Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) temporarily pauses the finalization of some new citizenship by descent applications while it reviews an issue involving citizenship certificates. Multiple reports say that a small number of applicants—described as “a few dozen”—are told that the citizenship certificates they have received must be surrendered. IRCC says the pause affects some cases and is intended to ensure the matter is properly investigated before any further processing is completed.
According to IRCC, the department is reviewing how the situation occurred and is taking steps to correct the process. The reports indicate that IRCC is examining the circumstances that led to applicants being issued certificates and then being asked to return them, suggesting a procedural or administrative problem rather than a court ruling or a change in law. The department has not provided detailed findings in the available reports, but it confirms that the review is ongoing and the temporary pause is in place while it assesses next steps for affected applicants.
