lljj Posted June 16, 2014 Share Posted June 16, 2014 I lodged my citizenship application online at the end of May and was informed to take the test today. I called the immi office a few days ago to check if everything is alright, and mentioned that I may want to go abroad for some postdoc experience (this is somewhat required before getting a university position). The girl who answered my call suggested that I can actually explain this to my case officer and see whether it is possible to speed up my application. So I did what she suggested today, and .... My case officer got very angry and thought I do not intend to stay in Australia. She almost rejected my application on the spot. At last, she reluctantly took my case... I am very very worried at the moment: - will my case be rejected? - will my case officer seriously delay my application process? I feel I did the stupidest thing in my life today... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dxboz Posted June 16, 2014 Share Posted June 16, 2014 No reason why it should be rejected or delayed and no reason at all for the immigration officer to have gotten angry - not her job to get angry. Don't want to be rude but is English your first language? Perhaps she misunderstood what you were saying at first? I do not think you did anything stupid - don't worry about it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lljj Posted June 16, 2014 Author Share Posted June 16, 2014 Hi dxboz: Thanks for your reply! As you probably figured out from my post, English is not my first language. It is highly possible that I did not explain thing clear.... What should I do? Should I just wait and see, or I should call immi and ask about it? Thank you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quinkla Posted June 16, 2014 Share Posted June 16, 2014 I would just wait it out. If your application were going to be rejected, you would have been told or been asked to provide further information. TBH, citizenship is pretty automatic - you tick the eligibility criteria and you have passed the easiest exam you'll ever take. There's not much an angry CO can do about it. Now it is just a question of waiting 2 or 3 weeks for the letter and waiting for the ceremony invitation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lljj Posted June 16, 2014 Author Share Posted June 16, 2014 I would just wait it out. If your application were going to be rejected, you would have been told or been asked to provide further information. TBH, citizenship is pretty automatic - you tick the eligibility criteria and you have passed the easiest exam you'll ever take. There's not much an angry CO can do about it. Now it is just a question of waiting 2 or 3 weeks for the letter and waiting for the ceremony invitation. Thanks for the explanation. Cross fingers... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dxboz Posted June 16, 2014 Share Posted June 16, 2014 You qualify for Australian citizenship therefore you will not have a problem. Some people do get a bit uptight though that people apply for it just to have a second passport for insurance (in case something happens in their home country) and do not intend to ever live in Australia. That was probably the immigration officer's response when she misunderstood you initially Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lljj Posted June 16, 2014 Author Share Posted June 16, 2014 You qualify for Australian citizenship therefore you will not have a problem. Some people do get a bit uptight though that people apply for it just to have a second passport for insurance (in case something happens in their home country) and do not intend to ever live in Australia. That was probably the immigration officer's response when she misunderstood you initially Hummm, this is possible. I actually have to give up my birth citizenship in order to get Australian citizenship. Therefore, after I get Australian citizenship, it will be the only citizenship I have. I am wondering that whether it will help if I contact immi and see if I can get in touch with my case officer and explain this to her. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dxboz Posted June 16, 2014 Share Posted June 16, 2014 No, do not contact immi - there is no point - your citizenship will be ok - you automatically qualify for it - it is not up to a case officer to decide whether you qualify - so just wait for your date now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lljj Posted June 16, 2014 Author Share Posted June 16, 2014 No, do not contact immi - there is no point - your citizenship will be ok - you automatically qualify for it - it is not up to a case officer to decide whether you qualify - so just wait for your date now. Ok. I am just worried about the delay, which will affect my first job directly. I guess I will wait for 1~2 weeks to see if there is any update from the "Online Application Status" Thank you very much for making things clear and suggestions! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted June 16, 2014 Share Posted June 16, 2014 Lljj, I am sorry but I disagree with the optimism of other posters, you do not automatically qualify for citizenship, there are a number of eligibility criteria one of which is: 'be likely to reside, or to continue to reside, in Australia or to maintain a close and continuing association with Australia.' If the case officer thinks someone plans to leave Australia after being granted citizenship it may not be granted. I do not think though there is anything you can do at this point - you would risk making things worse. It is a short wait after your citizenship interview until you get the outcome, I hope it is a positive outcome for you but if not you may have to enter an appeals process and I suggest if that happens you get assistance from a migration lawyer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quinkla Posted June 16, 2014 Share Posted June 16, 2014 @ Lady Rainicorn - yes, I agree that you are correct about the eligibility requirements but the fact that the CO agreed to process the application indicates (to me, at least) that she has been satisfied that this was not an issue. I think the OP is correct that the telephone call to Immi was not a good idea but the question now is what to do. My money would be on waiting to see what happens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lljj Posted June 16, 2014 Author Share Posted June 16, 2014 Lljj, I am sorry but I disagree with the optimism of other posters, you do not automatically qualify for citizenship, there are a number of eligibility criteria one of which is: 'be likely to reside, or to continue to reside, in Australia or to maintain a close and continuing association with Australia.' If the case officer thinks someone plans to leave Australia after being granted citizenship it may not be granted. I do not think though there is anything you can do at this point - you would risk making things worse. It is a short wait after your citizenship interview until you get the outcome, I hope it is a positive outcome for you but if not you may have to enter an appeals process and I suggest if that happens you get assistance from a migration lawyer. Lady Rainicorn, thanks for your reply. This is exactly what I am worried about. I am aware of this criteria. I guess no matter what, the only thing I can do is just wait now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lljj Posted June 16, 2014 Author Share Posted June 16, 2014 @ Lady Rainicorn - yes, I agree that you are correct about the eligibility requirements but the fact that the CO agreed to process the application indicates (to me, at least) that she has been satisfied that this was not an issue. I think the OP is correct that the telephone call to Immi was not a good idea but the question now is what to do. My money would be on waiting to see what happens. @Quinkla I can only hope for the best, and prepare for the worst now. The next a couple of weeks will be tough for me... This is definitely a big lesson I learned the the hard way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted June 16, 2014 Share Posted June 16, 2014 @ Lady Rainicorn - yes, I agree that you are correct about the eligibility requirements but the fact that the CO agreed to process the application indicates (to me, at least) that she has been satisfied that this was not an issue. I think the OP is correct that the telephone call to Immi was not a good idea but the question now is what to do. My money would be on waiting to see what happens. I agreed with now just waiting - the CO would need to process the application whether it's approved or declined but any speculation on my part isn't going to help lljj's nerves. I have no idea at all how they assess this criteria. I did debate whether to post at all but if people weren't aware of this requirement others may do the same. