Citizenship & Immigration Law & Lawyers

Citizenship & Immigration Law & Lawyers News

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Do you, or your family or friends, need legal help regarding citizenship, visa or immigration law? If so, please complete your free legal enquiry form on the right, or click here.

Application process for Australian citizenship

TGenerally speaking, there are essentially 9 main Steps in the application process. The time it takes to apply for and be granted Australian citizenship varies. The Client Service Charter provides details on the service standard for processing an application for Australian citizenship.

Read this notice if you sat and passed the citizenship test before 9 November 2009 and now wish to lodge an application for citizenship.

Are you eligible to apply?

Do you, or your family or friends, need legal help regarding citizenship, visa or immigration law? If so, please complete your free legal enquiry form on the right, or click here.

Step 1. Determine that you are eligible

In general, to apply for citizenship you will need to:
be a migrant who is a permanent residentsatisfy the residence requirementbe likely to reside, or to continue to reside, in Australia or to maintain a close and continuing association with Australiabe of good character if you are 18 years of age or over.There are two categories of eligibility:
- General eligibility commonly used for applicants: aged 18 years and over and under 60 years of age.Form 1290 Australian citizenship
– Other situations commonly used for applicants: aged under 18 years or over 60 years of agewho suffer from a permanent loss or substantial impairment of hearing, speech or sightwho have an enduring physical or mental incapacity that means they are not capable of understanding the nature of the application.

Step 2. Ensure you meet the residence requirement

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, andnot 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.The Residence Requirement Calculator can help you calculate whether you meet this requirement.
-Under certain circumstances the residence requirement may be varied.

Do you, or your family or friends, need legal help regarding citizenship, visa or immigration law? If so, please complete your free legal enquiry form on the right, or click here.

Step 3. Gather your original documents

You must provide original documents. You will need to provide a range of documents to prove your identity, establish links between all names you have used,establish you have not had any serious criminal convictions to apply for variations to the residence requirement or fees.

Step 4. Complete your application form

Do you, or your family or friends, need legal help regarding citizenship, visa or immigration law? If so, please complete your free legal enquiry form on the right, or click here.

Step 5. Lodgement of application form

Making an application in AustraliaLodge your application form online through the website or on paper and post to your nearest departmental office. Ensure you have completed all questions in the application form .
If you lodge your citizenship application online you can attach your identity and other documents. You will need to bring your original documents with you to your citizenship appointment.
You must also bring a completed Identity declaration and correctly endorsed photographs for yourself and any children included in your application, to your appointment.
If you lodge your citizenship application on paper you must attach certified copies of original documents. Do not post original documents with your application.
Read the information about the application fee and how to pay it before lodging your application.
Making an application outside Australia
If you are overseas when lodging your application for citizenship by conferral, you should send your application along with certified copies of all required documents by post or courier directly to the Overseas Citizenship Unit at the department's Melbourne Office in Australia. Do not post original documents with your application.

You cannot lodge your application online when applying outside of Australia.

Step 6. Attend your citizenship appointment

When the department receives your application you will be invited to attend a citizenship appointment. We will send you a letter with your appointment details and further information. It is at your appointment you will take a citizenship test or have an interview, whichever applies.
At your appointment a departmental officer will confirm your eligibility for Australian citizenship, check your original documents, verify your identity and ensure that you have satisfied all the requirements.
It is very important that you attend your appointment. If you do not, your application may be refused.
You should allow approximately two hours for your citizenship appointment.

Do you, or your family or friends, need legal help regarding citizenship, visa or immigration law? If so, please complete your free legal enquiry form on the right, or click here.

