Immigration

We live in a time of rising global uncertainty. It is more important than ever that the Canadian immigration system can respond to arising global crises in an expedient and flexible manner. Alarmingly, this is not the case.

Even before major global refugee crises such as the Afghanistan, and Ukrainian crises, IRCC has been struggling with massive backlogs in all the immigration streams. Delayed immigration application is the most common request for assistance at my office, with some applications delayed for years! Behind the delayed applications are separated families, missed opportunities, and in some cases, immigration is a life-and-death situation for people who need to leave dangerous situations.

To start, IRCC should stop the practice of returning applications when there are minor mistakes and missing information and documents that can be easily provided by applicants. IRCC must also end oppressive immigration policies such as the inhumane cap on parent/grandparents’ sponsorship applications, closed work permits for migrant workers, and the unfair treatment of caregivers and domestic workers.

Lack of resources for IRCC is the major root cause of delayed applications. I will continue to advocate for adequate resources for IRCC to process applications in consistently reasonable timeframes and for immigration policies that are more just.

Government reply to Jenny's Order Questions on Kneecap's travel ban

Privy Council Office
Reply by: the Prime Minister of Canada
Name of Signatory: Rachel Bendayan, P.C., M.P.
Reply

(i) was the Prime Minister’s Office involved in the decision for the member for Eglinton—Lawrence to make the announcement?

The Prime Minister’s Office was not involved in the decision for the member for Eglinton—Lawrence to make the announcement.

Public Safety Canada
Reply by: the Minister of Public Safety
Name of Signatory: Jacques Ramsay, Parliamentary Secretary
Reply

Canada Border Services Agency

(g) was the member for Eglinton—Lawrence authorized to announce that members of the musical group Kneecap were ineligible to enter the country, and, if so, who authorized the announcement and was this decision formally communicated to Kneecap by government officials?

The Canada Border Services Agency was not implicated in the authorization of the announcement.

(h) did government officials advise the member for Eglinton—Lawrence regarding the ban of Kneecap, and, if so, which department were the officials from?

The Canada Border Services Agency did not provide advice on the announcement.

(m) was there any consultation with other federal departments or agencies, including, but not limited to, Public Safety Canada, the Canada Border Services Agency and Global Affairs Canada, or third parties such as stakeholder groups prior to, or following, the announcement made by the member for Eglinton—Lawrence regarding Kneecap, and, if so, what was the response?

The Canada Border Services Agency was not consulted regarding the announcement.

Click below to read the full Response

CTV News: ‘Utterly cruel’: Canadian parents say new citizenship rules hurt kids adopted from abroad

Tens of thousands of children born abroad in the past decade and a half, known as “Lost Canadians,” will now be eligible to become Canadian citizens after a new bill passed the Senate Wednesday and received royal assent Thursday.

Bill C-3 allows Canadians born outside the country to pass on their citizenship to their children who are also born abroad. The Parliamentary Budget Officer (PBO) says the new law would make at least 115,000 children born outside the country eligible for Canadian citizenship.

‘Lost Canadians’ legislation becomes law after Senate approval

But Canadians living in Canada, who have adopted children from abroad, say the bill leaves out a key change — an amendment that would give their kids the same treatment as children born in Canada.

“It’s utterly cruel what the government has done to us as a family and to other families like us in Canada and it’s just mean,” said Kat Lanteigne, whose 10-year-adopted son Nathanael was born in Zambia.

The new legislation says “intercountry adoptees,” children born abroad and adopted by Canadians living in Canada, must pass a “substantial connection” test to obtain citizenship, including proving they have lived in Canada for three years.

Click link to read or read the news and watch the video - https://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/article/utterly-cruel-canadian-parents-say-new-citizenship-rules-hurt-kids-adopted-from-abroad/

CBC News: Bill restoring citizenship for 'Lost Canadians' becomes law

The "Lost Canadians" legislation, which aims to fix Canada's unconstitutional citizenship by descent rules, passed in the Senate Wednesday and received royal assent Thursday afternoon.

The term refers to people who were born outside of the country to Canadian parents who were also born in another country.

In 2009, the federal government changed the law so that Canadians born abroad could only pass down their citizenship if their child was born in Canada, but that was deemed unconstitutional by the Ontario Superior Court in December 2023.

The legislation proposed Canadian citizenship could be passed down to people born abroad, beyond the first generation, if the parents spent a cumulative three years in Canada before the child's birth or adoption.

Both Ontario Liberal MP Nate Erskine-Smith and B.C. NDP MP Jenny Kwan attempted to introduce amendments to clarify the adoption rules, but both were unsuccessful.

When the bill was still before the House of Commons, Conservative and Bloc Québécois members of the immigration committee tried to amend the legislation to state that the three-year period in the substantial connection test needed to take place within five consecutive years.

However, that amendment was removed by Liberal and NDP MPs before the bill was sent to the Senate.

