OTTAWA –
An unknown number of people will automatically become Canadian citizens next week if the Ontario Superior Court doesn’t grant the federal government a third extension to fix the issue of “lost Canadians,” Canada argued in court Thursday.
“Lost Canadians” is a term applied to people who were born outside of the country to Canadian parents who were also born in another country.
In 2009, the former Conservative government changed the law so people who were born abroad could not pass down their citizenship unless their child was born in Canada.
In late 2023, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice ruled that law is unconstitutional.
The government has until Dec. 19 to amend the Citizenship Act to respond to that decision. It is now seeking its third extension, after being granted delays in June and …