Australian Citizenship interview

[JohnK]

Hey JohnK, I understand that there’s an option to get urgent citizenship. Have you considered speaking to them about that?

If there is they didn't let us know when we called. On the phone just over an hour. Ended up paying $465 and wife now has 5 year resident return visa. That was automatically approved as soon as I paid.

I suspect there's quite a backlog for citizenship ceremonies.

 

[puchu]

If there is they didn't let us know when we called. On the phone just over an hour. Ended up paying $465 and wife now has 5 year resident return visa. That was automatically approved as soon as I paid.

I suspect there's quite a backlog for citizenship ceremonies.

So I haven’t done much digging as I’m not particularly pressed for time for citizenship (NZ passport), but once I got the letter / email saying I had been approved (several months after the test), they said if I had a urgent need to get citizenship ASAP there’s some forms to fill out. Here’s what I got from google:

“If you have compassionate or compelling grounds for an urgent ceremony, you may request one through the Department of Home Affairs by completing the Request for urgent citizenship ceremony form and emailing it to [email protected]. Urgent ceremonies are only approved in exceptional and very limited circumstances.”

 

[Quickstatus]

@JohnK, you can search here for your local council Ceremony wait times. It will not have any insight for the individual applicant

If link does not work Google search for below:

 

[JohnK]

Thanks @puchu and @Quickstatus. Brisbane City Council wait times are quite long at the moment. Still no letter a month after passing test.

No rush at this stage.

 

[JohnK]

LOL. We've been waiting for citizenship appointment and it's now been 3 months since wife passed test. Wife's friend passed test 1 month earlier and she had citizenship ceremony 7-8 weeks ago.

See email today requesting more information before they can process citizenship. They want a Thailand Police Check as wife has spent more than 90 days in Thailand since permanent spouse visa was granted. We have 50 days to reply. The only way to get Police Check is in person at Pathum Wan and a certified translation in English.

We are not in Thailand until 26 Dec and we don't stay in Bangkok. Wife and daughter are in Chiang Mai and only spending 5 nights in Pattaya early January. So now need to waste a day of holiday getting taxi to/from Bangkok and waiting around in Police headquarters. And that's assuming that the day we can go is not a public holiday.

This is going to end up being one expensive Thai Police Check.

 

[Ade]

Thailand Police Check as wife has spent more than 90 days in Thailand since permanent spouse visa was granted

I'd have thought this would have been picked up at the in-person document verification prior to citizenship grant? I had something similar happen, but any and all questions they wanted to ask, was clarified as part of the citizenship interview/document verification day.

 

[JohnK]

I'd have thought this would have been picked up at the in-person document verification prior to citizenship grant? I had something similar happen, but any and all questions they wanted to ask, was clarified as part of the citizenship interview/document verification day.

You would think so. We applied in December 2023 so you'd think it would have been picked up them?

Anyway I was just thinking what if we now have no plans to visit Thailand for 4-5 years? No citizenship or waste money going to Thailand just for Police Check?

For crying out loud in a bucket.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

You would think so. We applied in December 2023 so you'd think it would have been picked up them?

Anyway I was just thinking what if we now have no plans to visit Thailand for 4-5 years? No citizenship or waste money going to Thailand just for Police Check?

For crying out loud in a bucket.

Is it possible for an immigration lawyer in Thailand to apply for the certificate?

 

[SuePa]

as wife has spent more than 90 days in Thailand since permanent spouse visa was granted

Perhaps she has only now reached the 90 days and it wasn't applicable before this.

 

[JohnK]

Perhaps she has only now reached the 90 days and it wasn't applicable before this.

No. Spouse visa granted in 2019 and wife/daughter spent 8 months in Thailand in 2022.

Since we applied for citizenship we've only had 2 trips totalling around 47 days in total.

So someone has reviewed her citizenship after wife passed test not when we made application. Either way they should know you need to front Thai Police in person in Bangkok only and it's a silly request to ask someone but they don't care.

Is it possible for an immigration lawyer in Thailand to apply for the certificate?

Not that I'm aware. You literally need to apply for the Police Check in person. I struggle to understand how Thailand has left some of these as manual processes.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

No. Spouse visa granted in 2019 and wife/daughter spent 8 months in Thailand in 2022.

Since we applied for citizenship we've only had 2 trips totalling around 47 days in total.

So someone has reviewed her citizenship after wife passed test not when we made application. Either way they should know you need to front Thai Police in person in Bangkok only and it's a silly request to ask someone but they don't care.


Not that I'm aware. You literally need to apply for the Police Check in person. I struggle to understand how Thailand has left some of these as manual processes.

Have you seen this page? Not sure if it’s relevant to you.

There is a process for obtaining a police check for thai citizens living abroad. Fingerprinting it seems can be done at the thai consulate or at your local police station in australia. POLICE CLEARANCE CERTIFICATES - Royal Thai Consulate-General, Sydney, Australia

And this link… which posts really badly, sorry! à¸à¸²à¸£à¸à¸³à¹à¸à¸´à¸à¸à¸²à¸£à¸à¸²à¸à¹à¸à¸£à¸©à¸à¸µà¸¢à¹à¸à¸£à¸à¸µà¸à¸¹à¹à¸¢à¸·à¹à¸à¸à¸³à¸£à¹à¸à¸à¸à¸²à¸¨à¸±à¸¢à¸à¸¢à¸¹à¹à¸à¹à¸²à¸à¸à¸£à¸°à¹à¸à¸¨ / FOR APPLICANT RESIDING ABOARD

The immediate link above says you can either post the request, or have someone in thailand lodge it for you.

