Citizenship Residence Calculator Reliable?

[Hee]

Hello people~

I need help to understand the residence calculator on DHA website. Very confused.

It says before applying for Citizenship, you must have lived in Australia lawfully for 4 years, including 1 year as a permanent resident.

And you cannot have been outside Australia for 12 months total, during the past 4 years.

So I did enter my dates in the calculator as seen below.

Permanent Residence Date: 31/08/2019

 

 

Lawful Residence Date: 07/02/2016

 

 

Intended Lodgement Date: 11/09/2020

 

 

and the absence dates:

From Date: 05 Jun 2016 To Date: 02 Feb 2017 From Date: 30 Apr 2017 To Date: 01 Aug 2017 From Date: 01 Oct 2018 To Date: 23 Dec 2018 From Date: 03 Dec 2019 To Date: 20 Jan 2020
Now the calculator says yes I can apply for Citizenship but we can clearly see that I've been out for 17 months...it doesn't make sense. Also..should I count from the first visa I got in Australia? which was in 2008. or the first visa i got 4 years before the citizenship application. Any help or clarification would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!

Edited September 13, 2019 by Hee

[rammygirl]

Looks right to me.  If you take Feb 16 as first entry and count back from sept 2020 you meet the requirements of residence.

Or to look at it another way add on the extra five months outside to the  4 year anniversary which gives July 2020, but you have to wait until August for the PR bit.

You only need look at the last 5 years from the date of submission so by then some of those absences will no longer count, ie from June to September 2016.  You will not have been resident but if you held a substantive visa it should work.

We were the same. We were absent on the date 4 years prior on a provisional business visa and we have our citizenship now. I don’t think the system will let you progress if you don’t meet the residency. 

Edited September 13, 2019 by rammygirl

[MrGrieves]

On 11 September 2016 (4 years before your intended lodgement date), you were not in Australia nor a permanent resident - see other posts on this forum about this condition.

I think you can only apply 4 years after your return to Australia, on 2 Feb 2021.

[rammygirl]

1 hour ago, MrGrieves said:

On 11 September 2016 (4 years before your intended lodgement date), you were not in Australia nor a permanent resident - see other posts on this forum about this condition.

I think you can only apply 4 years after your return to Australia, on 2 Feb 2021.

Neither was I but it worked. 

[Hee]

3 hours ago, MrGrieves said:

On 11 September 2016 (4 years before your intended lodgement date), you were not in Australia nor a permanent resident - see other posts on this forum about this condition.

I think you can only apply 4 years after your return to Australia, on 2 Feb 2021.

Yes MrGrieves, that makes more sense to me Feb/2021... but my heart wants to believe rammygirl 

 

2 hours ago, rammygirl said:

Neither was I but it worked. 

Did you go by the calculator at all when you prepped your citizenship application?

Also should I add my first lawful visa in Australia into the equation or no need?

[rammygirl]

Yes I did use the calculator first.  I didn’t put my very first lawful visit just the one I was using to calculate from.  I visited many times before, twice on provisional visas and finally as PR. although the PR entry wasn’t the one I used.  Maybe the provisional visa is treated differently to a visitor or temporary visa though. 

[paulhand]

Current citizenship policy, chapter 7A:

”If absent from Australia on the day four years immediately before applying

If a person’s first arrival in Australia is less than four years before they apply for citizenship, they cannot meet the general residence requirement, even if they spend three years continuously in Australia.

The start date of the four-year lawful residence period is usually the date four years immediately before they lodge their application. However, if the person has not made their first entry into Australia, they need to wait at least four years after their first entry to meet this requirement.

 Where a person was outside Australia on the day four years immediately before applying, but had previously been in Australia as the holder of a permanent visa, they may still use the day four years immediately before applying as a start date (for the purposes of being eligible to satisfy the four year lawful requirement), providing that on that day they held a permanent visa.

If these conditions are met, then the person may use the full four year period immediately before applying towards meeting the general residence requirement.”

[Hee]

1 hour ago, paulhand said:

The start date of the four-year lawful residence period is usually the date four years immediately before they lodge their application.

Thanks for that Paulhand. I'm still confused as to how the absence is calculated.

Lawful entry in Feb 2016. In Sep 2020 I will have 4 years residence in Australia, including 1 year as a PR, minus the 'absences' which amount to 17 months.
But the calculator still says it's okay.

However on the DHA website they state absences can't be over 12 months total in last 4 years, so the statements feel contradictory which is what confuses me.

[rammygirl]

6 hours ago, paulhand said:

Current citizenship policy, chapter 7A:

”If absent from Australia on the day four years immediately before applying

If a person’s first arrival in Australia is less than four years before they apply for citizenship, they cannot meet the general residence requirement, even if they spend three years continuously in Australia.

The start date of the four-year lawful residence period is usually the date four years immediately before they lodge their application. However, if the person has not made their first entry into Australia, they need to wait at least four years after their first entry to meet this requirement.

 Where a person was outside Australia on the day four years immediately before applying, but had previously been in Australia as the holder of a permanent visa, they may still use the day four years immediately before applying as a start date (for the purposes of being eligible to satisfy the four year lawful requirement), providing that on that day they held a permanent visa.

If these conditions are met, then the person may use the full four year period immediately before applying towards meeting the general residence requirement.”

When was this? We applied December 2018 and we were offshore not PR on the day four years prior. We got our citizenship though. 

[paulhand]

It’s current policy ... 

