Vol. 137, No. 13 — June 18, 2003

Registration
SI/2003-118 18 June, 2003

MODERNIZATION OF BENEFITS AND OBLIGATIONS ACT

Order Fixing July 1, 2003 as the Date of the Coming into Force of Certain Sections of the Act

P.C. 2003-849 5 June, 2003

Her Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, pursuant to subsection 340(1) of the Modernization of Benefits and Obligations Act, assented to on June 29, 2000, being chapter 12 of the Statutes of Canada, 2000, hereby fixes July 1, 2003 as the day on which sections 74 and 75 of that Act come into force.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Order.)

The Order brings into force sections 74 and 75 of the Modernization of Benefits and Obligations Act, which received royal assent on June 29, 2000. Those provisions amend subsections 2(1) and 5(1.1) of the Citizenship Act. In specified circumstances, a period of residence abroad with a spouse or common-law partner is to be treated as equivalent to a period of residence in Canada for the purpose of accumulating the three years of residence in Canada required for the granting of citizenship.

The Modernization of Benefits and Obligations Act extends benefits and obligations under that Act to all couples who have been cohabiting in a conjugal relationship for at least one year, in order to reflect values of tolerance, respect and equality, consistent with the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

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