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Pathway to Australian Citizenship for New Zealand People

Updated

Pathway to Australian Citizenship for New Zealand People

As of the 26th February 2016 the Australian Government announced a new Visa pathway related to Australian Citizenship for New Zealand citizen.

These Permanent Residency and Citizenship is for New Zealanders who hold a Special Category Visa (SCV subclass 444) and have been residing in Australia for the past 5 years.

This pathway became available as of the 1st July 2017 as a new stream within the Skilled Independent Visa (Subclass 189) for those who were present in Australia on or before the 19th February 2016.  

What If I Arrived Before The Above Date?

If you arrived in Australia prior to 26 February 2001, you may already be considered a permanent resident. if you were in Australia for 12 months in the 2 years immediately before this date then you are considered a permanent resident for the purpose of applying for Australian citizenship

So What Is the Special Category Visa (SCV Subclass 444)?

The SCV is a visa that is automatically granted when you arrive in Australia and present your New Zealander Passport. This subclass of visa allows you to live and work in Australia on a temporary basis. It is not a Permanent Visa.

So What Are The Requirements of Australian Citizenship for New Zealand People ?

To be eligible for the Skilled Independent 189 (New Zealand) stream you must be a holder of the SCV (subclass 444) Visa.

You must have been residing in Australia for a period of 5 years consecutively before applying and you must have arrived in Australia before or on the 19th February 2016.

You must also be able to meet the required medical and character criteria and have a taxable income at or above an income threshold for each income year in the five years prior to lodging an application

If you have immediate family (wife, son, daughter, step son, step daughter) you are also able to include them on your application however they must also meet the required health and character check criteria.

How Do You Know If You Are Eligible of Getting Australian Citizenship for New Zealand People?

Once a visa is granted, you would be eligible to:

  1. Stay in Australia indefinitely
  2. Work and study in Australia
  3. Enrol in Medicare, Australia’s scheme for health-related care and expenses
  4. Apply for Australian citizenship (after 12 months) and sponsor eligible relatives for permanent residence

Our costs: The ONE derland professional fee for this visa is currently set at AUD $3,000 plus GST.

This fee excludes any medical examination, visa charge, translation of documents (if required), and other associated charges.

Visa application charge: The charge for lodging this application to the Department of Immigration and Border Protection are as follows, (plus credit visa charge of 0.98%):

  • Base Application $3,670
  • Additional Applicant (Aged 18 and over) $1,835
  • Additional Applicant (under 18) $920

So Where Does The Australian Citizenship Come In?

As a New Zealander on the Skilled Independent Visa (Subclass 189) permanent Visa you will be able to apply for Australian citizenship after 12 months. (Following the initial 5 years) The exception to this is those New Zealand citizens that hold a “Protected SCV”.

A protected SCV holder is a New Zealander who was in Australia on 26 February 2001 on a Special Category Visa (SCV), was in Australia for 12 months in the 2 years immediately before this date or who have a certificate from Centrelink stating that they were living in Australia on a particular date.

There are legal requirements that will also need to be met. These requirements are mandatory when applying for Australian Citizenship. The requirements are:

  1. That you are able to meet the resident requirement (this is the amount of time you have lived in Australia. Remember this must be 5 years plus 12 months on a permanent visa)
  2. That you are a holder of a permanent visa or protected SCV
  3. You are of good character and meet the character check (for those over the age of 18 years old)

You can include your children (under the age of 16 years) on your citizenship application.

Once you have applied and paid all fees associated you will be invited to an appointment to have an interview and sit the “citizenship test”. The citizenship test is a test that is used to assess your knowledge of Australia and to ensure that you understand the responsibilities of an Australian citizen.

Once your citizenship application has been approved you will be required to attend a citizenship ceremony to make the “Australian Citizen Pledge”. This ceremony will be organized by your local council and usually occurs 6 months after you application was approved.

After you have made the pledge you will receive a certificate and officially be a citizen of Australia.

So What Exactly Is “The Pledge”?

The Australian Citizenship pledge is a statement that is made in public that sates your commitment to Australia. There are two statements that you are able to choose from. One statement mentions god and the other does not.

Australian Citizen pledge are as follows:

“From this time forward

I pledge my loyalty to Australia and its people,

whose democratic beliefs I share,

whose rights and liberties I respect, and

whose laws I will uphold and obey.”

And

“From this time forward, under God,

I pledge my loyalty to Australia and its people,

whose democratic beliefs I share,

whose rights and liberties I respect, and

whose laws I will uphold and obey.”

If your children were included in your Australian citizenship for New Zealand people application and are over the age of 16 years they will also need to take the pledge.

Migration Agent Experienced in Handling Australian Citizenship for New Zealand People

If you’re a New Zealand Citizen that holds a permanent visa or you would like to apply for a permanent visa or citizenship, contact us at ONE derland Consulting on  (+61)0894775831 or email us at [email protected]

With our migration expert team lead by a registered migration agent, Mrs. Indah Melindasari will thoroughly assist you through the citizenship application process.

We will make sure to get back to your enquiry within 48 hours.

YOU are important to us.

Let us help you in any way we can.

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