Citizenship

colman1212

So I'm eligible to become a citizen, currently a permanent resident.
How do I actually go about doing it? Whats the quickest way?

ambasite

I posted off application form end of January this year, 1300_T form I think. Got reply this week about citizenship test date, will be on mid April.

CabanSail

The traditional way is to get some cash and go out for the night. Wake up in a police cell with no memory and wrapped in only a national flag hugging a traffic cone with one shaved eyebrow. The cops will be so impressed they will get you a passport almost immediately.


Or ..... there is the boring official method

d.pop

colman1212 wrote: »

So I'm eligible to become a citizen, currently a permanent resident.
How do I actually go about doing it? Whats the quickest way?

Oversimplified but here:

Get all paperwork together first.
Go to diac website, load everything up.
Pay fee.
Wait for interview date.
Go to interview with all paperwork.
Do test at interview.
Pass test.
Wait for email from "minister" saying you have been accepted.
Wait for date of ceremony.
Go to ceremony, swear oath, get cert.
You are now a citizen.
Apply for Aussie passport.

Start to finish took us about 3-4 months.

You may then start to feel the urge to buy a ute and/or a Harley...😠Don't panic, It's ok, it's part of the process....

catbear

CabanSail wrote: »

The traditional way is to get some cash and go out for the night. Wake up in a police cell with no memory and wrapped in only a national flag hugging a traffic cone with one shaved eyebrow. The cops will be so impressed they will get you a passport almost immediately.
[/URL]

And tattoo's, got to get southern cross tattoo's.

darcy07

Three questions

1: When can i apply?

I was on a whv then was sponsored then got pr a few months ago is the 4 years inclusive of all visas with a minimum of 1 year pr

taken from website:
the residence requirement is based on the time you have lived in Australia and the time you have spent outside Australia.
You must:
have been living in Australia on a valid Australian visa for four years immediately before applying which must include the last 12 months as a permanent resident, and
not have been absent from Australia for more than one year in total, in the 4 year period, including no more than 90 days in the year before applying.

2: How much does it cost ?

3: What are the main benefits ? (travel freely etc)

mandrake04

darcy07 wrote: »

Three questions

1: When can i apply?

I was on a whv then was sponsored then got pr a few months ago is the 4 years inclusive of all visas with a minimum of 1 year pr

taken from website:
the residence requirement is based on the time you have lived in Australia and the time you have spent outside Australia.
You must:
have been living in Australia on a valid Australian visa for four years immediately before applying which must include the last 12 months as a permanent resident, and
not have been absent from Australia for more than one year in total, in the 4 year period, including no more than 90 days in the year before applying.

2: How much does it cost ?

3: What are the main benefits ? (travel freely etc)

4 years is from when you put your foot on Australian soil (and stayed legal), any of the 400 series visas will count towards the 4 years and as long you meet the residential and 12 months PR criteria it's all good.

It's about $280.

Benefits are you don't have to renew visas every 5 years

res ipsa

catbear wrote: »

And tattoo's, got to get southern cross tattoo's.

Yeeh maaate geet soome tatoòooos maaate!

niva*sis

d.pop wrote: »

Oversimplified but here:

Get all paperwork together first.
Go to diac website, load everything up.
Pay fee.
Wait for interview date.
Go to interview with all paperwork.
Do test at interview.
Pass test.
Wait for email from "minister" saying you have been accepted.
Wait for date of ceremony.
Go to ceremony, swear oath, get cert.
You are now a citizen.
Apply for Aussie passport.

Start to finish took us about 3-4 months.

You may then start to feel the urge to buy a ute and/or a Harley...😠Don't panic, It's ok, it's part of the process....

Hi d.pop,
can you please tell me, do your documents that you attach need to be certified or can you upload and then you carry those documents with you to the interview? I thought they might all need to be certified but my colleague at work said not all of his were certified and that they are more or less certifiying them on the day when you bring them with you.

