The new Canadian passports are revealed by Mr. Sean Fraser, the Immigration Minister, and Karina Gould, the Minister of Families, Children, & Social Development.

According to the government, passport redesigning is a standard process that is essential to prevent the faking of passports or passport fraud and to incorporate more advanced security features.

Since 2013, Canada’s passport redesign process has been in progress.

The new Canadian passports are designed with advanced security features to keep the Canadian’s identity safe and inaccessible. The immigration minister emphasized that the passport will have a data page made up of polycarbonate. And instead of being ink printed, the confidential information of the passport holder will now be engraved with laser.

This way, the data page will be more long-lasting and protected from tampering and faking.

In addition to the above security enhancements, the new passport has a see-through window with a secondary image of the passport owner, an inconsistent laser image, and a temperature-dependent ink feature.

The minister further talked about the new passport design, which would include Canada’s natural heritage. He added that the new design had been created after extensive consultation and engagement of various stakeholders. Further, Minister Fraser believes that in order to enhance security, the passport’s design must be recreated every few years.

Aside from this, Minister Gould stated that while the changeover is taking place, some Canadians might get the old-style passports this summer, but the old passports are still secure and legitimate.

According to the recent report of Passport Canada, around 209,548 passport applications have been received as of May 5, 2023, and 210,171 passports have been issued by the government.

It’s notable that because of the strike by the Public Service Alliance of Canada, the Passport department underwent processing delays, influencing over 155,000 federal workers.

Also, a drop of 45% is noted in the number of applications processed during the week of April 17-13 and April 24-30.

How can you obtain a Canadian Passport?

Individuals are required to complete a passport application in order to obtain a Canadian passport.

Applicants are required to submit several documents in addition to the passport application form.

• Candidates must submit proof of Canadian citizenship. It can be a citizenship certificate or a birth certificate.
• Candidates must submit a legitimate Canadian passport or any other travel document issued by the government.
• Candidates must submit identity proof to support their identity. It can be a photocopy of your ID card.
• Candidates must submit two passport-size photos. Ensure to write the name, address, and the date on which the photos were captured on the back of the images.
• Candidates must include two references in their application who must be familiar with you for at least two years. Note that the references can not be a family member.

Note that all the demanded documents must be in English or French language. You must provide an official translation in case your documents are in another language.

Canada’s passport rank in global passport ranking.

In the most recent Global Passport Ranking report by a global immigration consultancy, Canada secured eighth place. The other countries that were also ranked eighth position are Greece, Malta, Australia, and the Czech Republic.

Typically passports are ranked on the basis of the total number of countries a Citizen can travel to without any visa.

As per the report, Canadian citizens with a Canadian passport can enter 185 countries without a visa.

Japan topped the first position in the global passport ranking, having the ability to enter 193 countries, and the second position was grabbed by Singapore and South Korea, with 192 countries. Afghanistan ranked the lowest in passport ranking and can only enter 27 countries.