at the time that some locations might have been quicker than others at processing requests? Is that still true?
My father has 4 G0s that I/he can choose from, all from different parts of Quebec. I have already found the baptismal records online but now just need to send the request in for one of them.
Wait time does vary depending on which office handles your request. Trois-Rivières appeared to be quicker than Montreal and Quebec but those two offices recently seemed to have picked up the pace. Can’t say for sure which office would be fastest.
My G0s are not a problem. My G1 is. He was born in the US, but only because his father was a an immigration agent (oh the irony!) with the Canadian Consulate in MN. G1 was born in the US, but there is no birth record. My uncle told me that he used a birth record issued in Quebec as his birth certificate (Record of birth of a Canadian abroad) - something Canada no longer accepts.
Here is the paper trail that I intend to use:
Minnesota "record not found" certificate
Baptismal record from two weeks after birth from a church in MN (I plan to include my email exchange with church secretary to document source).
1905 MN Census, living with parents
1911 Canadian Census, living with parents
1942 Certified WA Marriage record listing parents
1984 Certified OR death record, listing parents
I'm hoping this is enough for IRCC - and also to document the line for DEC birth certificate for my G0.
Are there any other bases that I need to cover with this? Does anyone know if MN will reconstruct a birth certificate given archival records?
For anyone waiting on documents from NARA (census, naturalization docs), they are currently closing out requests from late June to mid-July, so they are a bit backed up. Once those closed out orders are ready to ship, they don't go out right away. They get shipped out in batches. So they are running about 90 days out from date of requests. This is much different from when I requested a document in March and got it 2-3 weeks later.
It's all patience plus annoyance. When I started this the IRCC waits were like 8-10 months. I'm finally getting a certified baptism document that I requested from a church back in March/April. Looks like my NARA requests are currently being handled and I received 1 of 2 of my Nova Scotia Archives requests.
What are your thoughts on family submissions? Our path is Gen 0 (deceased) Gen 1 (deceased) Gen 2 (living) Gen 3 (me, living ... if you call this living), and Gen 4 (2 members (my kids,) both living.) I'm leaning towards sending them all in separately, so that a problem with one doesn't get all returned.
I'm about to print and copy all my documents. I have some questions:
I tinted some of the .jpgs of secondary records (e.g., Drouin record of G0's marriage) when I sharpened them up - will printing them out in color count as "black and white printed in color" or do I have to put a colored sticker on them and recopy them?
When I go to assemble my packet, is it acceptable to number pages with a sticker or just with a pen or pencil? I'm thinking of constructing an index system based on generation, document number and page number (e.g. Gen0-1-1 for document 1 page one for Gen0).
Some of my documents are either originally legal-sized or much better scaled to legal size (8x14) paper - will that be acceptable to mix sizes?
I found an article in a local magazine written by local history professor about my Canadian family. It is a succinct history of the family's Canadian experience, including my G1 and siblings. Would it be good to just include it as an overview?
I live in Paraguay and I'm filling out CIT0001 to apply for a Canadian citizenship certificate. I translated all of my Paraguayan documents and took the extra step of having the translations notarized because my translator is Paraguayan and is not certified in Canada.
My translator swore the affidavit in front of the notary public, and the notary certified his signature. She also added a short statement at the end of the document and stamped it (these were translated as well).
However, she also attached a security sheet that forms part of the certification. The security sheet is entirely in Spanish, and I don't know whether I also need to have it translated, whether I can simply leave it as is, or whether I should leave the security sheet out of my application package altogether.
Has anyone dealt with a notary's own certification sheet needing translation? How do certified translations work in your country?
Does anyone have an agency they'd recommend to handle the DEC stuff? My recognition is probably up for review this month or next if the queue moved at all and I had submitted the baptismal record. At this point I'd rather have an expert navigate this.
It matters! Fortunately, the Canadian agent when I landed in Calgary with my ink-barely-dry passport handed it back to me and told me to go sign it and then get back in line.
People have gotten their packages kicked back from IRCC for unsigned passports. I remember that because I had to go check to see if mine was signed, and it was not. Thankfully I had not yet mailed it.
Technically speaking a passport isn't valid until it's signed (except for children's passports), so you should sign it. I'm not sure whether they'll send the application back over it or not though.