Mellor

niva*sis wrote: »

Hi d.pop,
can you please tell me, do your documents that you attach need to be certified or can you upload and then you carry those documents with you to the interview? I thought they might all need to be certified but my colleague at work said not all of his were certified and that they are more or less certifiying them on the day when you bring them with you.

You don't need to get them certified. It's passport, birth cert, etc. Just scan or photo the original. You need to bring the originals to the interview regardless.

It's not even really possible upload a certified copy anyway. Even if some bodies insist on "certified" uploads. It's an impossible request. If you scan a "certified copy" the scanned file isn't certified (for obvious reasons).


You also have to fill out an identity declaration. Which requires a witness to sign. There's a few conditions on who can witness, somebody that knows you from a prescribed list of professions (don't worry its quite extensive)

d.pop

Mellor wrote: »

You don't need to get them certified. It's passport, birth cert, etc. Just scan or photo the original. You need to bring the originals to the interview regardless.

It's not even really possible upload a certified copy anyway. Even if some bodies insist on "certified" uploads. It's an impossible request. If you scan a "certified copy" the scanned file isn't certified (for obvious reasons).


You also have to fill out an identity declaration. Which requires a witness to sign. There's a few conditions on who can witness, somebody that knows you from a prescribed list of professions (don't worry its quite extensive)

+1, as above from mellor,
Also pay close attention to the police declaration, despite me being almost 100% sure i didn't need one, i had got one anyway while on holidays at home and they insisted on me producing it at interview, no point arguing and it would have delayed process by weeks, try to get one now even if you think you don't need one.....

Mellor

d.pop wrote: »

+1, as above from mellor,
Also pay close attention to the police declaration, despite me being almost 100% sure i didn't need one, i had got one anyway while on holidays at home and they insisted on me producing it at interview, no point arguing and it would have delayed process by weeks, try to get one now even if you think you don't need one.....

How long where you at home for?

I needed a set of police checks for residency, but was never asked for another at citizenship (18months later)

mandrake04

I wasn't asked for Police Certs for citizenship, I know you have to produce it if you have lived overseas more than 12 months since PR.

d.pop

Mellor wrote: »

How long where you at home for?

I needed a set of police checks for residency, but was never asked for another at citizenship (18months later)

2 weeks...go figure..!
I def didn't need it according to the website etc but guy at interview wanted it, to be fair now i think about it I think he may have asked for it because I had the copy in the file of stuff and he thought it might speed up the good character section check for diac.
I got one when I was home on holidays just in case I needed it.

d.pop

d.pop wrote: »

2 weeks...go figure..!
I def didn't need it according to the website etc but guy at interview wanted it, to be fair now i think about it I think he may have asked for it because I had the copy in the file of stuff and he thought it might speed up the good character section check for diac.
I got one when I was home on holidays just in case I needed it.

Maybe the one I had done for my residency 4 years earlier was not recent enough....?

colman1212

Finally got around to doing this. Moved to Melbourne a few months ago and hence don't know an Australian in Melbourne in the list of named jobs for one or more years. I do in Brisbane but not here, does this mean I have to fly to Brisbane to get the thing certified?

The completed identity declaration and endorsed photograph must be signed by a person who:
• is an Australian citizen, and
• has known you for at least one year, and
• is currently working in a profession or occupation listed on pages 1 and 2, and
• is not related to you by birth, marriage or de facto relationship, and
• is easy to contact by telephone during normal working hours.

fermmark

colman1212 wrote: »

Finally got around to doing this. Moved to Melbourne a few months ago and hence don't know an Australian in Melbourne in the list of named jobs for one or more years. I do in Brisbane but not here, does this mean I have to fly to Brisbane to get the thing certified?

The completed identity declaration and endorsed photograph must be signed by a person who:
• is an Australian citizen, and
• has known you for at least one year, and
• is currently working in a profession or occupation listed on pages 1 and 2, and
• is not related to you by birth, marriage or de facto relationship, and
• is easy to contact by telephone during normal working hours.

Easiest way is to post the form and photograph to whoever you know in Brisbane that can certify the documents for you and get them to send back to you when done.