CornishPasty

I read a post on here last year about the minimum 2yrs PR before you can apply for Citizenship might be moving to 3yrs. Does anyone know if this has happened or is moving forward?

Though I moved here 2yrs ago next week, I have been out of the country alot so my 2yrs wont be until this coming September.

Cheers!

biggy

THE BILL HASNT BEEN PASSED YET...THEY WERE LOOKING AT 1ST JULY THO BUT DOUBT IT WILL GO THRO B THEN...BUT THEN AGAIN U NEVVA KNOW

Pomster

I think the 3 year rule is here but not officially.

We met the criteria in Novemeber...finally got interview in Jan, and letters saying all is well in Jan.

I called the council to find out about ceremonies only to be told there is a 6-9 month waiting list for ceremonies, so we will not be citizens til July- Oct.
Then we will have held PR for over 3 years!

beachgal

Its all very bizarre as The Australian government are advertising in magazines such as Australian OK magazine - encouraging people to take up citizenship if they have been PR for 2 years and basically selling to it them via advertising - dosen't make much sense to change rule to three years if they have to advertise to get people to do this in the first place. Also why advertise if there are waiting lists for citizenship ceremonies - seems like such a waste of money all the advertising they are doing in glossy magazines.

I will watch with interest.

BG

JAJ

The residence requirement is only assessed at the time of *application*.

A 6-9 month waiting list for a ceremony is completely out of order, you should complain to your local councillor and also to DIMA. DIMA policy is that people should wait no more than 3 months, and if a council is not organising enough ceremonies then they need to know about it (they can also let you attend a Department ceremony if you wish, although then you can't bring guests). Write to your federal MP if you cannot get through to anyone with authority in DIMA Citizenship Section.

The 3 year rule is *not* in place yet. The Citizenship Bill is before Parliament, but there are fairly few sessions before June, and it still needs to go through the Senate.

Unless DIMA is keen to get it through quickly, it's more likely to be later in the year.

Please bear in mind that many people are waiting desperately for the Bill to pass - former Australians who've lost their citizenship (and want it back), and those who missed time limits to register as citizens by descent, for example.

movetoperth

we had our interviews early December and our ceremony is on May 1st. I chased up our local council, who in turn had to chase up Canberra to get our cerificates issued. They recon that they are waiting at least 4 months for Canberra to issue the certificates then they have to arrange the ceremony.

Lynn

JAJ

Are you sure the council is not spinning you a tale? - 4 months is a long time to wait for a ceremony. DIMA's own policy normally says 3 months max.

jery_wang

Hi JAJ,

Does this regulation affect the 2 years residency period stated in Centrelink? What I means those Centrelink benefits that require 2 years residency period, do they automatically require 3 years because of this new Citizenship bill?

I have impression that the 2 years holding period stated in Centrelink (for example for New start allowance) coincide with the Citizenship requirement that the resident has to stay at least 2 years in Australia.

Thanks and Kind Regards,
Jerry

jery_wang

How about to those people who have arrived and stayed in Australia for less than 2 years. Does the regulation extend the waiting period for them to 3 years? Or it only applies to the newly arrived migrants?

Thanks.
Jerry

JAJ

Centrelink waiting periods for PRs and citizenship eligibility are two completely different things.

For example, people who have lived as PRs in Australia in the past are normally exempt the 2 year waiting period for Centrelink, but they still have to wait for citizenship.

Centrelink waiting periods are staying at 2 years, not increasing to 3.

diddy

Woo hoo.

Any idea about the University loans thing Jeremy?

Paul.

JAJ

The Bill as it stands applies to everyone except those who *apply* for citizenship before the law takes effect. A Senate committee did recommend that existing PRs be exempted, we'll need to see if DIMA accept this or not (they don't have to).

JAJ

That requires citizenship (normally), the Centrelink rules do not. Different government departments, different rules.

movetoperth

I'm inclined to believe them as most people i know who have had ceremonies in our shire have been done within a couple of months, i spoke to dimia about it too and they said it was unusual for a ceremony to be done in under 4 months and was usually around the 6 month mark :scared:

Like everything else though if you speak to people enough you will get something done about it

Lynn

JAJ

I wouldn't rely on the DIMA public enquiry line either (often depends on who answers the phone) - 6 months to wait for a ceremony is *not* typical.