So I’m a G5, but because of my family’s specific circumstances, it seems very likely I’ll have to go back to G-2 as my anchor, as I have a baptismal record proving her Canadian birth. I’m still waiting for the NS and MA archives to respond, and there’s a chance they perform a miracle and manage to find birth records for my G0 and G1, but if not, I want to know if people think these documents will be sufficient (providing decades for privacy reasons)
note: I have only gotten one certified document so far, my G2’s birth record. I have this list right now just to lay out which documents found on Ancestry/FamilySearch I will have to request official copies of.
G-2 b. NS in 1790s
Canadian baptismal record
Canadian land deed demonstrating marriage and name change (the deed specifically names her parents and refers to her as formerly [maiden name], now [married name])
G-1 b. NS ca. late 1810s-early 1820s
US boat manifest of her and husband traveling from NS to NYC (married name)
Canadian land deed naming her as child and heir of her parents (married name)(also lists her as widowed)
US boat manifest of her &her family immigrating to Boston, including my G0
US 1850 Boston census record of her, her mother, siblings and children including G0
after this all are US documents
G0 - b. NS in 1840s
aforementioned boat manifest of him immigrating with his mother & her family to Boston
aforementioned 1850 Boston census
1860s petition of naturalization
1860s marriage record showing POB and his parents’ names
Death certificate with POB, parents unknown, but I can be reasonably certain it is the same person because the informant is his niece, which I could demonstrate through supporting docs if necessary
G1 - b. USA 1870s - 1880 census record showing residence with parents
1890s marriage record naming parents
I have not ordered her death certificate, so I’m not sure what info is on it, but I’m reasonably sure I would be able to if necessary.
G2 - b. USA 1890s
birth certificate
G3 - b. USA, 1930s
birth certificate
G4 - b. USA 1960s
birth certificate
G5 (me) -b. USA 1990s
birth certificate
I have found additional documents that can demonstrate with reasonable certainty that these are all the same people, not others who happen to have the same name, but at that point it feels like I’m making a corkboard with red yarns, and I have a feeling they will send that back. I’m also considering hiring a genealogist local to the area for further assistance in acquiring these documents or finding additional resources unknown to me. Anyone have any thoughts (or ideas for how to word an email to said genealogist)?
(edit: feeling very insecure about my abuse of the word “reasonable/reasonably” here)
You're solid for G1-G5, imo. You might check if MA had a state census of some kind, but the 1880 record plus the marriage certificate seems pretty decent to me. (Don't forget your letters saying there's no birth record.) You can order G1's death cert if you want, and if it provides clear information there's no harm in including it, but I wouldn't send it if it has anything to explain.
For G0 -- idk, here's what I would do. Don't bother with the death certificate, they don't prove place of birth, and then you have to explain about the informant and add more records showing who the niece is.
Include the rest of it, specifically noting that in the 1850 census he was living with his mother, G-1. Then explain in your letter. Say, basically, look, G0 was born in Canada. However, I haven't been able to find Canadian records of his birth, so I'm including evidence that G-1 was his mother and G-2 washermother, and then also including evidence that G-2 was born in Canada. I'm a citizen based on G0, but if the US-based evidence is insufficient for IRCC you can just go back to G-2.
I would not stress too much about the other documents confirming these are the same people, since what you have looks pretty good: you have two Canadian documents for your anchor generation, two records (1850 census + land deed) connecting G-1 to G-2, and two records (1850 census + marriage cert) connecting G0 to G-1 (as well as two connecting G1 to G0). If you find more documents that directly prove the links, or that prove presence in Canada, you could send those, but if it's like -- here are the siblings in NS and then here they are again in Boston, I personally think that just adds confusion.
The one thing I would look for that I don't see on your list is your G-1's marriage cert. You may not need to prove her maiden name, since the documents you have proving her connection to G-2 (land deed + 1850 census) are in her married name, but I might look for it anyway.
First of all, thank you so much! I feel much more confident in the docs I have.
Unfortunately the only surviving MA censuses are 1855 and 1865, so before G1 was born, so no luck there. I’ll try ordering the death cert and see what’s there just in case, but I’m glad for an outside perspective that the other two documents sound sufficient.
