Josh Duhamel is among the millions of Americans who became Canadian citizens when Canada changed its citizenship law

Josh Duhamel, best known for his role in the Transformers franchise, has joked in an interview that he is “basically Canadian,” having been born just miles south of the Canadian border.

And, as it turns out, he was right – just not in the way he thought.

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On December 15, 2025, Canada passed Bill C-3, An Act to Amend the Citizenship Act, eliminating the first-generation limit on citizenship by descent. Overnight, anyone who could trace a continuous line of descent to a Canadian ancestor became a Canadian citizen, regardless of how many generations ago that ancestor lived.

Duhamel is among them.

The actor has French-Canadian, German, Norwegian, English, and Irish ancestry, with his French-Canadian roots running through his father’s side. His father, Larry Duhamel, is one-eighth French-Canadian. According to the genealogy website Geneanet, Larry’s great-grandfather, William Duhamel, was born in Stormont, Ontario. William’s parents were both born in Quebec, Canada’s francophone-majority province.

As a matter of fact, the surname “Duhamel” itself is French for “from the hamlet” — a common family name in French-Canadian communities. Duhamel has also previously spoken about his ancestry on the genealogy series Who Do You Think You Are?, saying, “my grandpa’s side of the family, I think, is from French Canada.”

Millions of everyday Americans are now eligible too

Duhamel is far from alone.

Due to Bill C-3, celebrities and everyday Americans alike are now eligible for Canadian citizenship and a Canadian passport on the basis of their ancestry — whether the connection runs through a parent, a grandparent, or a great-great-great-grandparent. There is no generational limit. As long as a person can trace an unbroken line of descent from a Canadian ancestor, they qualify.

The likelihood is especially high for Americans with roots in New England, where large numbers of French-Canadian families settled between 1840 and 1930 in a mass emigration historians call the Great Hemorrhage.

If you have a grandparent who spoke French or family roots in communities historically known for high concentrations of French-Canadian residents, there is a higher chance that you, too, may now be a Canadian citizen.

How to apply

Those who are eligible do not need to pass a citizenship test, swear an oath, or meet a residency requirement. Instead, they must apply for a Proof of Canadian Citizenship certificate.

To do so, applicants need compliant copies of official documents — such as birth certificates, marriage records, and death records — tracing their lineage back to their Canadian ancestor. For many, gathering these documents is the most time-consuming part of the process.

Once those documents are in hand, applicants must submit a paper application to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), Canada’s citizenship department. As of the time of writing, processing takes approximately one year, though that timeline is subject to change.

After receiving the certificate, applicants can then apply for a Canadian passport, which takes approximately 10 to 20 business days to process.

For those weighing whether to pursue the process, the benefits extend well beyond the passport itself — including the right to live and work freely in Canada.

Get a Free Consultation on Applying for Proof of Canadian Citizenship

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