brisnick

ah, maybe i'll just stop being lazy and walk next door to the DIMIA office and arrange an appointment.

one thing, can you arrange the appointment BEFORE you are eligible, as long as the actual appointent is AFTER you are.

just want to get my citizenship before they want me to get another year!!

banjo

yes you can make an appointment about two months in advance I think. When I rang a few weeks back they were taking appointments up to mid November. You live next door to the DIMIA office?! Very handy. 2 hrs drive to ours.

jasonK944

This legislation should is so controversial (not talking about teh 3 year ciizenship bit) that iif introduce in the British Parliament it would take years to pass as a result of debate and amendment etc i.e back and forward between commons and lords. However, this is Auz and my great fear is that an executive decision is made by John Howard and all of a sudden its passed.

Gingers crossed there are some dissenters in Aus!

NewOZ

I checked the Parliament Site and I found 98 Bills has been assent the average time from Entering the House till being assent is 3 Months and 19 days

threlly

this may be a silly ?, but do the changes also mean u cant sponser family until u have been in oz for 3 years?
cheers

Trevglas

Looks like I will need a decent lawyer/migration agent soon.

I should have qualified for citizenship in June, but seeing as I work for an overseas company, and have spent a fair bit of time outside Australia (on business), my qualification date is now currently February next year.

I do however pay tax here in Australia

Situation is my company is making noises about me moving over to Singapore for a couple of years, and whilst they are happy to put things off whilst I resolve this particular issue, an extra 1 year wait will not wash with them. Also a change in residency requirements will push me deep into RRV territory when I am likely to want to come back.

This is not a "grab citizenship then clear off back to the UK" case, my wife is Australian, we are buying a house here, I fully intend to come back once my o/seas stint is finished (hopefully with a pot of dosh saved thanks to the top rate 18% tax in Singapore).

This is all the more annoying due to the time I was here on a provisional visa counts for nothing.

suzysu

Does anyone know what will happen with the spouse visas? I'm still on a temp de facto at the moment, so does that mean i still have to have a pr visa for 3 years before becoming a citizen?

JAJ

The Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 took about six months to clear Parliament.

Laws can't be changed by "executive decision". Extension of the residence period will require legislation.

However policies can be, so the increased security checking for citizenship applicants will take effect more or less immediately.


Jeremy

JAJ

If you're living in Australia and paying taxes in Australia, and are just travelling a lot on business (for an Australian employer), then if you have been a PR for 2+ years then maybe think about applying for citizenship now anyway. You'll probably need some professional assistance from an agent or lawyer familiar with citizenship. You could try Peter Bollard in Sydney.

That may change once the new legislation is passed.


Jeremy

JAJ

Why should it?




Jeremy

JAJ

They say they will implement the reforms proposed by former Minister Hardgrave in 2004, so it's possible that part of the time on a temporary spouse visa will count towards the new 3 year requirement.

But realistically, until they publish some draft legislation, no-one knows.


Jeremy

jjonboy

What about time spent on a 457 prior to PR? can anyone offer any commentary on whether any consideration will be given to that??

jjonboy

What does applicant was involved in activities beneficial to Australia during that period" mean in real terms one wonders???????? IS this just having a job in the profession you held a temp visa for or something which would enable you to go for nobel prize????

Trevglas

[QUOTE=jjonboy] I rang DIMIA re this point a couple of months back, and their definition of activities beneficial to Australia involved representing Australia in a sporting event or working for the Australian govt!

JAJ

[QUOTE=Trevglas] I think you were actually told about "Significant hardship or disadvantage" which is one of the *current* reasons for giving a concession on the 2 year residence requirement. Form 1027i explains this further.

If you want precise information then 'ringing DIMIA' is usually not the best option.

There should be more flexibility in crediting time on a 457/SIR towards the residence requirement once the legislation is passed. However we won't know until we see it. If you're affected by this you have to be patient for now.

Jeremy