Click link to read the news story - https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/lost-canadians-bill-senate-9.6986432

HANSARD: Caregivers should not be treated as second class or a footnote in Canada's immigration policy

Globe & Mail: Federal budget 2025: Foreigners living in Canada will get permanent residence priority, Immigration Minister says

On Tuesday the federal government announced a dramatic cut in the number of temporary residents – halving admissions of international students to Canada in the next three years, while stabilizing the number of permanent residents.

Ms. Diab was unavailable for comment. Unusually, the annual levels plan was unveiled in the budget and is being spearheaded by Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne, rather than the Immigration Minister.

NDP immigration critic Jenny Kwan said the government’s plan “represents a disappointing retreat from Canada’s historical role as a welcoming, progressive and inclusive country for immigrants, refugees, international students and temporary foreign workers.”

She said the decision to slash international student numbers, coming on top of previous reductions, will “further devastate colleges and universities and the communities that rely on them, while causing job losses across the country.”

Click link to read the news story - https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-permanent-residence-freeze-canada-diab-federal-budget-2025/

HANSARD: 3rd reading and adoption of Bill C-3, An Act to amend the Citizenship Act (2025)

Click link to see the full voting record - https://openparliament.ca/votes/45-1/47/

iPOLITICS: Liberals, NDP delete proposed changes to birthright citizenship from ‘lost Canadians’ bill

The federal Liberals have helped pass an NDP motion that removes proposed restrictions to birthright citizenship from the government’s ‘Lost Canadians’ bill, despite the Conservatives and Bloc Québécois voting in opposition.

On Monday, MPs voted on report stage amendments to Bill C-3 initiated by NDP MP Jenny Kwan that sought to reverse previously adopted changes that would require people eligible for birthright citizenship under the proposed law to fulfill residency and security requirements — similar to prospective immigrants.

The bill now proceeds to third reading, where it is expected to pass, before it moves on to the Senate. If codified, the ‘Lost Canadians’ bill would restore citizenship to people born in a foreign country to Canadian parents who were also born outside Canada.

But Conservative and Bloc MPs passed amendments that would introduce additional criteria for ‘lost Canadians’ to receive citizenship during an immigration committee meeting last month. The amendments would require those eligible to demonstrate, among other things, proficiency in either English or French, as well as a basic knowledge of Canadian history.

Though the Liberals opposed the changes, the amendments passed because the NDP no longer have a seat on committees after failing to keep official party status in this past year’s federal election.

During a recent interview, Kwan told iPolitics that the Tory-proposed changes conflate the rights of immigrants with ‘lost Canadians,’ which she said was “sneaky” and “unCanadian.”

“To me, it is absolutely disgraceful… [so] I’m looking to restore the bill to its original form,” she said.

Kwan’s motion passed by a margin of 170 to 163.

Following the vote, she called the result a “victory for every family who refused to give up, for every Canadian denied their birthright, and for the principle that citizenship belongs to the people — not to politicians.”

Click link to read the news story - https://www.ipolitics.ca/2025/11/03/liberals-ndp-delete-proposed-changes-to-birthright-citizenship-from-lost-canadians-bill/

Media Release: After 10-Year Fight, MP Jenny Kwan Wins Major Victory to Restore Citizenship Rights for “Lost Canadians”

OTTAWA — After more than a decade of relentless advocacy, NDP MP Jenny Kwan, the NDP Critic for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, has secured a major breakthrough in the fight for justice for Lost Canadians — families who have been denied their rightful citizenship because of an unjust, discriminatory law. Kwan’s amendments were adopted in the House of Commons — marking a historic win for fairness, equality, and the thousands of families who have fought alongside her for justice.

“This is a victory for every family who refused to give up, for every Canadian denied their birthright, and for the principle that citizenship belongs to the people — not to politicians,” said Kwan.

“For over ten years, thousands of families have been denied their birthright as Canadians because of a cruel and exclusionary policy passed by the Conservatives in 2009,” said Kwan. “That law stripped second-generation Canadians born abroad of the right to pass citizenship to their children. It was wrong then — and it’s wrong now.”

Kwan has stood shoulder to shoulder with Lost Canadians and their allies for over a decade — organizing, pressing governments to act, and negotiating across party lines to fix this injustice. Her fight has always been rooted in one simple belief: no one should lose their birthright to Canadian citizenship because they are global citizens.

HANSARD: Parliament votes on Jenny's amendment motions on Bill C‑3, An Act to amend the Citizenship Act (2025)

Canada Press: Federal officials are not sure when immigration levels plan is coming

NDP immigration critic Jenny Kwan said it’s “unacceptable” that the plan could come after the Nov. 1 deadline.

“Communities, newcomers, and settlement agencies are left in limbo, unsure of what impact of the levels plan will have for Canadians and newcomers. This delay shows a lack of transparency and accountability from a government that claims to value immigration but can’t even meet its own deadlines, defined by law,” Kwan said in an emailed statement.

Bernhard said most people receiving permanent residency are already in Canada, usually on either a work or study permit. He said the system needs certainty in order to attract global talent to the workforce.