Can I still apply for Canadian citizenship if my parent or grandparent is dead?
October 29, 2026
Cassandra Fultz, RCIC-IRB
Am I eligible for urgent processing on my Canadian citizenship application?
Since Bill C-3 came into force on 15 December 2025, many Americans have discovered they may already hold Canadian citizenship through descent and simply need to prove it.
The legislation followed the Ontario Superior Court's Bjorkquist decision, which found the previous first-generation limit unconstitutional. An earlier attempt to reform the law through Bill C-71 died on the order paper before Bill C-3 removed the first-generation limit in some situations.
If you are applying for a citizenship certificate, you might understandably want to know whether Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) can process your application urgently. Sometimes it can. But the circumstances are narrower than simply wanting your certificate sooner.
What does urgent processing mean?
Urgent processing is not a separate application, a paid upgrade or a shortcut around the normal requirements.
Instead, you ask IRCC to process your application urgently, and IRCC decides whether your circumstances justify it.
Eligibility for urgent processing is separate from whether you qualify for Canadian citizenship. It is based on why you need proof of citizenship urgently.
When might IRCC process an application urgently?
IRCC lists several circumstances in which you may request urgent processing of a citizenship certificate. These include needing proof of citizenship:
- to avoid harm or hardship connected with factors including nationality, sexual orientation or gender identity or expression
- to move a minor child to Canada when the child was born outside Canada and has a Canadian parent
- to resolve a case of statelessness
- to travel because of a death or serious illness in the family, when you cannot obtain a passport in your other nationality
- to renounce foreign citizenship by a particular date
- to apply for a job, avoid losing your job or attend a school, college or university
- to access social benefits, including health care, a pension or a social insurance number.
IRCC also has an urgent-processing provision for certain dual citizens of visa-exempt countries who have proof of air travel to Canada within six months of applying.
What evidence do you need?
Your request must include an explanation letter setting out why your application is urgent, along with supporting evidence. Depending on your circumstances, that could include an employer or school letter, paid travel itinerary, doctor's note or death certificate.
Wanting your certificate sooner, including for ordinary travel or personal plans, is unlikely on its own to meet the standard IRCC describes.
If you have already applied and your circumstances later become urgent, applicants in Canada or the US can submit a request through the IRCC web form.
Make sure you are reading the right criteria
The urgent-processing rules are not identical across every type of citizenship application.
If you already hold Canadian citizenship through descent and need formal proof of your status, you are generally applying for a citizenship certificate. That is different from a grant of Canadian citizenship, which applies to people following pathways such as Canadian citizenship through naturalization.
The distinction is particularly important for Americans claiming Canadian citizenship through ancestry. Depending on your family history, you may already be a citizen through a parent, grandparent or even a more distant Canadian ancestor, and simply need to apply for proof of that status.
Getting an urgent application right
IRCC states that it will not process incomplete applications, which makes submitting a complete application particularly important when you are working to a deadline.
Urgent processing also does not remove any documentary requirements. Whether you inherit Canadian citizenship from a parent, or your claim involves Canadian citizenship through grandparent, Canadian citizenship through great grandparent or Canadian citizenship through great great grandparent, you still need to provide the required evidence linking you to your Canadian ancestor.
Canadian Immigration Consultants and lawyers experienced in Canadian citizenship through descent can help you understand both the underlying claim and the requirements for requesting urgent processing.
If you need proof of Canadian citizenship urgently, or want to find out whether you qualify in the first place, Doherty Fultz Immigration can assess your circumstances and help you prepare your application. Our Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultants offer transparent, flat-fee pricing and welcome complex cases. To learn more, email citizenship@dfimmigration.ca or book a consultation with the team at Doherty Fultz Immigration.
