Over 16,000 New Citizens Welcomed By Canada In January, 2014
06 Feb 2014
Chris Alexander, the Minister of Canada’s Citizenship and Immigration announced that, in January 2014, Canada welcomed over 16,000 new citizens. This is twice the number of new citizens welcomed by Canada in January 2013.
In the Economic Action Plan 2013, several investments were announced. These investments helped strengthen the integrity of the citizenship program of Canada and make the system more productive. However, the efforts to handle the long processing times have been hindered by the enormous popularity of Canadian citizenship.
In the coming days, the government will take extra steps to lower the backlogs while further invigorating the value of Canadian citizenship. As announced in the Speech from the Throne of October 2013, when applied together, these measures will form the first extensive reforms to the Citizenship Act in over a generation.
Quick Facts about Canadian Citizenship
-
Canadian Citizenship was granted to 8,250 people in January 2013. At 244 citizenship ceremonies throughout Canada, over 16,000 people became Canadian Citizens in January 2014.
-
The Citizenship Ceremony is the final step to become a Canadian Citizen and to take on the responsibilities and rights that come with citizenship.
-
The new citizens of Canada, who were welcomed to the country in January 2014, came from 190 different countries.
-
On average, 10,745 people became Canadian Citizens in each month of 2013.
-
Since 2006, an average of 257,000 newcomers are welcomed by Canada every year, which is the largest sustained levels of immigration in the history of Canada. Subsequently, there has been a 30% rise in the demand for citizenship.
-
As per the census, 86% of eligible Canadian Permanent Residents become citizens of Canada.
