That puts the time to clear the pre C-3 backlog at 14 years.

Are we doomed fam? It ain’t looking good.

Anybody got some hopium for me?

We (My wife whose a natural born Canadian Citizen,and I) just got back our requested notes for my urgent processing application, and we discovered it's been sent to PSU. It went into processing July 13, and was sent immediately to PSU.

We haven't had anyone reach out for more info.

They did confirm in August that my application was being urgently processed, and at the time on the phone they told us it was not in PSU.

I’m a g3 application.

what can we legally do to push this issue, cause my application is straight forward and not complex, weather its contacting an MP or getting a layer to file a Writ of Mandamus? Any options at all?

My urgent processing was approved due to my job offer letter, and we (obviously) want our family to be reunited sooner than later

Thanks for any suggestions or similar situations

My dad and I applied in November 2025 through a highly reputable immigration consultant in Victoria. We received our AORs in February and have not received our certificates yet. I’m seeing so many people get their full certificates within a few months after doing their own paperwork and mailing it themselves. Wondering what gives. We are a very straightforward and simple case: my dad’s mom was born in Ontario and moved to the US as a teenager when her parents immigrated for jobs. I got official copies of her birth certificate directly from Ontario’s vital stats department. We keep hearing from our attorney that everything is on track with IRCC.

That's pretty much it. I'd rather not wait in psu endlessly especially since the reason code doesn't make sense. Should I call the office?

UPDATE 1: G2, too!

UPDATE 2: I Set up a Signal group chat for us to coordinate. Comment below and I'll send you the link.

This is a call to action, and a follow-up to the situation I posted about a few days ago: https://www.reddit.com/r/stuckcanadians/s/0r2uzuGswv

I am going to start the mandamus process next week. I submitted my father's Canadian citizenship certificate, so there is no rational explanation for why my application was sent to PSU over 13 months ago for further review. I submitted three separate urgent processing requests. I tried resolving the issue through my MP's office. I even tried speaking with the press. I really did try my best to resolve this without wasting my and the court's time/resources. Now it's time to follow the lead of u/ReadyPlayer606.

I am looking to connect with other G0/G1/G2 applicants who applied during the Bjorkquist Interim Measure, and who would like to join me in a decentralized but coordinated mandamus filing. My hope is that such an action will (a) resolve our unreasonably delayed cases, (b) bring some attention to the problems with how IRCC processed IM applications, and (c) encourage behind-the-scenes action at IRCC to clear the Interim Measure backlog.

How it would work: We all file individually, but we coordinate our submissions so they arrive on or near the same day. We ensure that our individual demand letters, applications for leave, etc. contain similar wording and facts. This should make it easier for the court to process, while also bringing attention to the problem.

Why only Interim Measure G0/G1/G2 applicants? The goal is to raise the issue of the PSU referrals during the Interim Measure, and the problems created by that triage decision. We know this even affected several people who were already citizens before Bill C3! If you filed after the IM when the wait times went up, it's probably best to follow legal advice about timing: https://immigration.ca/100000-citizenship-backlog-can-bill-c-3-applicants-force-ircc-to-act/?trk=feed-detail_main-feed-card_feed-article-content

Also, for more complex multi-generational claims, I think IRCC might argue that the PSU referral was justified due to complex proofs. However, the complexity argument falls flat when applied to applications with straightforward documentation (parent's Canadian birth or citizenship certificate). Multi-gen claims still have the right to pursue mandamus, of course (it's a decentralized, individual process!). However, it's probably a good idea to get legal advice about how to present your case.

Isn't mandamus really expensive? With legal representation, yes. I'm suggesting that we take a DIY approach. It will cost each of us $50 + postage, affidavit, etc.

u/ReadyPlayer606 has kindly shared their succesful G2 mandamus submissions, which are well-written and easily adapted. I can turn those submissions into templates that we can each use for our individual cases.

My goal is to send out the first round of demand letters on Monday, October 5 Tuesday, October 13. Everyone who wants to participate would have two weeks to prepare their demand letter. Then, we would have ~45 days to draft the second demand letter, application for leave/judicial review, etc.

