OBIBINI

Fellows,
My first visit to Australia was in 18th Jan.2007 and returned on the 15th Feb.2007 on a visitor's visa.I returned to Australia the 16th Jan 2008 on 457 visa.Applied for PR and need to be outside Australia for visa to be granted so i left Aus to Ghana on the 28th May2009-16th August 2009 .PR was granted on the 28th July 2009 and i arrived on the 16th August2009 on my PR .Can someone advise the earliest possible time i can apply for my CITIZENSHIP.Looking forward to hear from you please.

dhama

Hi Dude
Off all You have not completed 1 year as PR if you want to come under 2007 citizenship rule. ( Which you need to stay in australia just 2 years before applying citizenship) But they need to apply before 2010 july 1st where as you will not completing 1 year PR befroe this july so you will be able to apply for Citizenship by 2012 jan . You have missed the mile stone just by 45 days. Hope this help

Dhama

moneypenny20

Use this to work it out. However visitor visas have no relevance to your time spent here.

>40

DIAC's residence calculator that Moneypenny linked to is a good place to start, as is www.citizenship.gov.au for all the relevant rules.

Based on the current legislation, the calculator takes into account all time lawfully spent in Australia - also periods on visitor visas - in order to decide which periods to count and which not to count. Depending on all the actual dates, the calculator will tell you the earliest date to apply.

In your case, that date may very well be 16 Jan 2012 as indicated by Dhama. However, it might possibly be earlier, depending on your specific periods in Australia on your visitor visas (which you did not mention in your original post, at least not so that I understood for sure).

Finally, you did *not* miss the transitional residence rule 'just by 45 days', but by over 2 years. The transitional rule applies to people becoming PR before 1 July 2007, and you became PR on 16 Aug 2009.

Good luck with your future application!