Canadians Abroad: Foreigners with Canadian Passports or the New Canadian Diaspora?

Abstract:

Some preliminary data indicates that 2.7 million individuals, or 8% of Canada’s population, live abroad. Proportionately, Canada’s diaspora is larger than the overseas communities of some well-known diaspora countries such as the United States, Australia, China and India. This paper identifies some of the Canadian rules and regulations that treat Canadians abroad as “foreigners with Canadian passports” rather than as Canadian citizens living abroad. It discusses possible changes to the Canadian policies to bolster the notion of citizenship within a multicultural nation.