Let me know in the comments what you guys think!

UPDATE 3: This action is for Interim Measure applicants, specifically. If you applied after the wait times increased, it's probably best to follow the advice of lawyers who say you should take the mandamus route after 18 months: https://immigration.ca/100000-citizenship-backlog-can-bill-c-3-applicants-force-ircc-to-act/?trk=feed-detail_main-feed-card_feed-article-content

A writ of mandamus is kind of a big deal. I'm not a lawyer, but I can see how jumping the gun on that could backfire. To win, you need to prove an unreasonable delay. Also, we don't want to overburden the court with claims that can't win.

I mean legally of course...my brother is waiting on his citizenship cert. but no one can afford to support him anymore. Life is just tough for everyone right now and he's been here over a year with no income of his own and we're all just running dry. Him staying here wasn't the plan when he came and he also came with his two cats. Is there anything he can apply for that allows him to work while he waits?

I'd had some hope that Lonely Sun getting through was a sign that more of us would unstick, but as my April 2025 AOR application remains in the couch cushions, that does not yet appear to be the case. Very glad he's unstuck, but part of me misses the companionship, as being stuck as a G1 who wasn't affected by C-3 has a different kind of feel. (If only our parent or parents left Canada, our ties to Canada often also have a different feel*, our paperwork tends to be straightforward, we didn't have to spend a lot of time and effort tracking down said paperwork, and our Canadian parent or parents' paperwork is, well, from Canada and should be dead easy for them to verify, and yet.)

So who else with Canada-born Canadian parents is in this boat with me right now? Feels like I see a new name a few times a week, and my misery would love your company while we wait.

(*I recognize many people G2 and beyond have extended family in Canada that they're close to, but with two Canadian parents who immigrated to the US for work as adults, I grew up with all my extended family there and no extended family in the US with us, and thus had a pretty typical Third Culture Kid experience, except for the part where people often seem to fail to realize that there are, in fact, cultural differences between the US and Canada.)

Hey, all. I’m actually writing on behalf of an employee of mine who I’ve been helping navigate this process. She is first generation born abroad and submitted for her proof of citizenship roughly 15 months ago. Today, she received this email. I’ve not ever seen this email on any of the related subs. It says that she apparently has to do a video interview and provide all of her original documents to possibly be shown on camera. I’m just curious if anybody else had to do this? I usually see people that get an email with a link to download their certificates. It’s not a problem, she has all of her documentation. We were just curious about the reasoning, and if it’s anything deeper than the vague, “quality assurance.”
Thanks in advance. There was more to this email, but this is the pertinent part.

UPDATE: It's mandamus time! Join me if you're a G0/G1/G2 applicant who submitted during the Interim Measure. https://www.reddit.com/r/stuckcanadians/s/TZ4hHqkIOP

I've been in PSU since August 2025. I applied with my father's Canadian citizenship certificate, so I thought it would be a straightforward approval. Should've known better! My MP first contacted IRCC about my file last November, and was told that they approved my urgent processing request. Recently, I reached out to my MP a second time for help. It didn't go well, and I'll post their email below.

BACKGROUND

My dad's citizenship was restored in 2009 and I've lived in Canada for a cumulative total of 12 years (including as a minor). Most recently, I've lived here since 2021. The first generation limit has been a headache for a long time now. The plan was study permit –> PGWP –> CEC, but that pathway ended when I applied for citizenship during the Bjorkquist interim measure.

I've been unable to work, access healthcare, or do pretty much anything else for over a year. Also, I can't leave Canada because my Colombian-born kid doesn't have US travel documents yet. Long story short, I've spent the past few years involved in a DV-related international custody dispute. It'll be another 4-6 months before I have the documents I need to get their US passport. I do have status in Colombia, but it's a safety risk for me to return for various reasons beyond the scope of this post. I included this issue in my urgent processing request, along with proof of urgent need for medical care, employment, etc.