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quinkla Posted June 16, 2014 Share Posted June 16, 2014 Just out of interest, is there anything to prevent an immediate re-application if the first one is rejected? The OP could just say he/she had dropped plans for travel and there would not be anything Immi could say to prove otherwise... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lljj Posted June 17, 2014 Author Share Posted June 17, 2014 I agreed with now just waiting - the CO would need to process the application whether it's approved or declined but any speculation on my part isn't going to help lljj's nerves. I have no idea at all how they assess this criteria. I did debate whether to post at all but if people weren't aware of this requirement others may do the same. I have mixed feeling about this. It feels that there is a lot of subjectivity involved. I only mentioned my thought because it was suggested by people from Immi. I guess I shouldn't have made that call in the first place. (I even did not know that the process can be sped up before I called the Immi). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lljj Posted June 17, 2014 Author Share Posted June 17, 2014 Just out of interest, is there anything to prevent an immediate re-application if the first one is rejected? The OP could just say he/she had dropped plans for travel and there would not be anything Immi could say to prove otherwise... I really hope I won't end up in this position... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blossom Posted June 17, 2014 Share Posted June 17, 2014 I really think you are worrying for nothing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lljj Posted June 17, 2014 Author Share Posted June 17, 2014 I really think you are worrying for nothing. :wink: This is probably the most comforting words I heard today! Thank you blossom79! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blossom Posted June 17, 2014 Share Posted June 17, 2014 It is a very stressful process, and easy to worry, but you'll be fine. :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yc1ten Posted June 17, 2014 Share Posted June 17, 2014 Hummm, this is possible. I actually have to give up my birth citizenship in order to get Australian citizenship. Therefore, after I get Australian citizenship, it will be the only citizenship I have. I am wondering that whether it will help if I contact immi and see if I can get in touch with my case officer and explain this to her. Australia will never ask you to give up your birth certificate in order to get an Australian Citizenship. I think you shouldn't have asked your CO to speed up the process. However once your application has been approved you then can ask for the urgent ceremony. To be granted for an urgent ceremony you have to prove that your will not be able to travel using your current passport, census date for your HECS is closing in, etc, etc Are you able to travel overseas using your current passport, anything will prevent you from using it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted June 17, 2014 Share Posted June 17, 2014 Australia will never ask you to give up your birth certificate in order to get an Australian Citizenship. I think you shouldn't have asked your CO to speed up the process. However once your application has been approved you then can ask for the urgent ceremony. To be granted for an urgent ceremony you have to prove that your will not be able to travel using your current passport, census date for your HECS is closing in, etc, etc Are you able to travel overseas using your current passport, anything will prevent you from using it? Not sure if that was a typo but the OP said birth citizenship not certificate. Australia allows you to have dual nationality but other countries don't - Germany & India are two I know of so if you wish to have Australian citizenship you must give up your birth citizenship. You can travel on an overseas passport whilst waiting for your citizenship ceremony but you must be in the country for the ceremony so it may not be practical/affordable for the OP to leave and then return for the ceremony. Once you have had your ceremony you cannot travel out of Australia without an Australian passport. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lljj Posted June 17, 2014 Author Share Posted June 17, 2014 Australia will never ask you to give up your birth certificate in order to get an Australian Citizenship. I think you shouldn't have asked your CO to speed up the process. However once your application has been approved you then can ask for the urgent ceremony. To be granted for an urgent ceremony you have to prove that your will not be able to travel using your current passport, census date for your HECS is closing in, etc, etc Are you able to travel overseas using your current passport, anything will prevent you from using it? I agree with you. I shouldn't have asked my CO to speed up the process (the process is usually very fast anyway, it is a shame that I did know that before attending the citizenship test). Now, as I recall, that was what was suggested by the Immi when I called them. It is my bad to misinterpret that. I am able to travel to overseas using my current passport. However, I am planning not to do so before my Australian citizenship is finalised. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lljj Posted June 17, 2014 Author Share Posted June 17, 2014 Not sure if that was a typo but the OP said birth citizenship not certificate. Australia allows you to have dual nationality but other countries don't - Germany & India are two I know of so if you wish to have Australian citizenship you must give up your birth citizenship. You can travel on an overseas passport whilst waiting for your citizenship ceremony but you must be in the country for the ceremony so it may not be practical/affordable for the OP to leave and then return for the ceremony. Once you have had your ceremony you cannot travel out of Australia without an Australian passport. You are right. My birth country does not allow dual citizenship. That why I will loose my birth citizenship. I was planning to visit my family for a few weeks before my ceremony. But now, I think it is probably better to do that after I got my Australian passport. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quinkla Posted June 17, 2014 Share Posted June 17, 2014 You made a mistake in contacting the CO - please don't compound it by keeping on going back with more. Whether or not you have to give up your birth citizenship is a matter between you and your birth country. If you don't tell them you have become Australian, how would they find out? But however it pans out, it is nothing to do with Australia. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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