Step 7. Take the citizenship test or have a citizenship interview

You are usually required to take a citizenship test if you are aged 18 years and over and under 60 years of age. The citizenship test is designed to encourage you to find out more about life in Australia and what it means to be an Australian citizen. It will test your understanding of the responsibilities of citizenship as well as the rights that you will enjoy once you become a citizen. All the questions in the test are based on the testable information in the Australian citizenship test resource book.
See more information about the Australian Citizenship Test
If you are not required to sit the test you may have a citizenship interview. At the interview we will confirm you understand the nature of your citizenship application, have a basic knowledge of the English language and understand the responsibilities and privileges of Australian citizenship.
Our decision

Step 8. Receive notification of the department's decision

A decision on your application for citizenship can only be made after you have lodged a completed application together with the required original documents and fee.
The Client Service Charter provides details on the service standard for processing an application for Australian citizenship. You must tell the department if you change your address, and you must be in the country at the time a decision is made. You may need to defer your travel plans or, if your travel is urgent contact the department for advice.
See more information about citizenship and travel

Step 9. Attend a citizenship ceremony

Do you, or your family or friends, need legal help regarding citizenship, visa or immigration law? If so, please complete your free legal enquiry form on the right, or click here.

The benefits of using immigration lawyers:

- immigration lawyers sort and select out all important and relevant information in the process of informing, discussing and advising you;

- immigration lawyers give you a detailed legal Australian immigration assessment of your case and we advise you on the probability of obtaining the correct Australian visa to suit your indicated needs based on your information; (we also  advise you on legal options for obtaining other 'alternative' Australian visa/s that will allow you to do what you want to do in Australia);

- immigration lawyers advise you on any other legal strategies or work which should first be done before lodgment of the correct application; obtain crucially important documents from third parties where necessary;

- immigration lawyers prepare for you all application papers for the agreed visa type (including all official forms and legal documents such as statutory declarations and affidavits) and we gather together all evidentiary documents needed in the application;

- immigration lawyers contact, discuss and arrange with all third parties (e.g. Accountants, psychologists, doctors, hospitals, employers, etc.) for the provision of 'expert' opinion which in our legal opinion are necessary for achieving success in your Australian application. (Usually this involves us entering into legal-technical discussions with these experts for some legal 'redesigning  of their papers to make them more relevant to the applied law. Their answers and reports will form the 'expert opinions' to be submitted along with the Australian visa application  forms and other annexures);

- immigration lawyers get you to check and then sign all papers including official Australian visa forms (after they are fully satisfied as to the quality and completion of the prepared Australian visa application papers and attachments);

- immigration lawyers lodge for you all Australian visa application papers at the correct Australian immigration office;

- immigration lawyers conduct for you all follow-up work and case management until the application decision is received from the immigration office. (This can involve us having to answer further questions or making further legal submissions to immigration officers and arranging further technical/legal discussions and meetings with them and any third parties about issues raised by the immigration officers);

- immigration lawyers advise you and prepare you in advance for your interview with the Australian immigration office; (This includes discussing with you so-called 'difficult' questions you are  likely to be asked at the interview. This will help you not to give any misleading or unclear answers which may be used against you by the Australian immigration officers.

- immigration lawyers complete for you all important post-decision work (including further advice as necessary);

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Refugee and Humanitarian - Some general information

Australia's Humanitarian Program is an important part of our contribution to the international protection of refugees.

It is designed to ensure that Australia can respond effectively to global humanitarian situations and that support services are available to meet the specific needs of these entrants.

The Humanitarian Program has two components:

Offshore – Resettlement
For people outside Australia in need of humanitarian assistance.

Onshore – Protection
For people already in Australia who are found to be refugees.

Temporary Protection Visa and Temporary Humanitarian Visa Holders
Abolition of temporary Protection visa (TPV) and temporary Humanitarian visa (THV) Holders, and information on the Resolution of Status (RoS) visa for Temporary Protection and Temporary Humanitarian visa holders in Australia.

If you need legal advice regarding Citizenship & Immigration Law, then please complete your free legal enquiry form on the right, and we will put you in touch with a Citizenship & Immigration Law lawyer nearest you, who can help you with Citizenship & Immigration Law.

Our free legal enquiry service for Citizenship & Immigration Law extends to all suburbs throughout Australia.

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