Topic
Rights and responsibilities
What citizens are entitled to, and what is expected of them.
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All 32 questions, with answers
Open a question to see its answer, why, and the official page it comes from.
1.
What are three responsibilities of citizenship?
- ABeing loyal to Canada, recycling newspapers, serving in the navy, army or air force.
- BObeying the law, taking responsibility for oneself and one’s family, serving on a jury.Answer
- CLearning both official languages, voting in elections, belonging to a union.
- DBuying Canadian products, owning your own business, using less water.
Why: The guide lists obeying the law, taking responsibility for oneself and one’s family, and serving on a jury among the responsibilities of citizenship. The other options mix in things that may be worth doing but that the guide never asks of a citizen.
2.
Which of these is one of the four fundamental freedoms protected by the Charter?
- AFreedom of peaceful assemblyAnswer
- BThe right to housing paid for by the government
- CThe right to a job in the public service
- DThe right to carry a weapon for self-defence
Why: The fundamental freedoms are conscience and religion; thought, belief, opinion and expression, including speech and the press; peaceful assembly; and association.
3.
Habeas corpus — the right to challenge unlawful detention by the state — comes from which source?
- AEnglish common lawAnswer
- BThe Official Languages Act
- CThe charter of the United Nations
- DA treaty signed with the United States
Why: The guide traces habeas corpus specifically to English common law, one of the several sources Canadian law draws on.
4.
In what year was Magna Carta signed in England?
- A1415
- B1215Answer
- C1815
- D1615
Why: Magna Carta, also known as the Great Charter of Freedoms, was signed in England in 1215 and is where Canada’s tradition of ordered liberty is traced back to.
5.
In what year was the Constitution amended to entrench the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms?
- A1867
- B1965
- C1982Answer
- D1999
Why: The Constitution of Canada was amended in 1982 to entrench the Charter.
6.
Canada has compulsory military service.
- ATrue
- BFalseAnswer
Why: There is no compulsory military service in Canada. Serving in the regular forces or the reserves is voluntary.
7.
Which of these does the guide list as a responsibility of citizenship?
- AJoining a political party
- BServing on a jury when you are calledAnswer
- COwning your own home
- DFlying the flag on Canada Day
Why: Jury duty is a legal requirement when you are called: the justice system depends on impartial juries made up of citizens.
8.
What do mobility rights give Canadians?
- AThe right to live and work anywhere in Canada, to enter and leave the country freely, and to apply for a passportAnswer
- BThe right to settle in any Commonwealth country
- CThe right to free transport between provinces
- DThe right to keep citizenship of another country
Why: Mobility rights are one of the additional rights the Charter sets out beyond the fundamental freedoms.
9.
In Canada, men and women are equal under the law.
- ATrueAnswer
- BFalse
Why: The equality of women and men is stated directly in the guide, and gender-based violence is severely punished under Canada’s criminal laws.
10.
Helping others in the community by volunteering is listed in the guide as a responsibility of citizenship.
- ATrueAnswer
- BFalse
Why: The guide lists helping others in the community among the responsibilities, noting that millions of volunteers donate their time without pay.
11.
Besides the regular Canadian Forces, which way of serving does the guide mention?
- AThe Coast Guard, or community emergency services such as a police force or fire departmentAnswer
- BCompulsory national service at the age of eighteen
- CTwo years of service in a federal government department
- DService in the armed forces of a Commonwealth country
Why: The guide names the Coast Guard and community emergency services, as well as the part-time naval, militia and air reserves.
12.
The Charter of Rights and Freedoms begins by stating that Canada is founded upon principles that recognize what?
- APeace, order and good government
- BThe supremacy of God and the rule of lawAnswer
- CLiberty, equality and fraternity
- DThe sovereignty of Parliament
Why: Those are the Charter’s opening words. “Peace, Order, and Good Government” is a key phrase too, but it comes from the British North America Act of 1867, not the Charter.
13.
The freedom of thought, belief, opinion and expression protected by the Charter includes freedom of the press.
- ATrueAnswer
- BFalse
Why: The guide states this freedom as including freedom of speech and of the press.
14.
Which right does the Charter describe as a fundamental characteristic of Canadian heritage and identity?
- AMulticulturalismAnswer
- BFree health care
- CPublic ownership of natural resources
- DCompulsory voting
Why: The Charter names multiculturalism as a fundamental characteristic of the Canadian heritage and identity, alongside mobility, Aboriginal and language rights.
15.
How old is the tradition of ordered liberty that Canadian rights rest on?
- AAbout 200 years old
- BAbout 400 years old
- CAbout 800 years oldAnswer
- DAbout 50 years old
Why: It dates back to the signing of Magna Carta in England in 1215.
16.
How does the Charter treat the treaty rights of Aboriginal peoples?
- AThe Charter replaces all existing treaties
- BThe rights guaranteed in the Charter will not adversely affect any treaty or other rights of Aboriginal peoplesAnswer
- CTreaty rights apply only on reserve land
- DThe Charter does not mention Aboriginal peoples
Why: Aboriginal and treaty rights are in the Canadian Constitution.
