Citizenship law and adoption
This page explains how citizenship law can affect how citizenship is passed on from a Canadian citizen to their adopted children, and it provides links to past changes to the Citizenship Act that impacted adopted people.
On this page
Canadian citizenship for adopted children born outside Canada
Children born outside Canada who are adopted by Canadian parents can become citizens in 2 ways:
Citizenship by direct grant for adopted people
Adopted children born outside Canada can become citizens if at least 1 adoptive parent was a Canadian citizen at the time of adoption.
For adoptions that took place before January 1, 1947:
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At least 1 adoptive parent must have become a Canadian citizen on January 1, 1947.
- For adoptions in Newfoundland and Labrador before April 1, 1949, the parent must have become a citizen on April 1, 1949.
- The parent must be eligible to pass on citizenship by descent.
Limitations of citizenship by direct grant
Adopted people who become citizens by direct grant may not be eligible to pass citizenship to their own children because of the first-generation limit to citizenship by descent.
They cannot
- pass on their citizenship to any children they have outside Canada on or after December 15, 2025, unless they have spent at least 1,095 days in Canada before their child’s birth or
- apply for a direct grant for any foreign-born children they adopt on or after December 15, 2025, unless
- they have spent at least 1,095 days in Canada before the date of the child’s adoption, or
- a second adoptive parent is a Canadian citizen and can pass on citizenship by descent
There are some exceptions to the first-generation limit to citizenship for adopted people.
Citizenship grant through naturalization
Adoptive parents can also sponsor their child to immigrate to Canada as a permanent resident. Once we grant the child's permanent resident status, either
- the child’s parents can apply for the child to become a citizen or
- when the child turns 18, the child can apply for citizenship on their own
People adopted outside Canada who become naturalized citizens can pass on citizenship to their children who are born outside Canada. If they adopt children from outside Canada, those adopted children would be eligible for citizenship through a direct grant for adopted people.
Learn more about sponsoring an adopted child to immigrate to Canada.
The first-generation limit to citizenship for adopted people
The first-generation limit to citizenship for adopted people applies to people born outside Canada and adopted by a Canadian citizen on or after December 15, 2025.
This limit means that they’re not eligible for a direct grant of Canadian citizenship under section 5.1 (the adoption provisions of the Citizenship Act) if their adoptive Canadian parent
- was born outside Canada to a Canadian citizen or was granted citizenship through the direct grant for adopted people and
- spent less than 1,095 days in Canada before the date of adoption
The only exception is if their adoptive Canadian citizen parent or grandparent was employed as a Canadian Crown servant as described below.
Exception to the first-generation limit to citizenship for Crown servants
Adopted children born abroad in the second or later generation may be eligible for citizenship by direct grant if one of these conditions is met:
- At the time of the adoption, either adoptive parent was employed outside Canada as a Canadian Crown servant (for example, with the Canadian Armed Forces, the federal public administration, or a provincial or territorial public service, not including locally engaged people).
- At the time of either adoptive parent’s birth or adoption, one of their parents (the child’s grandparent) was employed outside Canada as a Canadian Crown servant in one of the examples above.
Changes to citizenship law related to adoption
Several changes have affected the way citizenship can be passed on to adopted children:
