S-245An Act to amend the Citizenship Act (granting citizenship to certain Canadians)
Senate public bill, introduced in the Senate on May 12, 2022
- Status
- At report stage in the House of Commons since June 12, 2023
- Sponsor
- Yonah MartinSenator
- Senator
What it does
Amends the Citizenship Act so some people who lost Canadian citizenship can regain it.
What it does
- Lets back former citizens who applied to keep their citizenship under the old section 8 rules, but whose application was not approved, regain citizenship.
- Adds a new path to citizenship for people born outside Canada after February 14, 1977, if they would be citizens had they applied to keep citizenship under the old section 8 rules.
- Keeps this change from applying to anyone who was already a citizen on June 11, 2015.
- Updates a related Citizenship Act rule so it refers to people who are citizens under the new and existing citizenship paragraphs.
Who it affects
- Former Canadian citizens
- People born outside Canada after February 14, 1977
- People whose citizenship retention application was denied
- Citizenship applicants
Background
The bill changes the Citizenship Act rules for people who lost citizenship because of the old section 8 retention process. That section is referred to as it read before April 17, 2009.
Where it is
Senate
First reading
Completed.
Second reading
Completed.
Committee
Skipped. Skipped
Third reading
Completed.
House of Commons
First reading
Completed.
Second reading
Completed.
Committee
Completed.
Report stage
Current stage. Now here
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
2nd reading of Bill S-245, An Act to amend the Citizenship Act (granting citizenship to certain Canadians)
Vote 216,
Passed
309 yeato0 nay · 12 paired
Party breakdown for vote 216 Party Position Yea Nay Did not vote Liberal Yea 144 0 14 Conservative Yea 110 0 8 Bloc Yea 31 0 1 NDP Yea 21 0 4 Green Yea 1 0 1 Independent Yea 2 0 0 Total 309 0
What MPs said
Each party’s first speech on this bill in the House, from Hansard. Excerpts are the speaker’s opening sentences, unedited.
LiberalYa'ara Saks· October 20, 2022
“I am pleased to rise in the House to speak to Bill S-245, seeking to make amendments to the Citizenship Act and address concerns raised on past citizenship. I would first like to extend my thanks to Senator Yonah Martin for her advocacy and for bringing forward this bill, as well as its predecessor, Bill S-230.”
Read the full speech on openparliament.caConservativeJasraj Singh Hallan· October 20, 2022
“I rise today to speak to Bill S-245, an act to amend the Citizenship Act (granting citizenship to certain Canadians). I want to thank the hon. senator from British Columbia, Yonah Martin, who brought forward this important bill.”
Read the full speech on openparliament.caBlocAlexis Brunelle-Duceppe· October 20, 2022
“First, I want to quickly explain what this bill is about for those who are watching at home. Bill S‑245 seeks to correct a historic injustice by allowing Canadians who lost their citizenship because of past changes to the Citizenship Act or little-known regulations to regain it.”
Read the full speech on openparliament.caNDPJenny Kwan· October 20, 2022
“Bill S-245 would fix this age 28 rule, and that is a good thing. However, this bill does not address the other issues for lost Canadians.”
Read the full speech on openparliament.ca
Read the source
LEGISinfo status: At report stage in the House of Commons. Bill data from LEGISinfo, votes from openparliament.ca and the House of Commons. Last updated October 13, 2026.