Getting a Canadian Passport 2022: How NotaryPro Can Help
With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, many Canadians were unable to travel due to measures put in place to limit the spread of the virus.
At the height of the pandemic, the Canadian government reduced their passport services as a measure to limit potential exposure of both staff and travellers.
As travel restrictions continue to ease, plenty of Canadians are itching to travel abroad, but many have found themselves in need of documentation in order to do so. The combination of a wave of expiring passports, “revenge travel”, and passport services unable to meet demand has created a bureaucratic bottleneck that’s threatening to keep travellers home.
Time is of the essence for Canadian travellers. To help you avoid making vacation-costing mistakes, in this post we’ll be covering:
- How to speed up your passport application
- What documents you’ll need for new adult and child passports
- How online notarization can help
Hope is on the Horizon for Canadian Travellers
As many travellers are already experiencing, lineups and wait times for new passports and passport renewals have soared in Canada.
Compared to the first year of the pandemic, between April 1, 2020 and March 31, 2021, Service Canada said it issued 363,000 passports. A year later, (April 1, 2021 to March 31, 2022) that number more than tripled to over 1.27 million.
Service Canada expects to receive between 3.6 and 4.3 million passport applications in 2022/2023.
Despite longer processing times, for the week ending June 5, three-quarters of Canadians who applied for a passport received it within 40 working days, and 96 percent of Canadians received their passport within 10 working days of submitting an application in person.
However, the unprecedented surge in demand has forced many Canadians to wait hours in long line-ups for in-person appointments.
In an effort to reduce wait times, Service Canada announced it had hired 600 new employees last month to process passport applications. Service Canada has also opened 300 more dedicated passport intake counters, created additional processing hubs, and introduced a new workload management system and processing technology to help increase efficiency.
Speed Up Your Passport Application with Online Notarization
Especially when applying for a new passport for you or your child, ensuring that you have the correctly notarized documentation can save you valuable time.
Preparing a Passport Renewal
As a response to the high volume of renewals, you are now able to renew your adult passport even if it’s expired, damaged, lost or stolen if:
- it was issued within 15 years of the date you apply and
- you meet all the other requirements
Renewing a passport is simpler than applying for a new one, because you don’t need
- a guarantor
- proof of Canadian citizenship
- supporting identification
If your most recent passport is still valid, it must be sent with your application and will be cancelled and unable to be used for travel.
Applying for a New Passport: Notarizations Required
Adult Passports
New Adult Passports require a much more involved process than renewals, and require a few important notarizations.
When completing your application, be sure that all of the forms have been filled out correctly. Once complete, you’ll be required to include: a signature from a guarantor, two photos certified by your guarantor, the contact information for two witnesses, and, if applicable, certified documents confirming your identity.
If you do not have a Guarantor, an online service like NotaryPro will be able to:
- Administer a Statutory Declaration in Lieu of Guarantor,
- Certify of your passport photos; and
- if applicable, certify documents to support your identity
Children’s Passports (Newborn to 16 Years Old)
If you’re looking forward to introducing your newest family member to their grandparents or other relatives living abroad, your child will need a passport of their own.
Ensure that you meet all of the application criteria to streamline the process. You can only apply for a child’s passport if you:
- Are one of the child’s parents, as long as you’re not separated or divorced
- Are the parent who has custody of the child, if you are separated or divorced, with the correct documentation
- Include all documents, including any divorce judgement, about the custody of, access to, or mobility of the child
- Are the child’s legal guardian, with the correct documentation, and include all legal documents proving your proving your legal guardianship of the child
Each parent or legal guardian must sign the application form, and Passport Canada may contact the other parent or legal guardian for confirmation.
How Online Notarization Can Help
The best way to save time on you or your child’s Canadian passport application is simply to plan ahead, and stay up to date.
With the urgency of summer travel at the forefront of everyone’s mind, making sure that you have all of the correct documents certified and notarized can be the difference between staying home for one more summer, or your first family vacation in years.
NotaryPro can quickly virtually notarize and electronically sign passport-application related forms through our popular Remote Online Notary service. Backed by more than 1,000 5-star reviews, you can rest assured that NotaryPro will help you and your family finalise your summer travel plans.