Canadian Ancestry By Descent on the Cheap

I know a number of Americans who have been able to prove ancestry by descent to other countries but have paid handsomely to do so. One friend spent a few years and trips back and forth to Dublin to get her Irish citizenship so she could become a dual citizen. Another friend did the same with Italian ancestry, including multiple trips to Rome and Sicily, for his sister and three daughters. And my own husband tried to do something similar with Italian ancestry by descent or Jure Sanguinis (by law of the bloodline). But after a few years and thousands of dollars in fees, he gave up. A few months ago I started a similar process for Canadian ancestry by descent and, by comparison, it was so much easier–and so much cheaper.

Proving Ancestry By Descent

In most of the examples I’ve shared, including my husband’s, Ireland and Italy require you to get brand-new, raised-seal documents to prove lineage. Nevermind that my husband has all of his Italian immigrant grandparents’ birth certificates and immigration papers–Italy required that he order new ones from Rome. In addition, he had to order a new birth certificate for his American-born mother and for himself–again, even though we already have original copies in our files.

On the other hand, things were very different for me when I learned that on December 15, 2025, Canada had changed its ancestry by descent law. Previously, if you had a Canadian ancestor one generation back from yourself, then you could be recognized as a Canadian citizen and could request a citizenship certification.

However, with the C-3 law that came into effect on December 15, 2025, it removed that limit. If you could prove that you had an ancestor born in Canada who had a child in another country–and then you could prove the lineage connecting yourself back through those generations–the law said you were now Canadian. That meant that you could request a citizenship certification and become a dual citizen with a Canadian passport, if you wanted.

When I started researching this for myself and my daughters–because I knew that my great grandmother was born in Canada–I didn’t need to travel anywhere or hire any lawyers to do my research. All I needed to do was upgrade my existing Ancestry.com members to a paid Ancestry membership and, suddenly, I had access to nearly every document I needed to prove my Canadian ancestry.

Canadian Ancestry by Descent on the Cheap

The reason that I’m using this term “on the cheap” is because compared to the costs that my friends incurred in getting their Italian and Irish citizenship by descent, my experience was relatively inexpensive. First, there was the paid Ancestry membership. You can get a 30-day free trial but to get access to the documents I needed–census records, draft registrations, death certificates–I needed to upgrade to the more expensive version that did not have the 30-day free trial. It was $59.99 but I ended up needing it only for a month so I only paid that one time.

Next, unlike other countries that required new, raised seal documents, such as birth certificates, marriage certificates and death certificates, Canada only requires a color copy. Lucky for me, our family has kept meticulous files and documentation. A cousin of mine is a keeper of most of these so she just had to take pictures with her phone and text them to me. I, in turn, printed them out to include with my application.

Order Missing Certificates

There were some missing documents that I did have to order. For instance, my mother did not have her birth certificate–only the hospital certificate that they sent you home with in the 1940s with your baby footprints on it. Adorable but not good enough for Canada. So I had to order one from the State of Maine where she was born.

Also, it turns out that I did not have my actual birth certificate. What I had was a New York State Health Record of my birth. Previously, I’d been able to use this document to get my passport, Real ID drivers license and, 34 years ago, my marriage license. So I sent it with my citizenship package but, to be safe, ordered a new copy of my birth certificate, just in case.

In both of these instances, I had to go through a company called VitalCheck, which charges its own fee. Also, based on a Canadian Citizenship subreddit I joined, I learned that you should always use UPS or FedEx to get these documents because the tracking is good and reliable, unlike the USPS. So with the two birth certificates I needed, that was an additional $47 each.

Finally, at first I didn’t think that we had my grandmother’s birth certificate from Boston. So I contacted the Massachusetts archives to get a copy. I could work with the Commonwealth directly and paid only $12 for her 1917 birth certificate from the City of Boston. After I’d ordered it, my cousin found a copy of the birth certificate so that was $12 I did not need to have spent. Oh, well.

Other Costs Associated With Ancestry by Descent

Ordering certificates was relatively easy compared with getting the right-sized color photographs that my daughters and I needed to include with our citizenship certification package. You’re not getting regular passport pictures. You’re getting pictures that someone would use when getting a Canadian visa for work, school or travel. They are a different size.

Also, Canada requires that the photographer that takes the picture to stamp the back and include the date the photo was taken, the complete address of the business that took the pictures, and the name and date of birth of the person in the picture. Oh, and you can’t smile and your head has to be centered in a certain way.

My daughters both live in major metropolitan cities and had a harder time than I did finding a photographer in Portland, Maine, where I live now. In fact, AAA took my pictures for free because I’m a AAA member. I tried Staples first. They couldn’t help me. So that’s how I ended up at AAA.

My younger daughter in New York City tried Staples, the UPS Store and FedEx/Kinkos to no avail. Eventually, I found her a photographer near Rockefeller Center, where there is a passport agency, that was able to get the photos she needed. My older daughter who lives just outside Washington, DC, went through the same rigamarole as her sister before finally finding a place that could help her. They each paid $35 for the photos.

Finally, there is a cost to ship the documents to Canada. Again, I learned that relying on the USPS to handle shipping to Canada is not a good idea. Most people use either FedEx or UPS for faster shipping and excellent tracking. They are pricey–my package to Canada ended up costing $80 to ship, which is crazy, I know. But with all the paperwork I needed to prove my ancestry plus the 10-page application times three–for myself and my two daughters; it’s better to send them all together instead of separately–I ended up with a stack of documents more than one inch thick.

Why Get Proof of Our Canadian Ancestry

You may be wondering why I’ve gone through the trouble of getting proof of our Canadian ancestry by descent. It’s for the same reason as our friend who went the Italian route with his three daughters: life and work options.

As you likely know, the American job market isn’t great right now. Both of my daughters have advanced degrees in their fields and are having a hard time finding jobs. One just did; the other is still on the market. Our friend’s daughters were recently in the same boat, no pun intended. By getting them an Italian passport, which means an European Union (EU) passport, that opened up job options for his daughters throughout Europe.

With my own daughters, if they can prove dual Canadian citizenship, then they can more easily look for and land jobs in Canada. I mentioned their advanced degrees–in engineering and library science. Both of those fields of expertise are in high demand in Canada. As Canadian citizens, they won’t have to go through the hassle of applying for visas to work and live in Canada, should a job opportunity arise.

Application Processing Times

Currently, there is a 10-month waiting time for applications to be processed. The next step after mailing your application is getting your acknowledgement of receipt or AOR. That usually happens via email about a month after your package is delivered.

There is an exception to these processing rules and timeline: you can request urgent processing. For some that means if they feel their safety or livelihood is in jeopardy.

After Kansas recently passed a law nullifying the drivers licenses of trans citizens, I saw an uptick in participants in that aforementioned subreddit looking to explore if they qualified for Canadian citizenship. There are people with job offers who need to prove citizenship or families with children going to college. There are parents with queer kids looking to move to a more hospitable environment. In all of these examples, people report applying for their citizenship certification and receiving it in under 30 days.