17.
What do the official language rights in the Charter mean?
- AEvery Canadian must learn both official languages
- BEvery federal employee must be bilingual
- CFrench and English have equal status in Parliament and throughout the governmentAnswer
- DOnly English may be used in Parliament
Why: The Charter sets this out alongside minority language educational rights. Learning both official languages is not a requirement of citizenship — IRCC’s own sample question lists it among things that are not responsibilities.
18.
What are examples of taking responsibility for yourself and your family?
- AGetting a job, caring for your family, and working hard in keeping with your abilitiesAnswer
- BBuying Canadian products
- CBelonging to a union
- DOwning your own business
Why: Work contributes to personal dignity and self-respect, and to Canada’s prosperity.
19.
The responsibility to vote covers which elections?
- AFederal elections only
- BFederal and provincial elections only
- COnly elections held every four years
- DFederal, provincial or territorial, and local electionsAnswer
Why: The right to vote comes with the responsibility to use it at every level of government.
20.
What does the responsibility to protect our heritage and environment involve?
- ARecycling newspapers
- BAvoiding waste and pollution, and protecting Canada’s natural, cultural and architectural heritage for future generationsAnswer
- CIt applies only to people who own property
- DOnly the federal government is responsible for this
Why: Every citizen has a role to play. Recycling newspapers sounds close, but IRCC’s own sample question lists it among the things that are not responsibilities of citizenship.
21.
What does the guide say volunteering gives the volunteer?
- AIt is paid work
- BIt counts toward the residence requirement for citizenship
- CAn excellent way to gain useful skills and develop friends and contactsAnswer
- DIt is required before applying for citizenship
Why: Millions of volunteers freely donate their time to help others without pay.
22.
Which services make up the regular Canadian Forces?
- AThe navy, the army and the air forceAnswer
- BThe navy, the air force and the Coast Guard
- CThe army, the air force and the police
- DThe army, the militia and the cadets
Why: The Coast Guard is named separately as another way to serve, alongside community emergency services. There are also part-time naval, militia and air reserves.
23.
According to the guide, how can young people learn discipline, responsibility and skills?
- AThrough a compulsory year of national service
- BBy getting involved in the cadetsAnswer
- CThrough mandatory volunteering before citizenship
- DThrough a required secondary school course
Why: There is no compulsory military service in Canada, and nothing here is mandatory.
24.
How does Canada treat practices such as “honour killings”, female genital mutilation and forced marriage?
- AThey are tolerated as cultural practices
- BThey are left for each community to settle
- CThey are permitted if both families agree
- DThose guilty of these crimes are severely punished under Canada’s criminal lawsAnswer
Why: Men and women are equal under the law in Canada, and the guide states plainly that the country’s openness does not extend to barbaric cultural practices.
25.
When did the term “First Nations” begin to be used?
- AIn the 1860s
- BIn the 1970sAnswer
- CIn the 1990s
- DIn 2008
Why: “Indian” refers to all Aboriginal people who are not Inuit or Métis. Today about half of First Nations people live on reserve land in about 600 communities, and the other half live off-reserve, mainly in urban centres.
26.
Roughly what share of Aboriginal people are First Nations, Métis and Inuit?
- AAbout 65% First Nations, 30% Métis and 4% InuitAnswer
- BAbout 50% First Nations, 40% Métis and 10% Inuit
- CAbout 80% First Nations, 15% Métis and 5% Inuit
- DAbout one third each
Why: The term Aboriginal peoples refers to these three distinct groups.
27.
Gay and lesbian Canadians enjoy the full protection of and equal treatment under the law, including access to civil marriage.
- ATrueAnswer
- BFalse
Why: The guide names this as part of Canada’s diversity.
28.
Experiences of warfare or conflict in the country someone came from justify bringing violent, extreme or hateful prejudices to Canada.
- ATrue
- BFalseAnswer
Why: The guide says such experiences do not justify it. In becoming Canadian, newcomers are expected to embrace democratic principles such as the rule of law.
29.
Where are the ancestors of Aboriginal peoples believed to have migrated from, many thousands of years ago?
- AEurope
- BAsiaAnswer
- CAfrica
Why: They were well established here long before explorers from Europe first came to North America.
30.
The majority of Canadians were born in this country, and this has been true since the 1800s.
- ATrueAnswer
- BFalse
Why: Canada is still often referred to as a land of immigrants, because over the past 200 years millions of newcomers have helped to build and defend its way of life.
31.
What does the word “Inuit” mean?
- AThe peopleAnswer
- BOur land
- CThe north
- DVillage
Why: Inuit means “the people” in the Inuktitut language. The Inuit live in small, scattered communities across the Arctic.
32.
What are the two official languages of Canada?
- AEnglish and Inuktitut
- BFrench and Michif
- CEnglish and FrenchAnswer
- DEnglish only
Why: The federal government is required by law to provide services throughout Canada in English and French.