GlasgowMarc Posted March 6, 2019 Share Posted March 6, 2019 Hi all - question to the forum that i'd be grateful on response from people with any experience or knowledge. I submitted my citizenship application 3 weeks ago, have been in the country 4.5 years and have never spent more than a month or so a year outside of the country. I am however about to embark on a ~6month trip outside of Australia, most likely 2 months home in UK and about 4 months in South America. When i read the citizenship application, it seemed to be worded that you had to not be outside the country for a period of over 6 months in the 2 years prior to submitting your application.I potentially read this too literally but assumed as it said only about being outside the country prior to lodging, any travel from the time you lodged on-wards, there was no limit on this? Can anyone please help on this and provide any advice? Thanks, Marc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moran From LifeinAus Posted March 6, 2019 Share Posted March 6, 2019 Hi Marc, These are the eligibility criteria for citizenship. At the time you apply you must have been: • living in Australia on a valid visa for the past 4 years • a permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen for the past 12 months • away from Australia for no more than 12 months in total in the past 4 years, including no more than 90 days in total in the past 12 months. Assuming you can tick all these criteria - you should be fine. You do need to be in Australia when submitting the citizenship application as well as when it will be decided. I would recommend you to inform the Department before you are travelling overseas while your application is being processed or while you are waiting for your ceremony. In most cases, they won’t approve your application while you are outside Australia. You can look at this link to see the processing time of a citizenship application to have an idea of how long it usually takes them to process these applications. https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/citizenship/citizenship-processing-times You must travel on your current passport and make sure you have a valid visa that allows you to return to Australia or apply for a Resident Return visa. Enjoy your trip, Moran Shultz Registered Migration Agent 1795282 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GlasgowMarc Posted March 6, 2019 Author Share Posted March 6, 2019 Thanks Moran. At the time i applied, i definitely met all of the criteria above. Just to double check, you are assuming (as long as i inform them that i am going to be abroad), that there is no stipulated time limit for being out of the country during the visa processing stages? Thanks, Marc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LouDYorkie Posted March 7, 2019 Share Posted March 7, 2019 I would recommend you to inform the Department before you are travelling overseas while your application is being processed or while you are waiting for your ceremony. In most cases, they won’t approve your application while you are outside Australia. Hi MoranHow do you inform them? I can’t see anywhere how to do this now that the application has been submitted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adssy Posted March 17, 2019 Share Posted March 17, 2019 On 06/03/2019 at 13:27, Moran From LifeinAus said: Hi Marc, These are the eligibility criteria for citizenship. At the time you apply you must have been: • living in Australia on a valid visa for the past 4 years • a permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen for the past 12 months • away from Australia for no more than 12 months in total in the past 4 years, including no more than 90 days in total in the past 12 months. Assuming you can tick all these criteria - you should be fine. You do need to be in Australia when submitting the citizenship application as well as when it will be decided. I would recommend you to inform the Department before you are travelling overseas while your application is being processed or while you are waiting for your ceremony. In most cases, they won’t approve your application while you are outside Australia. You can look at this link to see the processing time of a citizenship application to have an idea of how long it usually takes them to process these applications. https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/citizenship/citizenship-processing-times You must travel on your current passport and make sure you have a valid visa that allows you to return to Australia or apply for a Resident Return visa. Enjoy your trip, Moran Shultz Registered Migration Agent 1795282 Hi Moran , I have submitted my application for citizenship and now waiting for a reply , do I I have to stay in Australia until I get one ? . I've been told it's going to take 17_21 months Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HKane Posted August 26, 2019 Share Posted August 26, 2019 I am also in the same situation like Adssy. i specially wish to know: whether i can travel outside Australia between application lodgement and test? also does the travel impact the test date? also what is the implication in citizenship application if i travel after passing the test? can i go out of australia after citizenship approval also and come back later for the ceremony? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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