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"Canadians of convenience" is a pejorative referring to individuals with Canadian citizenship who live permanently outside of Canada without "substantive ties" to Canada. [1] Some definitions use the term to refer to persons who immigrate to Canada, meet the residency requirement to become a naturalized citizen, and then return to live in their original home country while maintaining their Canadian citizenship. [2] The term implies that these citizens only acquire or maintain their citizenship for personal gain or to otherwise benefit from Canada. For example, so that they may call on the Canadian government for protection in the event of an emergency, or to be able to travel internationally with a Canadian passport. [3]
The term was popularized in 2006 by Canadian politician Garth Turner in response to the evacuation of Canadian citizens from Lebanon during the 2006 Lebanon War. [4] Statistics and analyses are unavailable on the distinction between evacuees who were long-term residents of Lebanon and those who were not and on how many of the long-term residents had returned to Lebanon immediately after acquiring their Canadian citizenship.
Although the term was used earlier by others (such as Peter Worthington of the Toronto Sun ), [5] it was made most prominent during the conflict in Lebanon through posts by Garth Turner, then-Conservative MP for Halton, on his official blog.[ citation needed ] Turner questioned the fairness of paying CA$75,000 for each Lebanese evacuee, saying, among other things, "that's a hell of a lot of money to donate to people who do not live here, don't pay taxes here, and may never come here again in their lives." [6] (The actual cost for each evacuee would be approximately $6,300; or $94 million for 15,000 people.) [7] [8]
The National Post asserted later in 2006 that, of the 15,000 evacuated, about 7,000 may have returned to Lebanon within a month of being evacuated. [9]
Some criticized Turner for suggesting that there are two classes of Canadian citizens.[ citation needed ]
Other editorials supported the use of the phrase "Canadians of convenience," arguing that many immigrants meet their minimum residence requirement to gain Canadian citizenship (which, since 1977, can essentially never be revoked), leave the country, and only call upon their Canadian citizenship again when in need of Canada's healthcare (which is publicly funded) or emergency evacuation from a war zone.[ citation needed ] According to The Economist : "Of the 5.5 million Canadians born abroad, 560,000 declared in the most recent census that they hold passports from another country." [4]
Canada permits multiple citizenship. The official policy of the Canadian government is that a dual citizen is the responsibility of the foreign government when living in that foreign country. However, in practice, Canada generally does not distinguish between Canadians with multiple citizenships and those with singular citizenships, as was the case during the 2006 evacuation from Lebanon. Prime Minister Stephen Harper said in 2006 that he planned to review the matter. [3]
For citizens of countries that do not allow multiple citizenship (such as India, China, or Singapore), those who become Canadian citizens often lose their original citizenship if the original country learns of the Canadian citizenship, after which the individual is generally required to renounce their Canadian citizenship in order to be naturalised in that country.[ citation needed ]
Public displeasure over Canadian citizens evacuated from Lebanon during the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict spurred Bill C-37, to amend the Citizenship Act. Until that point, it was possible for Canadian citizens to pass on their citizenship to endless generations born outside Canada.
A new law came into effect on 17 April 2009, instituting the "first generation limitation," among other things. To restrict the scope of those eligible for Canadian citizenship for the future, citizenship by descent under the new law would be limited—with a few exceptions— to one generation born outside Canada. [10]
On 10 June 2010 in the House of Commons, then-Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Jason Kenney said:
Citizenship is about more, far more than a right to carry a passport or to vote. It defines who we are as Canadians, including our mutual responsibilities to one another and a shared commitment to the values that are rooted in our history like freedom, unity and loyalty. That's why we must protect the values of Canadian citizenship and must take steps against those who would cheapen it.… We will strengthen the new limitation on the ability to acquire citizenship for the second generation born abroad. [11]
The new law would only confer Canadian citizenship to those who were born to a Canadian parent who, him/herself, was either born in Canada or became a Canadian citizen through naturalization—i.e., by immigrating to Canada as a permanent resident and subsequently being granted citizenship.
