公民与移民局是这么说的:
Time lived in Canada
To become Canadian citizens, adults must have lived in Canada for at least three years (1,095 days) in the past four years before applying. Children under the age of 18 do not need to meet this requirement.
要成为加拿大公民,成年人必须在
申请前的4年里在加拿大居住了至少3年(1,095天)。18岁以下的孩子不用满足这个要求。
上文中“申请”二字是指你在申请表上签字这个行为,也就是说,申请前的4年等于你在申请表上签字之日前的4年。
Becoming a Canadian citizen: Who can apply
To be eligible to become a Canadian citizen, you must meet the requirements in all of the following areas:
Age
You must be at least 18 years old to apply for Canadian citizenship.
To apply for citizenship for a child under 18, make sure the following conditions are met:
- the person applying is the child’s parent, adoptive parent or legal guardian
- the child is a permanent resident, but does not need to have lived in Canada for three years; and
- one parent is already a Canadian citizen or is applying to become a citizen at the same time. This also applies to adoptive parents.
Permanent resident status
To become a Canadian citizen, you must have permanent resident status in Canada, and that status must not be in doubt. This means you must not be the subject of an immigration investigation, an immigration inquiry or a removal order (an order from Canadian officials to leave Canada).
Time lived in Canada
To become Canadian citizens, adults must have lived in Canada for at least three years (1,095 days) in the past four years before applying. Children under the age of 18 do not need to meet this requirement.
You may be able to count time you spent in Canada before you became a permanent resident if that time falls within the four-year period.
Use the
citizenship calculator to find out if you have lived in Canada long enough to apply for citizenship.
Language abilities
Canada has two official languages―English and French. You need to have adequate knowledge of one of these two languages in order to become a Canadian citizen.
The citizenship knowledge test and your interaction with CIC staff will be used to assess if you have an adequate ability to communicate in either English or French. CIC staff will observe
- your ability to understand basic spoken statements and questions, and
- your ability to communicate basic information or respond to questions.
For example, as part of your interaction with departmental staff or as part of your written test or your interview with a citizenship judge, you will be expected to:
- answer simple questions on familiar topics, using short sentences;
- show that you know enough words for basic everyday communication;
- tell a simple story about everyday activities;
- speak about something you did in the past (or will do in the future);
- give simple everyday instructions and directions; and
- express satisfaction or dissatisfaction.
Criminal history (prohibitions)
You cannot become a citizen if you:
- have been convicted of an indictable (criminal) offence or an offence under the Citizenship Act in the three years before you applied;
- are currently charged with an indictable offence or an offence under the Citizenship Act;
- are in prison, on parole or on probation;
- are under a removal order (have been ordered by Canadian officials to leave Canada);
- are under investigation for, are charged with, or have been convicted of a war crime or a crime against humanity; or
- you have had your Canadian citizenship taken away in the past five years.
If you are on probation or are charged with an offence and are awaiting trial, you should wait until after the probation has ended or the trial is over to apply for citizenship.
If you have spent time on probation, on parole or in prison in the last four years, you may not meet the residence requirement for citizenship.
Time in prison or on parole does not count as residence in Canada. Time on probation also does not count as residence in Canada if you were convicted of an offence. If you have spent time on probation from a conditional discharge, it may be counted toward residence. For details, contact the
Call Centre.
Knowledge of Canada
To become a citizen, you must understand the rights and responsibilities of citizenship, such as the right and responsibility to vote in elections. You must also have an understanding of Canada’s history, values, institutions and symbols.
The information you need to know is in our free study guide
Discover Canada: The Rights and Responsibilities of Citizenship. We will send you a copy of it once we have received your application. The questions in the citizenship test are based on the information in this guide.
上面这段文字就是申请入籍加拿大的条件。
你看,申请入籍加拿大一共需要满足6个条件,而居住时间只是这6个条件里面的一个而已。但就居住时间条件而言,计算方法上面已经说得清清楚楚了,只要在你在入籍申请表上签字那天前的4年里累计在加拿大居住达到1095天,你就满足这个条件了,而从你在申请表上签字,到公民局审理你的申请一直到笔试面谈这段时间你在不在加拿大住跟这个条件完全无关。
但是,别忘了,居住时间条件只是6个条件里面的第3个,你看第2个条件是什么,是永久居民身份。我用中国话解释一下上面那段文字:
要成为加拿大公民,你必须拥有加拿大永久居民身份,并且你的这个身份还不能处于被质疑的状态。这就是说,你不能正在被移民局调查,你不能正在被移民局质询,你不能已经收到身份取消通知书(离境令)。
当你申请入籍时,你一定在刚过去的4年里累计在加拿大居住了至少3年,即使你在在申请表上签字的当天离开加拿大,到你再回来去公民局笔试面谈这段时间不超过2年,你的永久居民居住义务就无论如何都能满足,你面官时你的永久居民身份就不会被质疑。
但是,在极端情况,不管是因为阴差阳错还是运气不济导致材料总出纰漏,你的申请处理时间长达两三年,而这期间你大部分时间都不住在加拿大,那么到在考试面官那天如果被官员质疑你的永久居民居住义务没有满足,也就是说你在那天前的5年内可能没有住够2年,那么只要产生这个质疑,你就已经不满足上述入籍6条件中的第2个条件了,你的入籍申请就会泡汤,并且,你还可能会丢掉永久居民身份。
最后,入籍申请计算居住时间是这么计的:
以今天为例,
如果你一整天都在加拿大,那么今天算1天;
如果你今天离开加拿大,那么今天算1/2天;
如果你今天回到加拿大,那么今天算1/2天;
如果你今天离开加拿大,然后又回到加拿大,那么今天算1天。
而永久居民身份所要求的居住时间的计算是有点不同的:
只要你今天曾经在加拿大呆过1秒钟,今天就算你在加拿大住了1整天。比如你昨天离开加拿大,今天又回来了,那么昨今两天算你在加拿大住2天。
谢谢夸奖。
不过说实话,我一点也不认为弄清楚这些东西有什么了不起。
加拿大的这些“规矩”都是高度透明的,任何人都可以轻易在官方网站上找到并自行阅读这些资料。遇到问题的时候,与其道听途说,为什么不自己亲自去读一读这些资料呢?
如果你说咱英文不通,什么也看不懂,那么我强烈建议你去试着读一点东西看看。事实上,多数情况下,这类关系到每位老百姓的官方资料的文字都是极其通俗易懂的,其易读程度可以与图书馆里那些8-10岁小朋友的图画书媲美。
还是那句话,任何一个在中国读过初中的人,只要手边有一本袖珍英汉词典,就完全可以自己读懂这些东西,真的没有什么了不起的。
另外一个自己多做功课的理由是:
别人都那么说的说法,往往是错的。