Citizenship vs resident return visa

[sammy11480]

Hi all

We have now been in Australia for nearly 3 years and are thinking ahead to Australian Citizenship.

I have always wanted to secure duel British and Australian for my young children to give them the freedom of travel between the two countries when they are of uni/working age and beyond.

I wonder will duel citizenship afford them this privilege? Once, obtained will they always have the freedom of travel/working rights for the rest of their lives?

I also question the benefits of citizenship over a resident return visa to renew every 5 years. Does this still afford them the same privileges? What are the main advantages to getting citizenship over just remaining permanent residents?

It is my dream to ensure the best possible future for my kids with the best of both countries. Is citizenship the best way to achieve this?

Many thanks for any advice,

Sam 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Marisawright]

17 minutes ago, sammy11480 said:

I have always wanted to secure duel British and Australian for my young children to give them the freedom of travel between the two countries when they are of uni/working age and beyond.

I wonder will duel citizenship afford them this privilege? Once, obtained will they always have the freedom of travel/working rights for the rest of their lives?

I also question the benefits of citizenship over a resident return visa to renew every 5 years. Does this still afford them the same privileges?

Yes, once they have dual citizenship, they can move freely between the two countries for the rest of their lives. 

That is not the case with the RRV (resident return visa), which is why citizenship is so important.

The problem with the RRV is that every time you apply for it, you must meet the "residency requirement".   So, let's say one of them didn't get citizenship, but they went to the UK to work for a year or two.  Time goes by and they're enjoying it, and they end up staying for 4 years.  Their RRV has expired, so  now they need to apply for a new one - but they'll be refused, because they haven't been living in Australia for the required time. 

Whereas if they had citizenship, they could leave Australia for 20 years and still come back without any problems.

Edited April 19, 2022 by Marisawright

[NicF]

The other advantage of citizenship over a PR visa is that they will be eligible for loans for University fees in Australia (PR visa holders are not eligible for loans) and they will be eligible to apply for jobs in defence (and other federal government roles where you have to be a citizen).