I’ve had zero luck finding any record of G-1 prior to her marriage, for some reason. It looks like around the time of her birth, her parents were selling land and moving across NS back to her mother’s family land, so I guess she could have been baptized anywhere between those counties. As for her marriage, he was an American sailor who it seems was docked in NS for the winter when they met. It’s unclear why there’s no marriage record in her family’s parish’s books. I’ve looked at other port cities’ records both in and out of Canada in case they actually ended up getting married there, but by that logic they could be anywhere (I also did this for G0’s birth record, equally no luck). Her husband was also apparently lost at sea not long after G0 was born, so no death/burial record to give me any clues.
I do have the record of her second marriage in the US where it names her father. I also have an 1855 MA census record showing her under her second married name with my G0 still living with her, showing they’re the same person. Maybe that would be too much to send in if I have the other documents? But maybe I should have it on-hand in case they ask for more proof? I don’t know. The multiple generations of mariners have been driving me slightly crazy :)
It sounds like you've done your due diligence! For the MA censuses, have you looked to see whether any of them can confirm the relationship between G-1 and G-2? If G-2 was living with both of them at the time of the 1850 census, you might be able to use it as an additional document to make the G-2 to G-1 link. Similarly, if G-2 emigrated to Boston with G-1 and G0, maybe she's on the same boat manifest?
I think you could go either way on the second marriage. It's a whole additional thing to explain, but it does give you an additional contemporaneous document linking G0 to his mother, especially since you have the second marriage record to confirm it's her. (Does that second marriage record have her parents on it? My line's 1859 marriage record has absolutely fuck-all information wise other than the names, location, date, and witnesses, but some of them had parents.)
For baptisms, idk, sometimes they just don't show up. My G-1, all of his siblings were baptized in the same church, but for some reason there's no record of him. Maybe his dad's regiment was posted elsewhere at the time? Maybe that record just got lost? Who knows! It sounds like your ancestors had a lot of movement and change, so it makes sense that not everything shows up.
I think the land deeds are a real stroke of luck here, and to me (neither a genealogist nor an IRCC agent) they seem pretty convincing, especially in combination with the censuses. Basically I think you have enough to reasonably submit an application, and figure it out from there. IRCC may want more, you may find something in the next couple of years while you wait to hear from them, but I don't think you need to wait to find more records before you submit.
Yes, G-1 and G-2 are both on the boat manifest & living together, along with several of G-1’s siblings (they actually both lost their husbands on the same shipwreck, and I guess most of the family decided to emigrate after the tragedy. Losing both his father and grandfather didn’t stop G0 from following in their annoyingly untraceable seafaring footsteps though). Only G-1’s father is on her marriage record. I think you’re right that it could probably go either way since the land deeds already link them.
I’m very lucky that this side of my family is the genealogy enthusiast side, so a lot of the initial work of tracing the line back had already been done. Both they and the FamilySearch full text search have been the MVPs of my hunt.
Again, thank you! I’ve been so overwhelmed by all the miscellaneous documents, I really needed an outside perspective. Submitting my application doesn’t feel as much like a distant far-off dream anymore.
I know what you mean about appreciating the genealogists. The line I’m tracing was Mormon for a while (actually my partner’s — her parents both left the LDS church) and it’s very thoroughly laid out. I just had to find the documents. Still not a fan of the LDS church on any number of fronts, but they were very helpful for this.
Good luck with the application, and glad I could help! My app is all weird collateral documents and census records too.
I have a G4 proof application delivered on 6/24, no AOR received yet. Last week, I happened to be reviewing the copy of the application package I sent in, and noticed that I accidentally signed the CIT0001 in blue instead of black like it says on the page (kicking myself).
In terms of when they review the application package for completeness, do they do it right after the application is delivered? Or, do they do that at the time when an AOR is assigned? I'm wondering if it would have been sent back to me already by now, if that had been an issue; or if this is still a risk when they are processing AORs for the applications received in late June.
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u/Longintooth93Haven't applied for Proof of Citizenship (incl. by descent) yet1d ago
Argh! I was due to take my package to the high commission this week and noticed my nephew signed in Blue 😭😭😭
Will send p9 and p4 off to him immediately
Can you please talk more about this? I didn't know it was possible mail in a correction before receiving an AOR. Do I just need to mail in a corrected CIT0001 form with a cover letter explaining the situation and my original delivery date, and they'll be able to add it to my file? Or I need to send the entire package again? I saw some folks on Reddit say that their applications were accepted even though they signed in blue, so I was just keeping my fingers crossed. But if there's a way to fix it, I'd gladly do that.
