The Town conducts Citizenship Ceremonies on behalf of the Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs. If you are thinking of becoming an Australian Citizen, here’s a guide to the process. 1.         You can obtain an Australian Citizenship Application Kit by calling the Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs on 131 880 for the cost of a local call and they will mail one out to you. You can also call that number if you simply want further information. If you have access to the Internet, you can visit the Department’s website:  http://www.immi.gov.au where the kit and other information can be downloaded. 2.         The application you make will be directly to the Department of Immigration. The Department aims to finalise citizenship applications within three months of lodgement, although complex applications may take longer.

3.         The Immigration Department will advise you direct by mail whether or not you have been successful. If you are successful, then within four to six weeks after you have received your letter of confirmation, the Department will forward notification direct to the Town.

4.         The Town holds public Citizenship Ceremonies four times a year and, as soon as a date has been set for the next ceremony, we will send you a written invitation to attend.

5.         If you require your certificate prior to the next scheduled public Citizenship Ceremony – for example to get a passport for overseas travel – a private ceremony can be conducted by the Mayor or Chief Executive Officer. However, the Town is not authorised to conduct a Citizenship Ceremony, public or private, until it receives your Certificate from the Department of Immigration.

6.         Recipients should contact the nearest office of the Department or call 131 880 if they believe they have extenuating circumstances that warrant an urgent ceremony.

As a general rule we encourage prospective Australian Citizens to attend a public Citizenship Ceremony at which the Mayor officiates. They are informal, you are welcome to invite your friends and take photographs, and we give you – and your children, if they are attending (and they are very welcome) – a small gift as a memento of the occasion. Afterwards you, your family and friends are invited to stay on and enjoy some refreshments.

For further information please contact the Chief Executive Officer’s Executive Assistant on 9273 6015 or email.