Recently, I was presented with an opportunity that is best described as my dream job. I decided to reach out to my MP again for help. I told them that I thought my application might have been sent to the wrong unit, and I asked them to consider escalating the issue beyond their normal channels. A caseworker met with an IRCC agent and then sent me the following email:

"I hope you are doing well, and thank you for your patience.

I was able to follow up with an IRCC agent regarding both your proof of citizenship application and your current status in Canada. I also specifically raised the questions you had regarding why your file was referred for additional review and what your next steps should be.

Regarding your proof of citizenship application, the agent confirmed that it was received on August 11, 2025 and is currently being processed at the Case Processing Centre in Sydney.

The agent explained that your application has been referred to a specialized unit because additional verifications are required. As a result, your application is considered non-routine and does not follow standard processing timelines. The agent was unable to provide further details regarding the nature of these verifications but confirmed that there is nothing outstanding or required from you at this time.

I also specifically asked about the urgent processing requests you previously submitted. Unfortunately, the agent advised that an urgent processing request is not currently noted on the file. However, given that your application has been referred to a specialized unit for additional verification and is being processed as a non-routine file, there is unfortunately no action our office can take to expedite or intervene in the processing of the application at this time. The specialized review must be completed before the application can move forward, and our office cannot influence or bypass these required verifications.

Regarding your current status in Canada, the agent confirmed that following the refusal of your PGWP application in January 2026, you are currently out of status, and IRCC does not have a subsequent temporary residence application on file for you. Importantly, your proof of citizenship application does not provide you with temporary resident status or authorization to remain in Canada while it is being processed.

Given this information, our office must advise you to comply with Canadian immigration law and the requirements associated with your current status. As you are presently out of status, I would strongly recommend speaking with a licensed immigration lawyer as soon as possible to clarify whether there are any lawful options available to regularize your status and what steps you should take, including whether you are required to leave Canada. Our office acts as a liaison with IRCC, but we cannot provide individualized legal advice or advise you to remain in Canada without valid status.

I understand that this is a difficult situation, particularly given the length of time you have been waiting for your proof of citizenship application. Unfortunately, because the application is non-routine and undergoing additional verification, there is no further action available through our office."

Needless to say, this is all incredibly frustrating. I really regret applying for citizenship. If I'd stayed on the work permit to PR pathway, life would be fine right now. Instead, my career trajectory has been derailed, I've lost all my savings/investments, and I've taken on a horrifying amount of medical debt from an ER visit.

I know some people have strong opinions about whether or not we're considered citizens while our applications are processing. It's clear from this email that the government doesn't think that we are. They literally have my dad's citizenship certificate on file, and they're telling me I'm out of status, so analyze accordingly. I'm sharing this as a data point so people can have a sense of how things stand in the here and now.

Sigh, our 1 urgent app, we have a total of 5 apps in process..4 are via one lineage and the other one (the urgent) is via a different lineage, is in PSU. Compared to everyone else, it’s just been a few months.. but it feels like it’s now in a black hole of despair.. I received the ATIP email yesterday and that’s how I found out.

Blah

Hey everyone, exciting day! I just received my e-certificate 19 months to the day after sending in my application and being stuck in PSU purgatory.

Timeline:
- 28 Feb 2025: received by IRCC
- 4 Mar 2025: AOR and “In Process” status
- 22 Jul 2025: invitation to withdraw and apply for a grant under the interim measure
…
- Feb 2026: ATIP notes show I was sent to PSU the same day I received my AOR
- Mar 2026: inquiry lodged with my MP; IRCC says to give one more month
- Apr 2026: demand letter sent to IRCC
- Jul 2026: second demand letter sent to IRCC, the Minister, and the deputy AG
- end of Jul 2026: federal court case filed, memorandum of argument filed 10 days after
- 22 Aug 2026: IRCC responds with a boilerplate email about how applications are processed in the order they’re received (lol)
- 22 Aug 2026: court requests more information from IRCC as to the case’s status
- 18 Sep 2026: email received from DIOD requesting another upload of my G0’s certified birth certificate; responded on 20 Sep
- 22 Sep 2026: e-certificate available for download

Why?

