Americans have flooded Canada with applications for citizenship. And the wait time went from months to 3 years.

Canada’s citizenship application queue is stretching fast as Americans flood the process after a December 2025 change to the Citizenship Act. When the amendment took effect, expected processing time was about nine months; it has now grown to 33 months for roughly 136,000 applicants waiting in line. The shift removes the first-generation limit for citizenship by descent, requiring applicants to prove lineage through a grandparent, great-grandparent or more distant relatives—often using records from genealogy sites. Immigration lawyers say demand is boosted by the low cost (about $52) and the ability to request expedited processing.