Edited September 14, 2019 by paulhand

[Jojoe]

On 14/09/2019 at 02:30, Hee said:

Hello people~

I need help to understand the residence calculator on DHA website. Very confused.

It says before applying for Citizenship, you must have lived in Australia lawfully for 4 years, including 1 year as a permanent resident.

And you cannot have been outside Australia for 12 months total, during the past 4 years.

So I did enter my dates in the calculator as seen below.

Permanent Residence Date: 31/08/2019

 

 

Lawful Residence Date: 07/02/2016

 

 

Intended Lodgement Date: 11/09/2020

 

 

and the absence dates:

From Date: 05 Jun 2016 To Date: 02 Feb 2017 From Date: 30 Apr 2017 To Date: 01 Aug 2017 From Date: 01 Oct 2018 To Date: 23 Dec 2018 From Date: 03 Dec 2019 To Date: 20 Jan 2020
Now the calculator says yes I can apply for Citizenship but we can clearly see that I've been out for 17 months...it doesn't make sense. Also..should I count from the first visa I got in Australia? which was in 2008. or the first visa i got 4 years before the citizenship application. Any help or clarification would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!

So count 4 years back from lodgement date of 11/9/2020 which is 11/9/2016 . Taking into consideration the lawful residence date of 7/2/1016 which gives an extra 7 months residency  in calculations . The fact that the permanent residency kicks in at 31/8 /2019 so any absence from this date could fall under the clause of not being calculated as an absence due to being a continual permanent residence of Australia and  continually living in Australia . The fact that 4 years back falls on the 11/ 9/ 2016 means calculations of absence are only calculated from that date until permanent residency of 31/8/2019 which is roughly 12 months in total .This could give you your missing 17 months and where I believe the calculations you were given are right . All the best for your citizenship . 

[rammygirl]

8 hours ago, paulhand said:

It’s current policy ... 

Yes, I was just wondering if this was the case when I applied as it would imply I wasn’t eligible.

[Jojoe]

6 hours ago, Jojoe said:

 

 

[LouDYorkie]

Yes, I was just wondering if this was the case when I applied as it would imply I wasn’t eligible.

Same here [emoji53]
I did my test 4 months ago and still haven’t been approved so I don’t know if this might be the reason! This doesn’t apply to my OH who did his test 2 months ago and he was approved same day [emoji2360]

[rammygirl]

32 minutes ago, LouDYorkie said:

Same here
I did my test 4 months ago and still haven’t been approved so I don’t know if this might be the reason! This doesn’t apply to my OH who did his test 2 months ago and he was approved same day

But I was approved and have Citizenship since August 2018. 

[LouDYorkie]

But I was approved and have Citizenship since August 2018. 

Oh right-maybe it is a new rule!

[Hee]

8 hours ago, Jojoe said:

So count 4 years back from lodgement date of 11/9/2020 which is 11/9/2016 . Taking into consideration the lawful residence date of 7/2/1016 which gives an extra 7 months residency  in calculations . The fact that the permanent residency kicks in at 31/8 /2019 so any absence from this date could fall under the clause of not being calculated as an absence due to being a continual permanent residence of Australia and  continually living in Australia . The fact that 4 years back falls on the 11/ 9/ 2016 means calculations of absence are only calculated from that date until permanent residency of 31/8/2019 which is roughly 12 months in total .This could give you your missing 17 months and where I believe the calculations you were given are right . All the best for your citizenship . 

Legend mate thanks!

I though it was counted from lawful residence date. Makes sense now. Thank you so much for clarifying this for me.

[Ajar]

HI All,

Could you please help me with the below query

Permanent Residence Date: 17/02/2015

 

Lawful Residence Date: 04/07/2015

 

Intended Lodgement Date: 17/04/2021

 

and the absence dates:

From Date: 24 Nov 2015 To Date: 27 Nov 2015 From Date: 02 Jan 2016 To Date: 05 Sep 2016 From Date: 09 Sep 2016 To Date: 19 May 2017 From Date: 27 Nov 2018 To Date: 23 Aug 2019
From Date: 05 Nov 2020 To Date: 10 Jan 2021
Now the calculator says yes I can apply for Citizenship. But the application does not allow me to proceed. What are the parameters for calculation. I mean, is it the Full name, Passport number. I recently got a new passport and have travelled using it. So it must be updated in the system. Any help or clarification would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!

[Neha2991]

Arrived Sydney	Departed Sydney
15/01/2018	6/03/2019
26/03/2019	3/01/2021
20/07/2022	22/09/2022
22/11/2022	21/12/2022
2/03/2023	1/06/2023
29/07/2023	1/10/2023
16/10/2023	8/12/2023

 

And then arrived on 30 Jan 2024. 

Got my PR on 31 Jan 2024. 

Residency calculator shows that I meet residency requirements and eleigble to apply on 31 Jan 2025.

Is this accurate? Please can someone help me

 

[BendigoBoy]

2 hours ago, Neha2991 said:

Arrived Sydney	Departed Sydney
15/01/2018	6/03/2019
26/03/2019	3/01/2021
20/07/2022	22/09/2022
22/11/2022	21/12/2022
2/03/2023	1/06/2023
29/07/2023	1/10/2023
16/10/2023	8/12/2023

 

And then arrived on 30 Jan 2024. 

Got my PR on 31 Jan 2024. 

Residency calculator shows that I meet residency requirements and eleigble to apply on 31 Jan 2025.

Is this accurate? Please can someone help me

 

If that's what the calculator says, that's what it will be. You must have held PR for 12 months before you are eligible for citizenship.

Edited February 4 by BendigoBoy