Canada citizenship law is creating record requests at U.S. archives

A change to Canada’s citizenship law is driving a surge in requests to archives in the United States, where people are looking for documents to prove Canadian ancestry under Bill C3. The law extends citizenship to people who can show they descend from a Canadian ancestor, even if that connection goes back several generations. Archives in places such as Lafayette, Louisiana, southern Illinois, and Maine say the extra demand is causing backlogs and much longer processing times. Some small archives have had to add staff hours or raise fees, while larger institutions are also seeing more people seek records related to dual citizenship. The article notes that the number of citizenship certificates issued under Bill C3 has grown quickly, with many recipients born in the United States. At the same time, Canada’s own application backlog has expanded, and archivists say they are now helping requesters locate original records or certified copies needed for the process.