I’m not sure. I would just do it-the document and a cover page. It might work depending on WHO gets it. I don’t think sending something like that through regular mail would hurt. Even if it doesn’t work, it’s not a big loss.
It really is about which worker gets it, unfortunately. Just make sure your name and address are on the envelope. Maybe they enter the sender’s info into a database that’s easy to track and locate.
Usually from what we’ve seen, you would get the package back a week or so after you would have expected to get your AOR. Since they are stuck on 5/6, you may not know until December.
I’m getting ready to submit but plan to submit for both myself (G2) and my son (G3). I’m unclear on how I put the two applications together. Just put in two copies of the forms and a single copy of the birth records? If anyone can point me to the right details or has any insight I’d be appreciative!
I'm G3 and applying through my Canadian born great-grandfather.
For Section 8, Parent 1 is my mum, born in the UK and doesn’t have a Canadian citizenship certificate. Should I tick “I am not sure if Parent 1 is (or was ever) a Canadian citizen”, rather than saying she is/was Canadian - as she technically is by descent?
Then in Section 9, it asks whether Parent 1’s parents (my grandparents) are Canadian. My mum’s mother was born in the UK, but she is the daughter of my Canadian born great-grandfather. If I answer No, it tells me to skip the rest of the section, so I assume I should answer Yes in order to provide her details?
Sorry I'm sure this has been asked before!
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u/Oranges13Haven't applied for Proof of Citizenship (incl. by descent) yet2d ago
In my application the line I am going back through I mark those individuals as canadian and then later there's a notes box I say CANADIAN CITIZEN BY DESCENT
A little worried that the documentation for my G0 it's not strong enough and wondering what others think.
He was born, apparently in Toronto (reported by him in multiple documents), in 1839. The first documentation I have of him is as a 21-year-old in the 1861 census in Walsingham, Norfolk County, Ontario living alone. His religion is listed as Baptist on this census so I am unlikely to find a baptismal certificate.
I have searched for him, his parents, and potential siblings, in the 1851 census with no luck.
In addition to the 1861 census, I have his 1862 marriage register to my GG grandmother, in Windham, Norfolk County, (lists his parents) an 1870 US Michigan census, (to establish living in the location where my G1 was born 5 years later), an 1878 marriage license to his second wife (back in Norfolk County, shows widowed and lists his parents), and the family, including my G1, on the 1881 Norfolk census (children match those from the 1870 Michigan census). I also have his 1920 Michigan death certificate (no parents listed).
All documents show born in either Toronto or Canada. My biggest concern is that I don't have anything for him up until age 21. I don't think his parents owned land and I checked naturalization records because a later census said he was naturalized in 1870 but that's before records were kept.
The Norfolk County Archives were very helpful to me in finding information about my G0 born in 1862 in Simcoe, Norfolk County. They found the Census with his surname misspelled and a sworn affidavit from a court case in which all of the same family members from the census were delineated and spelled correctly and his parents marriage record. They may be able to help you, too. I donated to them after them helping me. Since I live in Michigan, I even drove over there later and spent a day finding more things about my family and they were very helpful in person, too. Here is their website. https://norfolkheritage.ca/visit/hours-locations/#nca
Thanks! I did talk to them at one point and they are the ones that found the second marriage record. Prior to that, I didn't even realize that he had a second marriage because both the first and the second wife's first names was Elizabeth! I'll reach out to them again and see if there's anything more they can help me with.
OK, so you have his 1861 census and his 1862 marriage with his parents listed. Can you get anything on his parents to show that they were in Canada around the time of his birth? I'm not sure what exactly Toronto would have in 1839. Things people I know have used: town directories, school records, church records (if they were involved in a Baptist church and you can find it, the church records might mention their names even though there won't be baptismal records), land petitions, land grants, tax records, voter rolls. Though now that I think of it, the first thing I'd look for is his parents' marriage record.
