VIC-WAIT-GAME (NO WAY HOME)

Finally received the ceremony invitation today. Out of all the stages, the approval was nerve-testing as it took 21 days after the test and waiting for the ceremony was the real wait-game. After the approval it was becoming quite painful and frustrating as no one from the department or the council helped. From application to ceremony, exactly 18 months. All the best to all those who are waiting. Sit tight, do not lose hope, your day is not too far. And this marks the END OF VIC-WAIT-GAME... I am going home

This is a very useful information. Thanks for sharing.

Thanks Microstarba. I will keep you posted. And thanks for the passport update. Our queue outside the test centre was nothing compared to yours outside the passport office. You did the right thing to have turned up early. Wait time will be the real test on the day (specially outside). Lets hope that the passport office manages to hire more staff. Congratulations once again!

Congratulations champ. Spending 4 hours at the passport office must have been a nightmare, one can only imagine. I am happy that you finally got the passport.

City of Whittlesea organised one ceremony in May and one in June 2022. According to the old update, City of Whittlesea council had scheduled only 1 ceremony for the month of July 2022 and that was on the 12th. Based on the updated schedule, they will be conducting 3 ceremonies in July, and 1 each month till January 2023 afterwards. The pressure is on the councils now to conduct more ceremonies to accommodate as many people as possible to clear the backlog. More frequent ceremonies and accommodating larger population would help the department to come back on track. Current wait times are simply ridiculous.

wow, amazing... congratulations. Sydneysiders are lucky to have their applications processed within a year.

I couldn't agree more. More should be done to clear the backlog. But were they doing ceremonies every week in normal times? I am sorry but what I meant was post-covid time, when I said they are working to their full capacity (that too in my best knowledge) because I have seen things get speed up a little, lately. Whittlesea (my council) is even worse, doing 1 ceremony a month. Hume city council's schedule I shared was for someone who has been inquiring frequently as they wait for the ceremony. He was not getting a response so I thought I can share some information.

If its Hume City Council, according to the information available on Immi tracker, someone who applied in March 2020, took the test in March 2021 and got approved in April 2021. They attended online ceremony in October 2021 (6 months after the approval) - 19 months from submission to ceremony. backlog backlog and lots of backlog - no idea when things will go back to real-normal. To the best of my knowledge, the department and all the councils are working to their full capacity. As far as I know you should hear about the ceremony at least 1 month in advance. Find attached the upcoming ceremonies in this area (you might already have this information) - don't know if the above information applies to you but things have geared up since then:

How long have you been waiting for the ceremony after the approval?

hey @microstarba, good to hear from you. I thought you must have received the passport by now. wow, 7 weeks... I saw news on 7news today, long queues outside passport office in Melbourne, more than 100m long. This is insane. It just tells how desperately people are trying to get hold of a passport. It is going to be very difficult to get a passport I guess. Previously the pressure was on the department to process the citizenship applications, then on the councils to organise the ceremonies and now the passport office is under pressure. I am still waiting for the ceremony. Hopefully I will hear something soon. But these queues outside the passport office have really got me wondering what will happen as we head towards the end of year. This is only June and the passport office is this busy. I believe the backlog will only get worse as new citizens continue to apply for the passport.

Thanks for your response. I saw that today. Someone waiting for over 10 weeks for the passport in QLD. It is going to be a busy/messy/crazy end of year.

Could someone please suggest if online passport application is better or paper application? Which one is less time consuming? And how long is it taking to get the new passport these days? (Passport office says allow up to 6 weeks) Thanks

Congratulations

You might already have following information (attached) but still sharing from melton council's website. After approval it can take up to 6 months for ceremony but things have picked up pace recently. So you should hear something soon. You can check with council if you like but I am not sure if they will have an answer for you. It depends on who answers the phone and whether they are willing to help with your enquiry. You can probably ask a general question that which month (approved applications) they are covering currently. That way you will have a better idea. I could only find 3 approved applications on immi tracker awaiting ceremonies. 2 applied in Jan 2021 and 1 is from october 2020.

victorians received invites in april-end for tests in may. most of the invites were for the ones who had applied in march 2021. hope this helps.