Apologies if you’ve seen it already, or it’s not applicable. Just trying to help!

 

[JohnK]

Thanks @MEL_Traveller. I went to the link provided in the email from Home Affairs that mentioned you can only get Police Check from Royal Thai Police Headquarters and gave up.

We were going to call them to find out if the day we're planning to visit is not a Thai holiday.

Also I'm not sure if wife has the House Registration book here or its still in Village. If in Village then not easy to get it.

Something to think about.

 

[pagingjoan]

From Home Affairs website, there is a link for Thailand, which includes instructions for applicants residing abroad.
Also provided by MEL_Traveller above, so I won't duplicate.

 

[JohnK]

Thanks @MEL_Traveller and @pagingjoan but it would appear we won't get anywhere without House Registration as wife cannot find it here which means it's sitting in our house in Chiang Mai and the house is locked.

We'll look again but I'm not holding breath so a day wasted in January going to Thai Royal Police Headquarters unless I get everything ready here and we send off application when we're in Thailand but even then we'll need Police Check translated in Australia and if anything like daughters birth certificate that's $150-$200 for translation.

House Registration is an official document in Thailand where you register everyone living at a house.

 

[Julesmac]

With respect to JohnK and his wife, I’m comfortable with the required English. Unlike visa holders and permanent residents, citizens vote and influence our society - if they can’t speak the language they can’t fully engage with the issues they are voting on.

LOL. We've been waiting for citizenship appointment and it's now been 3 months since wife passed test. Wife's friend passed test 1 month earlier and she had citizenship ceremony 7-8 weeks ago.

See email today requesting more information before they can process citizenship. They want a Thailand Police Check as wife has spent more than 90 days in Thailand since permanent spouse visa was granted. We have 50 days to reply. The only way to get Police Check is in person at Pathum Wan and a certified translation in English.

We are not in Thailand until 26 Dec and we don't stay in Bangkok. Wife and daughter are in Chiang Mai and only spending 5 nights in Pattaya early January. So now need to waste a day of holiday getting taxi to/from Bangkok and waiting around in Police headquarters. And that's assuming that the day we can go is not a public holiday.

This is going to end up being one expensive Thai Police Check.

John you are either in a Monty Python sketch or Yes Minister episode. Don't you realise bureaucrats have endless hours in the day to think up embuggerances for the citizenry. Just cos they can!

 

[JohnK]

So we managed to gather all the information required and we sent off request for Police Check to Thailand with self addressed envelope. We had 50 days to respond to immigration but forgot.

Received email the other day they now want

- proof of residential address (how? lucky I put lease in both names otherwise were stuffed)
- police check
- Australian photo I'd (FFS when did Australia photo I'd become compulsory. We don't need one and never planned to have one except for Australian passport)

We have 28 days to respond. They must just love to torture people with ridiculous requests.

 

[Bayside Flyer]

Wife has Australian citizenship interview in ~4 weeks.

What should we expect? Her understanding of English is not very good. She struggles with reading and writing and this is not good either.

I know the test is multiple choice 20 questions and you need 75% to pass including all 5 Australian values questions. There are practice tests we can take but from what I understand the tests are changed often.

What are people's experiences with citizenship interview? I've been trying find information of real experiences but not much information on the internet

Practice test and other relevant information here.

https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/citizenship/test-and-interview/prepare-for-test/practice-test-new

https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/citizenship/test-and-interview/our-common-bond

I did this test a wee while ago as did my Australian born wife and my NZ born sister, I got 100% , they did not . (they both missed quite a few of the questions) as an ex-pat Kiwi / Solomon Islander, I have finally decided (after 50 years) that it is time to make my true allegiance to Australia formal and will be completing my application for Citizenship (once I can find all of the documents I need, military service details etc). I don't actually need to do the citizenship test, but may elect to do as voluntarily .

 

[puchu]

JohnK, I had my ceremony this month. Hoping some good news for your wife.

 

[JohnK]

Thanks @puchu. Police Check returned 10 days ago.

Received call Friday from Home Affairs. Sorry I've been slack. Don't want to get photo ID. Costs ~$80 and would serve no purpose for us as wife has Thai passport. That's OK Medicare card is OK.

Uploaded Police check, rent receipt and Medicare card yesterday and received approval early this morning.

Our family now have an eclectic collection of Australian citizenship

- Immigrant
- Citizenship by descent
- Citizenship by conferral

Wife is now an Aussie. She wants to know if she can still eat som tum salad. I said sometimes but not often....

 

[serfty]

Wife is now an Aussie. She wants to know if she can still eat som tum salad. I said sometimes but not often....

But she could eat as much Green Papaya Salad as she wants?

Congratulations!