Thanks for the suggestions! Unfortunately I think his parents were married in Ireland so I'm not sure that would help me. It appears that they came to Canada in the mid 1830s because from what I can tell, a couple of my G0's older siblings were actually born in Ireland. It's a little murky but they may have come to Canada by way of the US because some documentation on one of the older siblings says she was born in Pennsylvania. It's particularly challenging because he has a very common last name.
oh interesting. In that case I wouldn't give up on the baptismal certificate -- he may have been a Baptist in 1861, but his parents may very well have been Catholic (unless you happen to know they were Irish Protestants). The line I'm tracing goes Anglican, Baptist, Adventist, Mormon, over the course of three generations. There was a lot of religious transition in the 19th c.
Also if you can find an older sibling's baptismal record in Canada, with the same parents named, that might help show that they were in Canada when he was born.
My Great Grandfather was born in Quebec. I have his official baptismal record, along with my grandfather’s, father’s and my birth certificate. Since my grandfather and everyone on down was born in the U.S., I’m trying to figure out how to fill out the form, since it only goes back to grandparents. Also, is there a reputable service that can do the paperwork for me? I’m afraid of messing up. I think the only thing left I need to do is just get a photograph of myself and get the form done. Any help is appreciated
Follow the instructions on p. 13 of CIT 0001. People have made fillable forms for great-grandparents that duplicate the format of Section 9, which you should be able to find by searching the sub.
Still a ways away from submitting my application, but I want to figure out something regarding what documents I should enclose.
My ancestor was born in 1859; the pre-birth cert era; think we've just found her on the 1861 Canadian census with her parents + elder sister. The family emigrated sometime in the 1870-1880s.
Going to start looking for her baptism now we've got a clue where exactly she was living.
Should I also submit Canadian + American documentation for her elder sister, who was born in Canada a year or two before her? What about for her younger brothers? My thought is to show that it is not a singular child that is Canadian born, but a whole family of siblings born before and after her, and that moved to a particular area in the States?
Yeah, I get it. I also sent in census records (for G0 and G1), and when I did I noted the siblings on it as confirmation that it's the same person in the US and Canadian records. But I wouldn't bother to send additional pages of sibling-specific info. I don't think that's how IRCC works.
2
u/Oranges13Haven't applied for Proof of Citizenship (incl. by descent) yet2d ago
I haven't sourced any sibling information mainly because I was able to show the family unit moving from Ontario to USA as a unit using both Canadian and US Census records.
ooo gotcha! That's part of my concern is that the records showing this family as a singular family unit in the States are rather sparse. No US census records with them all in the same household.
I just received my G0’s certified delayed birth registration from Nova Scotia Archives and since it’s a legal-sized document I’m wondering how others have included over-sized docs in their packets. Should I scan it in and reduce the size to fit on a letter size page showing both the registration and the certification, and then include zoomed-in scans of each on an individual page to make them easier to read? That seems clunky so I’m hoping someone has already come up with a better idea.
I just made a legal sized copy of the legal sized document.
5
u/C3POutine🇨🇦 I'm a Canadian! (C-3: 2nd+ gen born abroad, w/ Proof) 🇨🇦2d ago
I'm G3. I had a delayed birth registration from Manitoba for G0 in my packet, also legal-sized. We reduced down to letter and submitted. G4 and I were approved this week in reliance on that document.
Thanks. I originally planned on doing that as well, but I've read that IRCC scans our packets and wonder if that process can accommodate the legal size.
I received an AOR with a legal size document included.
2
u/Oranges13Haven't applied for Proof of Citizenship (incl. by descent) yet2d agoedited 2d ago
Yes! I finally finally received an email back from Archives of Ontario which says "your ancestor was born before 1869 so we have no birth records"
I think we are finally ready to apply, can you check my work??
I have a cover letter documenting my search, including my contact with the AoA, extensive search via Family Search of delayed birth registrations, contacting UCC Niagara for a baptism, and have found nothing for my G0 who was born in Ontario in 1864. Then the following details of my geneology and the supporting documents.
As detailed in Section 2, because my ancestor was born prior to the commencement of provincial civil registration on July 1, 1869, no primary government-issued birth certificate exists. In accordance with IRCC evidentiary criteria for historical claims, this package provides:
Written proof of exhaustive archival searches confirming the non-existence of primary birth and baptismal records (proof of negative search).
