S-235An Act to amend the Citizenship Act and the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act
Senate public bill, introduced in the Senate on February 9, 2022
- Status
- At second reading in the House of Commons since October 23, 2024
- Sponsor
- Mobina S.B. JafferSenator
- Senator
What it does
Creates a citizenship path for certain former children in care and pauses removal orders for applicants until their citizenship decision is final.
What it does
- Creates a path to citizenship for some people who were in child welfare or foster care in Canada when that care ended, if they were not citizens then.
- Requires applicants to have been physically present in Canada for at least 1,095 days before applying, and to have spent at least 365 days in the listed care situations.
- Requires that they were not returned to a parent’s care unless it happened within 365 days after they turned 18, and that they have not lived outside Canada for more than 10 years since then.
- Lets the minister waive some of those conditions on compassionate grounds.
- Requires the minister to accept an applicant’s written statement about the care circumstances as proof unless the minister proves the statement is wrong.
- Stops removal orders from being enforced against foreign nationals who apply under this citizenship rule until a final decision is made.
Who it affects
- Former children in care
- People leaving foster care
- Citizenship applicants
- Foreign nationals with removal orders
Background
It adds a new section 5.3 to the Citizenship Act and a related rule in the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.
Where it is
Senate
First reading
Completed.
Second reading
Completed.
Committee
Completed.
Report stage
Completed.
Third reading
Completed.
House of Commons
First reading
Completed.
Second reading
Current stage. Now here
Committee
Not reached.
Report stage
Not reached.
Third reading
Not reached.
Royal assent
Royal assent
Not reached.
Introduced by a senator. If the Senate passes it, it goes to the House of Commons, where an MP must agree to sponsor it. How a bill becomes law
How the House voted
No recorded votes yet
What MPs said
Each party’s first speech on this bill in the House, from Hansard. Excerpts are the speaker’s opening sentences, unedited.
NDPJenny Kwan· October 23, 2024
“I am very pleased to introduce Bill S-235, an act that would amend the Citizenship Act and Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. I would like to thank my colleague, the member for Edmonton Griesbach, a determined champion for the rights of the child, for seconding this bill.”
Read the full speech on openparliament.ca
Read the source
LEGISinfo status: At second reading in the House of Commons. Bill data from LEGISinfo, votes from openparliament.ca and the House of Commons. Last updated October 13, 2026.