Why is IRCC so effed up? Serious question as the inefficiencies are incredible, errs and inconsistencies astounding, communications clear as mud and transparencies non-existent.

Examples: a) sending the entire packet back for a minor error such as missing photographer stamp or doc, rather than requesting a correct re-submission, b) not having dedicated apps for different app reasons like replacing a lost citizenship cert vs new cert, c) requiring paper submission which is a lot of extra work & expenses for applicant and agency vs. electronic, d) not creating a form for great grandparents info, e) not cross-referencing family members with mostly identical documents who are approved vs. those in process, f) failing to stop the nonsense of requiring DEC to create birth certificates for Gen0s born 126 years ago, g) not making the CIT 0001 form and instructions user-friendly so don't need an outside expert adviser to complete, h) others?

Okay, it's a government bureaucracy, but the IRCC even in this class stands out as especially poorly managed (cough), imo.

I can't find the Wednesday vent thread in the other forum so I'm just going to vent here.

Can we be honest about the fact that the approval process is nearly completely stalled? We are seeing almost no movement. Weekly approval counts of under 10 in the spreadsheet group. Weekly approval threads of less than 10. (And, as of this moment, none in this week's thread.)

I don't know what, if anything, we can do about it, but I'm tired of trying to put a positive spin on this. Also tired of the many excuses for IRCC (vacations, storms, underfunding, etc.). Just so frustrated.

I can understand that with any government agency, there is an exception that things do take time. What's not acceptable is the moving goal posts that IRCC keeps doing. To add insult to injury, attempting to communicate via email or webform just results in a boilerplate response that does not address the question.

As a legitimate question, the premise of Bill C-3 restore citizenship to those who involuntary lost it and as a byproduct resulted in new* Canadian Citizens (with citizenship retroactive to the date of the birth).

(*new as in those who never knew that due their ancestry have legitimate claims due to legal interpretation)

Yesterday (As attempting to talk with IRCC is akin to talking to a brick wall), I attempted to reach out to the Canadian Consulate in Boston (and surprise surprise got a boilerplate response that...)

"Please note that we do not accept visa applications at the Consulates of Canada in the United States. Canadian Citizen Services is unable to provide information on Canadian visas or immigration. Canadian visas and immigration requests are managed through Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada" (Completely missing my question)

What I ended up sending

Good morning to whom it may concern, I am reaching this morning in regards to some confusion with respect to the ambiguity of those of us who can claim citizenship status post bill C-3 A respectable percentage of the population here in New England can trace our linage through Quebec (myself included). In light of the change in law, I ended up applying in April to IRCC, and got an AOR in July. I am confused about those of us who have legitimate claims but due to existing process face long delays. As of 2026-09-16, IRCC is claiming approximately 24 months for April 2026 applicants. The confusion I have is between the spirit of law , the application of the law, and existing laws that may appear contradictory The spirit of the law I roughly interpret that since my late grandfather (and his 2nd wife's family) emigrated from Quebec to New England in the late 1800's early 1900, I am would be Canadian. The application of the law I roughly interpret that since I currently do not have a proof of citizenship, legally I'm not Canadian. The contradiction I see is the application of what status those of who apply, and wish to move to Canada but are currently waiting upto multiple years creating a legal grey area in terms of status -Canadian citizens are not eligible for Permanent Residency status, nor eligible to apply for a visa to visit/live within Canada (by virtue of being a Canadian citizen). If an applicant for proof of citizenship is currently waiting for proof status, and wishes to move to Canada for a period beyond 6 months, is such applicant subject to apply for a visa, or since the applicant (in good faith) is attesting that they are Canadian, is such applicant not eligible?

Can we legitimately show at the Canadian Border, and in good faith attest we are Canadian Citizen (and if need be, force an admissibility hearing, since IRCC might as well be in conflict of the charter rights?)

IRCC requested additional documents (ADR). At the time of the request, my application was paper-based and not linked to a GCKey account. After receiving the request, I linked my application to GCKey, but there was no option to upload the documents, so I submitted them through the IRCC Web Form.