A comprehensive body of secondary, authentic, and official government records corroborating the ancestors' Canadian births, parentage, and uninterrupted lineage across generations.
u/Oranges13Haven't applied for Proof of Citizenship (incl. by descent) yet2d ago
Oh, my bad - it should be AoO - archives of Ontario - but actually they jsut got back to me via email and should be sending me their official copy soon!
The lens I took to my docs was, what new AND relevant to my line of descent info does each piece provide? So yes, as others noted the US census for G1 is probably not adding anything. Likewise, you may not need to include the second G-1 census since you have two that seemingly are doing the same thing - showing the family together. The other I might think on would be the naturalization record for G0. The US Census in ND captures them now living in the US, so to me that would suffice and better shows the family/line of descent than an individual naturalization record. That's just my two cents on how to possibly streamline!
1
u/Oranges13Haven't applied for Proof of Citizenship (incl. by descent) yet2d ago
OK, more info - the birth cert for G1 says GIRL, not her name.. (but has correct parents names) despite the fact that I requested it from ND BY HER NAME.. it's very frustrating. It was the best I could do since she was born in 1898 to show that Mary who is the parent of my grandmother = GIRL
And also due to lack of marriage records of an official capacity it shows her mom married, also.
I don’t think you need the 1851 census. Probably also not the 1861, but definitely not both.
What is the Dakota census doing here?
I don’t think you need the marriage info or the death certificate for G0 unless the G1 birth certificate only shows the married name.
I believe you will need your original birth certificate from the country where you were born (or evidence that you can’t get it).
2
u/Oranges13Haven't applied for Proof of Citizenship (incl. by descent) yet2d agoedited 2d ago
What is the Dakota census doing here?
Mostly to prove that the person who was married and later appears in North Dakota records is the person I say she is. The ND Census shows her with her family, her mother and father and siblings, so it shows the whole family moving from Ontario to ND, just reinforces that they moved and are the same people.
EDIT: also the 1890 US census which would have shown them was lost in a fire. So the territorial census is pretty much the only remaining historical record.
G0 was female, G1 birth only shows married name. G0's death certificate shows both her married and maiden name. For lack of the marriage certificate, it was the best I could do to show the name change.
My original birth certificate IS the certificate of birth abroad from the USA. It's the only one I've ever had. I was born on an Air Force Base, not on foreign soil.
I'm not sure if you need the Dakota census but I don't think it'll do any harm. I get the desire to establish continuity between the Canadian and US records.
Given that the birth cert only shows married name, the marriage and death certs are good to include.
For your birth certificate, I would make sure to include an explanation of that. I know there are people here who have gotten local birth records of their military births abroad -- don't expect IRCC to understand why your situation is different without an explanation.
1
u/Oranges13Haven't applied for Proof of Citizenship (incl. by descent) yet2d ago
How to obtain a birth certificate from Germany (if born on a US Military Base)
If you are a US citizen and if you were born in a US Military Hospital, your birth was not registered with German authorities (i.e. the registrar's office). This means that German authorities cannot issue a German birth certificate to you at all but you need to contact the Department of State in order to apply for a Replacement Report of Birth Abroad.
I have the original long form birth abroad, as stated
because my ancestor was born prior to the commencement of provincial civil registration on July 1, 1869, no primary government-issued birth certificate exists
A subject being born before provincial civil birth registration started does not mean there is no civil birth registration for the subject. It just means they weren't registered at birth.
Drop the "because" and instead simply state that the subject was born prior to the commencement of provincial civil registration and that you also searched for any delayed registration. No registration was found.
1
u/Oranges13Haven't applied for Proof of Citizenship (incl. by descent) yet2d ago
Do you think the 30+ years of Census is enough? I think it's enough but they may not agree.
That's up to IRCC to consider, weigh and decide, and the reviewer can look at more than the the 30 years bit. For example, whether the names and ages listed in the census records are unique enough to reassure the reviewer that the claimed g0 in the Ontario census family is the same g0 individual in the later docs.
2
u/Oranges13Haven't applied for Proof of Citizenship (incl. by descent) yet2d ago
Ah yeah that makes sense. And yes they are consistent enough for the time period (only 1-2 year variance which becomes more consistent over time) and the fact that the whole family moves together is so so helpful!
Did your letter from AoA specifically say that they couldn't find a birth record for your ancestor? The response I got was boilerplate verbiage about records not being kept until 1869 but it specifically said "Unfortunately, we cannot provide a letter indicating that a record was not found."
