If you are a permanent resident of Canada and are planning to apply for a Canadian citizenship, the following article would be of great help to you. To become a citizen of Canada, there are certain pre – requisites to be catered to. The applicant should not have undergone any form of immigration enquiry or investigation and so on.

The following are the key points to be noted before applying for citizenship:

• You must have lived in Canada for a minimum of three years or 1095 days in the last fours year. This period of residence should be prior to applying for citizenship. However, children are exempt from this requirement. Accurate time period of residence should be provided with, prior to becoming a permanent resident as well, if it is within the above mentioned four year period. This is because there are instances where in an applicant would be considered as residing in Canada when he was physically not present in the country.
• In order to apply, you should be atleast 18 years of age.
• You should not have been convicted of any crime or offence that is prohibited under the Citizenship Act or imprisoned. The time spent in prison does not count for the residency period.
• Proficiency in English or French is a must to communicate with the local citizens.
• As a future citizen of Canada, you must be aware of the rights and responsibilities of a Canadian citizen. This includes the right to vote as well. Others include the history, geography and the political aspects of the country.

After the ensuring that you clear the above pre-requites, the following steps should be followed to apply for citizenship:

• Check your eligibility criteria, as mentioned above.
• Submit the application for citizenship.
• Incase, you are between the age group of 18 and 54 years, you have to appear for the Citizenship test.
• Incase you are 14 years of age or older, you must be present for the citizenship ceremony.

It has to be remembered that it is not mandatory for all the permanent residents in Canada to apply for citizenship. They are free to apply for an extension or renewal of their PR card if it expires. This PR card is permitted for five years at a stretch. However, on the PR card, certain rights are not available which are only applicable for the citizens of Canada.