Citizenship by descent, diplomatic status

[mooseforkicks]

I am looking into Canadian citizenship by descent.

My father was born in Canada in the 1950s. I was born outside of Canada in the 1990s.

In most instances this seems like my father would be a Canadian citizen by birth. However, there is an exception if his parents were “employed in Canada by a foreign government and had diplomatic status.”

His father was in the US military (so apparently employed by a foreign government) but was low-level (air traffic controller, no ties to embassy/consulate/other diplomatic posting). Would this disqualify him from citizenship?

 

[hawk39]

I am looking into Canadian citizenship by descent.

My father was born in Canada in the 1950s. I was born outside of Canada in the 1990s.

In most instances this seems like my father would be a Canadian citizen by birth. However, there is an exception if his parents were “employed in Canada by a foreign government and had diplomatic status.”

His father was in the US military (so apparently employed by a foreign government) but was low-level (air traffic controller, no ties to embassy/consulate/other diplomatic posting). Would this disqualify him from citizenship?

Under the original 1947 Citizenship Act, there were no restrictions to citizenship by birth so even children of diplomats and foreign government employees would have been citizens at birth. However in Wikipedia, it is mentioned that the 1949 changes to include Newfoundland also imposed the restriction to children of foreign diplomats and government employees. The source material is linked to an academic database that I can't access, so I can't verify if this is true for you. If this is true, then since your father was born in the 1950s, he would have been under these changes too, and would not have been a citizen when he was born. Unless you can verify the changes to the Act, the only way to be certain would be to apply for your proof of citizenship.

 

[canuck78]

I am looking into Canadian citizenship by descent.

My father was born in Canada in the 1950s. I was born outside of Canada in the 1990s.

In most instances this seems like my father would be a Canadian citizen by birth. However, there is an exception if his parents were “employed in Canada by a foreign government and had diplomatic status.”

His father was in the US military (so apparently employed by a foreign government) but was low-level (air traffic controller, no ties to embassy/consulate/other diplomatic posting). Would this disqualify him from citizenship?

What was he doing in Canada? Was he working on some sort of US military base?

 

[mooseforkicks]

What was he doing in Canada? Was he working on some sort of US military base?

He was working on a USAF station that I think was part of NORAD (though he lived in a civilian house and my father was born in a civilian hospital).

The Citizenship Act was amended in 1950 (this was the act that would have been in place at my fathers birth) and the exceptions for birthright citizenship are a little different than the 1977 Act. It states that a child born in Canada is not a citizen if their parent(s) were “an alien and not a permanent resident” and one or more parent was “a foreign diplomatic or consular officer or a representative of a foreign government accredited to His Majesty”, “an employee of a foreign government attached to or in the service of a foreign diplomatic mission or consulate in Canada” or “an employee in the service” of “a foreign diplomat or consular officer.”

He was a regular member of the US Armed Forces and worked as an air traffic controller. He did not do diplomatic/consular work. He would have fallen under the NATO Status of Forces Agreement—He did not have to pay Canadian income tax or serve on a jury, but was subject to other Canadian taxes and the Canadian judicial system (his home/belongings could be searched/seized, he could be arrested, he could be tried/convicted/punished by the Canadian civil or criminal justice system).

So it does not seem he had diplomatic status (which usually involves a degree of immunity) even if he was employed by a foreign government.

I was just wondering if anyone else had experienced/known of a situation where a child was born in Canada to a foreign military member, but where that military member was not formally a representative of a foreign government and did not have diplomatic status/immunity.

 

[canuck78]

He was working on a USAF station that I think was part of NORAD (though he lived in a civilian house and my father was born in a civilian hospital).

The Citizenship Act was amended in 1950 (this was the act that would have been in place at my fathers birth) and the exceptions for birthright citizenship are a little different than the 1977 Act. It states that a child born in Canada is not a citizen if their parent(s) were “an alien and not a permanent resident” and one or more parent was “a foreign diplomatic or consular officer or a representative of a foreign government accredited to His Majesty”, “an employee of a foreign government attached to or in the service of a foreign diplomatic mission or consulate in Canada” or “an employee in the service” of “a foreign diplomat or consular officer.”

He was a regular member of the US Armed Forces and worked as an air traffic controller. He did not do diplomatic/consular work. He would have fallen under the NATO Status of Forces Agreement—He did not have to pay Canadian income tax or serve on a jury, but was subject to other Canadian taxes and the Canadian judicial system (his home/belongings could be searched/seized, he could be arrested, he could be tried/convicted/punished by the Canadian civil or criminal justice system).

So it does not seem he had diplomatic status (which usually involves a degree of immunity) even if he was employed by a foreign government.

I was just wondering if anyone else had experienced/known of a situation where a child was born in Canada to a foreign military member, but where that military member was not formally a representative of a foreign government and did not have diplomatic status/immunity.

If he did not have to pay income taxes I would think that he would fall under the foreign service work. Anyone visiting Canada would also pay things like sales tax so that means nothing. You can apply and see what Canada says.

Not sure how you think that a US military officer is not a representative of a foreign government. Assume he was also likely being paid a housing allowance by the US government.

 

[hawk39]

An employee of any company is considered a representative of that company; so I believe that would make any foreign service member, not just diplomats, a representative of the federal government of their country. Under the text of the 1950 amendment to the Citizenship Act you provided, I think your grandfather would count as "a representative of a foreign government accredited to His Majesty", as any legal presence of a foreign government entity would had to have been authorized by the Canadian government; and NORAD, as a joint US-Canadian organization, would obviously be accredited. So I think your father would fall under that exception.

But nothing ventured is nothing gained. If this something you really want to pursue, the cost and time needed to gather documents and apply is very minor compared to not knowing at all. Good luck.