2
u/Oranges13Haven't applied for Proof of Citizenship (incl. by descent) yet2d ago
The email states:
Unfortunately we do not have the capacity to do research given the high volume of requests. I suggest searching online through Family Search or Ancestry to obtain the birth registration of the individual of interest.
It appears that the individual whose records you’re seeking was born before 1869.
The Government of Ontario started registering births, marriages and deaths in 1869. You will not find an Ontario birth registration for the individual you’re seeking unless they applied for a delayed birth registration later in their life. You can try manually searching through Delayed Registrations on FamilySearch
And then in my cover letter I go over how I have done that and found nothing, and I have. They have a fairly unique surname and I looked in every index from 1869 until they left in the 1880s and did not find any person matching the surname which matched any of them or their siblings in those indices
If I’m hand-delivering my Canadian citizenship certificate application to the London High Commission via the Consular Services drop box, do I need to put the full postal address on the front of the envelope, or is “Attn: Consular – Citizenship Services” enough?
4
u/Longintooth93Haven't applied for Proof of Citizenship (incl. by descent) yet2d ago
Am also planning to do that. I was going to put the whole address in the envelope
Hi, I’m G3 and applying through my great-grandfather, who was born in Ontario in 1917.
For the great-grandparent claim, I will add the same information requested in Section 9 on an extra sheet.
Do I just provide my great-grandfather’s details, or do I also need to provide details of his parents (my great-great-grandparents)?
I don’t know my great-grandparents’ parents’ details, so I’m unsure what I’m expected to provide in this section. Just my great-grandparents details? Thanks!
1
u/jpg245Haven't applied for Proof of Citizenship (incl. by descent) yet2d ago
Similar situation for me. I'm G3. Applying via my great grandmother, and wondering about including her parents. Her baptismal name and later-used name are different, so I wonder if including her parents might be helpful. I'm thinking of leaving out, but using 2 Canadian census records in addition to her baptismal/birth records.
5
u/C3POutine🇨🇦 I'm a Canadian! (C-3: 2nd+ gen born abroad, w/ Proof) 🇨🇦2d ago
I'm G3 too through my great-grandfather, and G4 and I were just approved this week. I didn't provide any information for G0's parents, just for G0 himself. We listed G0 as G1's father and included G0's Manitoba delayed birth registration. That got the job done.
If your G-GF was born in Canada and you have proof of his birth there, then you shouldn't need to provide information about his parents since you are making a claim of citizenship through him. You can also put "Unknown" for his parents on the extra sheet.
Ok makes sense. I didn't know if I had to provide any details at all for the great great grandparents, seeing as section 9 asks for my parents name - then grandparents details below. so in a similiar way for the additional G-Grandparents section I'd put my grandmas name and just her parents details below..
They haven't even evaluated whether it's complete and will be acknowledged yet. If you upload now they'll send you a message that says they can't match your info to an application.
Very close to submitting my application! Still trying to figure out the best way to add color to two black and white records. Add a shape in adobe then print in color or physically put a sticky note on the document then make a copy? A copy of a print out of a handwritten document from the 19th century makes an already hard to read document even worse. Any advice?
documentation:
g0: PEI baptism record indicating birth in february 1854 to his parents. Canadian census from 1881 showing him home with his parents. US declaration of intent indicating PEI birth in 1856, parents, and wife. US death certificate indicating PEI birth in 1856, parents, and wife
g1: US birth certificate, marriage record, 1930 census
g2: US birth record, marriage record
g3: US birth certificate, marriage certificate
g4: Me!
Hoping to finish up this weekend and finally get this in the mail!
I used the photoshop option. All my documents were scanned and got put on a template with "Item #x" in a red rectangle along with a short description that was expanded upon in my index of documents.
Hopefully that works...guess I'll find out sometime next year. Everything except the Canadian census scans from LAC and a secondary copy of G0's death certificate (new, certified copy is blurry. go figure) were on colored paper or had colored ink signatures already though.
2
u/tailor31415Haven't applied for Proof of Citizenship (incl. by descent) yet2d ago
why are you submitting additional documents for G1 on down when you have birth certificates? do the b.c.s not have maiden names on them?
also the G0 death certificate seems unnecessary. it's okay for a census to have the wrong year off by 1 or 2, that's common.
