Under the new law, descendants of Canadians are considered citizens, but they must provide proof to obtain a certificate of citizenship
4-MIN READ4-MIN ListenAssociated PressPublished: 9:57pm, 23 Apr 2026Potentially millions of Americans suddenly have a much easier path to Canadian citizenship, prompting a rush of people to explore their ancestry and file paperwork seeking dual citizenship.
For people like Zack Loud of Farmington, Minnesota, it was a surprise to learn that under a new law, Canada already considered him and his siblings citizens because their grandmother is Canadian.
“My wife and I were already talking about potentially looking at jobs outside the country, but citizenship pushed Canada way up on our list,” he said.
Since the new law took effect December 15, immigration lawyers in the United States and Canada say they have been overwhelmed by clients seeking help submitting proof of citizenship applications. Driven by politics, family heritage, job opportunities and other factors, thousands of Americans are exploring whether the easier process makes now the right time to gain dual citizenship.
Nicholas Berning, an immigration lawyer at Boundary Bay Law in Bellingham, Washington, said his practice is “pretty much flooded with this”.
“We’ve kind of shifted a lot of other work away to push these cases through,” he said.
