The Senate and the House of Commons

Canada's Parliament has two chambers, and the citizenship test often asks which is which. The simplest way to keep them apart is to remember how each member gets there. This follows Discover Canada's chapters on how Canadians govern themselves and federal elections, checked on 23 September 2026.

Two chambers, and the Sovereign

Parliament has three parts: the Sovereign, the Senate and the House of Commons. The Senate and the House of Commons are the two chambers where bills are debated.

The House of Commons: elected

The House of Commons is the representative chamber. Its members are members of Parliament, or MPs, elected by the people.

• Federal elections are held on the third Monday in October every four years after the most recent general election, although the Prime Minister may ask the Governor General to call an earlier one.
• Canada is divided into electoral districts, also called ridings or constituencies. Each elects one MP, who represents the people there and all Canadians.
• Discover Canada gives the number of electoral districts as 308. That figure is redrawn after each census, so the current count is higher. Elections Canada publishes it.

The government must keep the confidence of the House of Commons. If a majority of MPs votes against a major government decision, such as the budget, the government is defeated, which usually leads to an election.

The Senate: appointed

Senators are appointed, not elected. The Governor General appoints them on the advice of the Prime Minister, and they serve until age 75.

How they work together

Both chambers consider and review bills. A bill goes through first, second and third readings, a committee stage and a report stage in one chamber, then follows a similar process in the other. No bill becomes law until both chambers have passed it and it has received royal assent from the Governor General on behalf of the Sovereign.

The quick comparison

	House of Commons	Senate
Members	members of Parliament (MPs)	senators
How they get there	elected by the people	appointed by the Governor General on the Prime Minister's advice
How long	until the next election	until age 75
Confidence	the government must keep its confidence	no confidence role

For the test

The distinction the test turns on is elected versus appointed, and the age 75 for senators. Our study notes on how Canadians govern themselves and the practice questions cover it, along with the rest of the chapter.