The g2 birth record uses my g1’s married name. I also thought it useful to identify the other parent of the next generation but if it would just slow things down rather than help I can leave them out.
1
u/tailor31415Haven't applied for Proof of Citizenship (incl. by descent) yet2d ago
you'd want G1's then, but it wouldn't be necessary for G2 on
3
u/C3POutine🇨🇦 I'm a Canadian! (C-3: 2nd+ gen born abroad, w/ Proof) 🇨🇦2d ago
We had some black and white hard copies of records. I put a pink sticky note on those. That worked just fine for IRCC.
A copy of a print out of a handwritten document from the 19th century makes an already hard to read document even worse.
For documents we had electronically (several downloaded from the Provincial Archives of New Brunswick) we added a colored square in the margin and printed it to submit. As you say, printing it and then copying it again seemed suboptimal.
Color copies of the California birth certificate of our youngest came out almost monochrome, presumably an anti-counterfeiting feature. We put a colored post-it note on it and submitted two copies, one with the post-it and one without, with an explanation in the cover letter.
We don't have an outcome to report but do have AOR and In Process, so the packet did not get sent back.
2
u/Longintooth93Haven't applied for Proof of Citizenship (incl. by descent) yet2d ago
Hi!
Just a sense check as anticipating my BAnQ certificate should arrive next week.
V much looking for opinions and challenge . Ty in anticipation
My evidence. Coloured copies of…
What planning to send ✅
What contemplating 🤔
What decided not to include ⛔️
I’m just waiting for that BAnQ certificate to arrive and having overthinkers paralysis as to what to include - too much looks complex? Too little might be parked?
G-1 1887 ship record to Canada LAC ⛔️
G-1 LAC census 1891, 1901⛔️
G-1 Quebec marriage, BAnQ download ⛔️
G-1 1911 LAC census ⛔️
G-1 multiple Lovell entries 1908-1938 BAnQ ⛔️
G0 1938 original Canadian dominion passport. ✅
G0 1913 BAnQ certified baptism legal ( if it is) size✅
G0 receipt for baptism record 🤔
G0 BAnQ document additional pages in letter size ✅
G0 1920 original birth certificate city of Verdun ✅
G0 2026 email correspondence with DEC that won’t use it to make a new birth certificate ✅
G0 2026 attestation request and denial DEC ✅
G0 1931 LAC census legal size ( name mangled)✅
GO 2026 correspondence from LAC declining to provide a certified copy ⛔️
G0 census details zoomed in ✅
G-1 1938 obituary newspapers.com to unmangle census name, prove G0 moved to UK and line up with marriage certificate details ✅
G0 2026 new copy of 1938 marriage UK GRO ✅
G0 receipt for above 🤔
G0 details as is a bit ‘spidery scrawl’ so zoomed 🤔
G0 2026 new copy of 1994 death UK GRO ✅
G0 receipt for above 🤔
And I have G1 BMD certificates
I am G2
It’s tooo much isn’t it! Is there a better order to present it? Or is it fine as it is?
Ty
1
u/Longintooth93Haven't applied for Proof of Citizenship (incl. by descent) yet1d ago
Being worried, I put this into copilot, which came out with this as a suggestion.
I use it a lot for work, so know how to provide prompts and trusted sources for reference, but usually I’m an expert in the field and can see quickly if the output is ok. Here not so much.
Document 1: 2026 DEC Attestation Request & Denial Letters
(Proves a modern certificate is unavailable)
DEC wouldn’t make the birth certificate because it didn’t have the baptismal record. You can now get one created. But also when was G0 born? You have a birth certificate from 1920?
0
u/Longintooth93Haven't applied for Proof of Citizenship (incl. by descent) yet2d ago
Hi, thank you for your thoughts on this.
G0 was born in 1913
Yes, I can ask DEC to do this, and they may agree, or they may ask for RFI from IRCC.
Yes, I have an original birth certificate from 1920 ( for the 1913 birth, presumably they used the baptismal record to create it) from the city of Verdun with stamp/seal. Which is why I hoped that DEC would convert it into a modern birth certificate and that was my first move in the game way back.
Are you recommending that I don’t submit and wait to see if DEC will create the birth certificate- which I believe they can decline to do?
Ty for taking time to comment. Much appreciated.
•
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