Vol. 152, No. 4 — February 21, 2018

Registration

SI/2018-20 February 21, 2018

FINANCIAL ADMINISTRATION ACT

P.C. 2018-132 February 12, 2018

Her Excellency the Governor General in Council, considering that the collection of certain fees is unreasonable, on the recommendation of the Treasury Board and the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, pursuant to subsection 23(2.1) (see footnote a) of the Financial Administration Act (see footnote b), makes the annexed Application for Citizenship — Minors Remission Order.

Application for Citizenship — Minors Remission Order

Definition

1 In this Order, minor has the same meaning as in subsection 2(1) of the Citizenship Act.

Remission

2 Remission is granted, to any person who paid for a minor who is the subject of an application for grant of citizenship under subsection 5(1) of the Citizenship Act, during the period beginning on June 19, 2017 and ending on the day before the day on which the Regulations Amending the Citizenship Regulations (Fees for Minor Applicants) come into force, of the amount of $430, being a portion of the fee of $530 paid for that application under subsection 31(1) of the Citizenship Regulations.

Coming into force

3 This Order comes into force on the day on which the Regulations Amending the Citizenship Regulations (Fees for Minor Applicants) come into force, but if it is made after that day, it comes into force on the day on which it is made.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Order.)

Proposal

The Governor in Council, on the recommendation of the Treasury Board and the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, has made the Application for Citizenship – Minors Remission Order under subsection 5(1) of the Citizenship Act.

Objectives

The purpose of this remission order is to partially remit the fee paid for processing an application for a grant of Canadian citizenship made under subsection 5(1) of the Citizenship Act by a minor applicant (under 18 years of age).

Background

An Act to amend the Citizenship Act (AACA), which received royal assent on June 19, 2017, immediately brought into force an amendment that removed the requirement to be 18 years old for a grant of citizenship under subsection 5(1) of the Citizenship Act. Following that legislative amendment, under the Citizenship Regulations, individuals applying under subsection 5(1) continued to be required to pay the processing fee of $530. However, minors applying for citizenship who have a Canadian parent or who apply at the same time as their permanent resident parent(s) under subsection 5(2), were only required to pay a $100 processing fee.

To address this fee differential, amendments to the fee schedule set out in the Citizenship Regulations have been implemented to ensure that all minor citizenship applicants, regardless of what subsection they apply under, pay the same $100 processing fee. There is, however, a cohort of minor citizenship applicants who applied under subsection 5(1) of the Citizenship Act between June 19, 2017, and the coming into force of the fee schedule amendments, who paid the $530 fee. This remission order will enable the refund of the $430 fee differential to that cohort. The partial remission of fees for minors will ensure fairness by permitting this cohort to pay the same $100 fee as those who apply after the reduced fee is in effect.

Implications

General

The remission of fees will be made to all minors who made an application for a grant of Canadian citizenship under subsection 5(1) of the Citizenship Act between the royal assent of the AACA on June 19, 2017, and the coming into force of the reduced subsection 5(1) fee. This reimbursement aligns with the reduction of fees for minors applying under subsection 5(1) of the Citizenship Act from $530 to $100.

Financial

It is estimated that up to $620,060, being a portion of the fees paid to the Crown for the processing of applications for minors applying for a grant of Canadian citizenship under subsection 5(1) of the Citizenship Act on or after June 19, 2017, will be remitted.

Accountability

The Department will report on the foregone revenue associated with this Remission Order. All remissions will be reported in the Public Accounts as required by subsection 24(2) of the Financial Administration Act.

Consultation

Following the repeal of the subsection 5(1) age requirement, parliamentarians and stakeholders continued to highlight the difference in fees for minors applying for citizenship under different provisions of the Citizenship Act. They noted that while the AACA changes made it easier for minors to apply for citizenship on their own, the $530 fee still posed a barrier to a potentially vulnerable population.

Departmental contact

Teny Dikranian
Director
Legislation and Program Policy
Citizenship Branch
Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada
180 Kent Street
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 1L1
Telephone: 613-437-5622
Fax: 613-991-2485
Email: Teny.Dikranian@cic.gc.ca