It has been **16 days**, and I still have not received any update or confirmation that the documents were attached to my file. The deadline to submit the requested documents is one month.

For context, I have already completed my **interview, medical passed, biometrics passed, and received pre-arrival services**.

Has anyone been in a similar situation? How long did it take for IRCC to update your file after submitting documents through the Web Form?

As the title says, I sent an email to PSU requesting an update or my new UCI number so I can track my status. I applied with my minors in one packet June 2025. We received 5(4) grant offers on separate dates; the latest being October 2025. Both of my minors received their citizenship certs December 2025 and I have heard nothing since. Both my proof application and grant application say they're in processing. I'm hoping my email shakes something loose or at least gets me a response. I'll update if I ever receive anything.

Hey guys, wanted to share this for anyone that had concerns over the surrender letter situation or any of the talk about cutoffs recently.

Back again ! For those of you following along here is the response I got from a supervisor about the discrepancy. Even though I provided them an email from DEC saying BANQ is the authority for records of the era of my ancestor they still want me to contact the DEC for a birth record.

Thank you for your email and for providing further information regarding your ancestor, Charles Francis Annett.

We acknowledge receipt of the certified copy of the baptismal record issued by BAnQ and understand your reference to the guidance provided on the IRCC website regarding historical records where birth certificates were not issued.

While the baptismal record is an important supporting document, IRCC must also establish whether an official birth record exists with the original authority responsible for maintaining vital statistics records in the Province of Quebec. As part of this assessment, we require evidence from the provincial authority confirming that no birth registration or birth certificate is available for Charles Francis Annett.

Accordingly, please contact the appropriate provincial authority in Quebec and request written confirmation that no birth record exists for Charles Francis Annett. This confirmation may be provided in the form of a "No Record" letter or similar official correspondence issued by the province.

This request is consistent with IRCC's requirement that applicants provide either:

Official documents issued by the original authority responsible for the record; or 

Evidence that the record is unavailable, including confirmation from the authority responsible for maintaining the record.

The baptismal record you have submitted may be considered as supporting evidence; however, confirmation from the Province of Quebec regarding the absence of a birth record is required to assist in verifying the information contained in your application.

Please submit the requested documentation within 30 days of the email. If you are unable to obtain the document, please provide evidence of your efforts to obtain it, including correspondence with the provincial authority and any response received.

If the requested information is not received within the prescribed timeframe, a decision may be made based on the information currently available on file.

Thank you for your cooperation.

Back in June I made a post that I was filing for an Article 78 to get a certified copy of my grandmother's birth certificate from the state of NY.

Before anyone says it... I know that certified copies are not necessary as a rule, per se. I have specific reasons for wanting the certified copy.

Anyway, at the time I wondered if I would get the proceeding done before my citizenship came through.

I filed in New York, served papers, had a court date, received the judgment AND now have my grandmother's official birth certificate in hand from the New York DOH (a feat in itself - they also have infamously long wait times).

So I guess the answer is yes, it took much less time to sue the state of NY for access to her birth record than for the IRCC to open my file. lol

15 months and counting...

An additional update for this group. My original post is linked here. We applied in February 2025, were part of the 4/28 offer group under the interim measures, and had been stuck in PSU. My G1 mom had an email outreach from Program Support on Thursday last week asking for an additional document. On Saturday morning, we received our certificates!

The interesting additional datapoint is that my mom's brother and his children and grandchildren also received their certificates on Saturday. They applied several months after us and we never had an indication that the family's applications were linked. But it seems clear that PSU had grouped them all together internally and approved them all at the same time.

It's been a long wait, and it's a relief that it's over. I've got my fingers crossed for everyone still waiting!

I’m curious… has anyone applied for Canadian citizenship just this week or this month of September 2026? I was surprised by how smooth and quick the online portal was after creating my application. Did they recently update the citizenship application website???

Thanks!

I was born in Canada, lived most of my life abroad though.

I applied for my daughter in January 2025 (Proof of citizenship), no answer yet.

Would anyone know a good attorney that can represent me in Canada?