One of the consequence of the new rules has been the denial of citizenship to children of Canadian expats, if the parents were also born outside Canada. [12] [13]
On 19 July 2011, through Immigration Minister Jason Kenney, the Canadian Government announced its intention to revoke the citizenship of 1,800 people whom it believed obtained their status through fraudulent means. Targets of the move were predicted to hail predominantly from the Middle East, Persian Gulf, and China. [14]
On 9 September 2012, the government raised this number to 3,100 and began sending letters detailing the revocation and appeal process. [15] [16] The following year's Immigration Minister, Chris Alexander, announced that 27 of the investigations had led to revoked citizenships. [17] This represents the largest-ever revocation of Canadian citizenships. In comparison, fewer than 70 citizenships were revoked between the passing of the Citizenship Act in 1947 and 2011.[ citation needed ]
The term "British subject" has several different meanings depending on the time period. Before 1949, it referred to almost all subjects of the British Empire. Between 1949 and 1983, the term was synonymous with Commonwealth citizen. Currently, it refers to people possessing a class of British nationality largely granted under limited circumstances to those connected with Ireland or British India born before 1949. Individuals with this nationality are British nationals and Commonwealth citizens, but not British citizens.
A visa is a conditional authorization granted by a polity to a foreigner that allows them to enter, remain within, or leave its territory. Visas typically include limits on the duration of the foreigner's stay, areas within the country they may enter, the dates they may enter, the number of permitted visits, or if the individual can work in the country in question. Visas are associated with the request for permission to enter a territory and thus are, in most countries, distinct from actual formal permission for an alien to enter and remain in the country. In each instance, a visa is subject to entry permission by an immigration official at the time of actual entry and can be revoked at any time. Visa evidence most commonly takes the form of a sticker endorsed in the applicant's passport or other travel document but may also exist electronically. Some countries no longer issue physical visa evidence, instead recording details only in immigration databases.
Jason Thomas Kenney is a former Canadian politician who served as the 18th premier of Alberta from 2019 until 2022, and the leader of the United Conservative Party (UCP) from 2017 until 2022. He also served as the member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for Calgary-Lougheed from 2017 until 2022. Kenney was the last leader of the Alberta Progressive Conservative Party before the party merged with the Wildrose Party to form the UCP. Prior to entering Alberta provincial politics, he served in various cabinet posts under Prime Minister Stephen Harper from 2006 to 2015.
Canadian nationality law details the conditions by which a person is a national of Canada. The primary law governing these regulations is the Citizenship Act, which came into force on February 15, 1977 and is applicable to all provinces and territories of Canada.
Permanent residency is a person's legal resident status in a country or territory of which such person is not a citizen but where they have the right to reside on a permanent basis. This is usually for a permanent period; a person with such legal status is known as a permanent resident. In the United States, such a person is referred to as a green card holder but more formally as a Lawful Permanent Resident (LPR).
The right of abode is an individual's freedom from immigration control in a particular country. A person who has the right of abode in a country does not need permission from the government to enter the country and can live and work there without restriction, and is immune from removal and deportation.
Immigration law includes the national statutes, regulations, and legal precedents governing immigration into and deportation from a country. Strictly speaking, it is distinct from other matters such as naturalization and citizenship, although they are sometimes conflated. Countries frequently maintain laws that regulate both the rights of entry and exit as well as internal rights, such as the duration of stay, freedom of movement, and the right to participate in commerce or government.
A Canadian passport is the passport issued to citizens of Canada. It enables the bearer to enter or re-enter Canada freely; travel to and from other countries in accordance with visa requirements; facilitates the process of securing assistance from Canadian consular officials abroad, if necessary; and requests protection for the bearer while abroad.
Canadian immigration and refugee law concerns the area of law related to the admission of foreign nationals into Canada, their rights and responsibilities once admitted, and the conditions of their removal. The primary law on these matters is in the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, whose goals include economic growth, family reunification, and compliance with humanitarian treaties.
Israeli citizenship law details the conditions by which a person holds citizenship of Israel. The two primary pieces of legislation governing these requirements are the 1950 Law of Return and 1952 Citizenship Law.
The history of immigration to Canada details the movement of people to modern-day Canada. The modern Canadian legal regime was founded in 1867, but Canada also has legal and cultural continuity with French and British colonies in North America that go back to the 17th century, and during the colonial era, immigration was a major political and economic issue with Britain and France competing to fill their colonies with loyal settlers. Until then, the land that now makes up Canada was inhabited by many distinct Indigenous peoples for thousands of years. Indigenous peoples contributed significantly to the culture and economy of the early European colonies to which was added several waves of European immigration. More recently, the source of migrants to Canada has shifted away from Europe and towards Asia and Africa. Canada's cultural identity has evolved constantly in tandem with changes in immigration patterns.
