Documents to submit when applying for a child’s passport

All Canadian children, from newborn to age 15, need their own passport to travel.

When you submit your child’s passport application, you also need to submit

Proof of custody, separation or divorce

When applying for your child’s passport, both parents must

  • participate in the passport application
  • sign the form
  • be ready for us to contact them

If you’re a legal guardian applying for a child’s passport, make sure

  • all other legal guardians participate in the application
  • you submit proof of legal guardianship

When a court order or agreement exists referring to custody of the child

  • only the person with custodial rights may apply
    • If parents have joint custody, either parent may apply.
  • you must provide all documents that refer to the child’s
    • custody
    • mobility
    • access

If a divorce has been granted, you must also provide a copy of the divorce judgment or order.

If you’re worried that someone might apply for a passport for your child without your consent

Find out how to add your child’s name to a special list for their safety.

Proof of parentage

You must provide proof of parentage to confirm the parent-child relationship, such as

  • a detailed (long-form) birth certificate from a Canadian provincial or territorial vital statistics office that includes the name of the parent(s)
    • This document is also accepted as proof of Canadian Citizenship.
      • if born in Ontario, we also accept a certified copy of birth registration
      • if born in Quebec, we also accept a copy of an act of birth
  • a court-issued adoption order that has the name of the adoptive parent(s)
  • a foreign birth certificate that has the name of the parent(s)

If the surname (last name) of a parent on the proof of parentage is different from their surname on the application form, provide a document that shows a link between the 2 surnames, such as

  • a marriage certificate
  • a common-law relationship certificate
  • a legal name change certificate

We may request other documents.

You may not need proof of parentage if

  • the child has already had a Canadian passport or travel document and
  • the same parents are applying for the new passport

If you don’t need to provide proof of parentage, you still need to submit proof of citizenship. You may submit a wallet-sized birth certificate instead of the long-form birth certificate in this case.

Proof of your child’s Canadian citizenship

You must submit your child’s original proof of citizenship document. We don’t accept photocopies of proof of citizenship.

If you apply by mail, we’ll return the document to you with the new passport. If you apply in person at a passport office, we’ll review the document and then return it to you.

If your child was born in Canada

Submit 1 of the following:

If your child was born outside Canada

Submit their Canadian citizenship certificate.

A laminated proof of citizenship may not be accepted

We accept laminated proof of citizenship documents if they were laminated by the provincial, territorial or federal government agency that issues them.

We do not accept a laminated proof of citizenship document if

  • it wasn’t originally laminated when you got it
  • it says “void if laminated”

This is because lamination changes and hides the document’s original security features. We need those features to validate the document.

If you need a new proof of Canadian citizenship

Complete the form below and include it with your application if both

  • your child’s proof of Canadian citizenship doesn’t have a sex field and
  • their gender identifier isn’t what’s on their most recent passport

How to get a Canadian birth certificate

Contact the vital statistics office in the province or territory where your child was born to ask for a birth certificate.

Certain provinces have different documents that we also accept as proof of Canadian citizenship:

  • British Columbia: Certified True Copy of a Registration Document – Registration of Live Birth
    • Given in cases where the name of the bearer is more than 30 characters for the surname(s) or 30 characters for the given name(s).
  • New Brunswick: certified extract of a registration document
    • Given in cases where the name of the bearer is more than 39 characters for the surname(s) and 30 characters for the given name(s).
  • Northwest Territories: Registration of Birth, Certificate of Registration of Birth, or Registration of Live Birth
    • Given in cases where the surname(s) and given name(s) of the bearer are more than a total of 58 characters.
  • Nova Scotia: certified photocopy of a Live Birth Registration
    • Given in cases where the name of the bearer is more than 30 characters for the surname(s) and 38 characters for the given name(s).
  • Ontario: certified copy of birth registration
  • Quebec: birth certificate or copy of an act of birth issued after January 1, 1994, from the Directeur de l’état civil

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