Cypriot passports are issued to citizens of Cyprus. Every Cypriot citizen is also a Commonwealth citizen and a citizen of the European Union. The Cypriot passport, along with the Cypriot identity card, allows for free right of movement and residence in any of the states of the European Union, European Economic Area, and Switzerland. As of July 2023, Cypriot citizens had visa-free or visa on arrival access to 179 countries and territories, ranking the Cypriot passport 12th in terms of travel freedom according to the Henley Passport Index. Cypriot citizens can live and work in any country within the EU as a result of the right of free movement and residence granted in Article 21 of the EU Treaty. The Republic of Cyprus was formed in 1960. All persons who were citizens of the Republic of Cyprus at this time are entitled to renew their citizenship and passport, whether living on the island or abroad within the diaspora. Their descendants, whether living on the island or abroad, are equally entitled to obtain Cypriot citizenship and passport. These citizens include the Greek and Turkish people, as well as the much smaller communities of Jewish and Armenian heritage.
The passport of the Republic of Lebanon is a passport issued to the citizens of the Republic of Lebanon to enable them to travel outside the Republic of Lebanon and entitles the bearer to the protection from the diplomatic missions and consulates of the Republic of Lebanon if necessary. It is issued exclusively by the Lebanese Directorate General of General Security (DGGS), and can also be issued at various Lebanese diplomatic missions and/or consulates outside the Republic of Lebanon. It allows the bearer a freedom of living in the Republic of Lebanon without any immigration requirements, participate in the Lebanese political system, entry to and exit from the Republic of Lebanon through any port, travel to and from other countries in accordance with visa requirements, facilitates the process of securing consular assistance abroad from the diplomatic missions and consulates of the Republic of Lebanon if necessary, and requests protection for the bearer while abroad.
The primary law governing nationality in the United Kingdom is the British Nationality Act 1981, which came into force on 1 January 1983. Regulations apply to the British Islands, which include the UK itself and the Crown dependencies, and the 14 British Overseas Territories.
The visa policy of Canada requires that any foreign citizen wishing to enter Canada must obtain a temporary resident visa from one of the Canadian diplomatic missions unless they hold a passport issued by one of the 53 eligible visa-exempt countries and territories or proof of permanent residence in Canada or the United States.
The Palestinian Authority Passport is a passport/travel document issued since April 1995 by the Palestinian Authority to Palestinian residents of the Palestinian territories for the purpose of international travel.
Anton Geiser was a Yugoslav-born member of the SS-Totenkopfverbände during World War II, who served as a guard at both the Sachsenhausen and Buchenwald concentration camps. In 1956 he moved to the United States, settling in Sharon, Pennsylvania, where he had family. In 1962 he became a naturalized American citizen. In 2006 he was stripped of his citizenship on the grounds that it would not have been granted had the full details of his role in the German military been known; in 2010 a US judge ordered him deported to Austria, the country from which he had immigrated. He died in Pittsburgh on December 21, 2012, while still battling his deportation.
Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI) is a form of permanent residency available to people of Indian origin and their spouses which allows them to live and work in India indefinitely. It allows the cardholders a lifetime entry to the country along with benefits such as being able to own land and make other investments in the country.
Multiple citizenship is a person's legal status in which a person is at the same time recognized by more than one country under its nationality and citizenship law as a national or citizen of that country. There is no international convention that determines the nationality or citizenship status of a person, which is consequently determined exclusively under national laws, that often conflict with each other, thus allowing for multiple citizenship situations to arise.
Visitors to Panama require a visa unless they are eligible for Third-Country visa exemptions for stays up to 30 days by either possessing a valid visitor or resident visa for any of the following nations: UK, USA, Canada, the EU, Australia, Japan, Singapore, South Korea; or if they are citizens of one of the eligible countries who do not require a visa for stays up to 90 days; up to 180 days for visitors who are citizens of the United States or Canada. All visitors must hold a passport valid for at least 3 months before expiry date.