How to Become an Australian Citizen: Residence, Test and Fees

For many migrants, permanent residence feels like the finish line. Citizenship is the final step, and it changes more than you might expect. It gives you the right to vote, an Australian passport and the freedom to leave and return without worrying about visas.

This guide focuses on the route most adults use: citizenship by conferral for permanent residents. It explains the residence rule in plain terms, how the test works, what you'll pay and what happens at the ceremony. Figures were checked on the Department of Home Affairs website in September 2026.

What citizenship gives you, and what it asks

As a permanent resident you can already live, work and study in Australia. Citizenship adds a set of privileges and responsibilities.

According to Home Affairs, as a citizen you can:

• vote in federal and state or territory elections, and in referendums
• apply for an Australian passport and return to Australia freely
• ask for consular help from Australian officials overseas
• apply for children born overseas to become citizens by descent
• apply for jobs in the Australian Public Service or the Australian Defence Force
• stand for election to parliament.

In return, you must obey Australian law, vote in federal and state or territory elections and referendums, serve on a jury if called, and defend Australia should the need arise.

The ways to become a citizen

There are several routes, and each has its own rules.

This guide covers the general conferral route. If another route fits you better, Home Affairs has a separate page for each.

Who can apply by conferral

To apply, you must be a permanent resident, or a New Zealand citizen holding a Special Category visa (subclass 444), both when you apply and when Home Affairs decides.

Home Affairs says you must also:

• meet the general residence requirement
• be of good character if you're 18 or over
• have a basic knowledge of English
• understand what it means to be a citizen, which most people show by passing the test
• be likely to live in Australia, or keep a close and continuing link with Australia while overseas
• be in Australia when your application is decided, in most cases.

The residence requirement explained

This is the rule that trips people up most often, so take it slowly. When you apply, you must:

1. have been living in Australia on a valid visa for 4 years immediately before the day you apply
2. have held a permanent visa (or Special Category visa) for the last 12 months of those 4 years
3. not have been absent from Australia for more than 12 months in total in those 4 years
4. not have been absent for more than 90 days in total in the 12 months immediately before you apply.

Time on temporary visas, such as a student visa or a Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482), counts towards the 4 years. You just need to have been a permanent resident for the final 12 months.

A worked example

Here's how it might look for someone who arrived on a work visa.

If this person spent less than 12 months abroad in total since March 2022, and less than 90 days abroad in the past year, they could apply from April 2026.

Your permanent residence starts on the date your permanent visa was granted, if you were in Australia, or the date you first entered Australia on it. Home Affairs has a free Residence Calculator you should use before applying.

Marriage doesn't give you citizenship

Some websites claim you can become a citizen "by marriage". That isn't correct. A spouse or de facto partner of an Australian citizen applies by conferral like everyone else.

What Home Affairs does allow is a Ministerial discretion. If you're the spouse or de facto partner of a citizen, the Minister may treat some time you spent overseas as a permanent resident, while in that relationship and keeping a close link with Australia, as time in Australia. You must provide evidence, and eligibility can't be assessed in advance.

Costs and money

At the time of writing, Home Affairs lists these citizenship charges for conferral:

Home Affairs says citizenship fees usually rise on 1 July each year, so check the current fee list (Form 1298i) before you pay. The test is included in the application fee.

Other costs to plan for:

• Police certificates. Home Affairs asks for original police certificates, and overseas certificates can take time and money to get.
• Document translations for anything not in English.
• Your first Australian passport, which you can apply for once you've made the pledge.

You can apply online in ImmiAccount if you're aged 18 to 59 and not claiming a concession. Paper applications are for teenagers, concession applicants and some other groups.

The citizenship test

Most applicants aged 18 to 59 must sit the test. Home Affairs sends you a letter with your appointment details.

What the test involves

• 20 multiple choice questions on a computer or tablet
• 45 minutes to finish
• a pass mark of at least 15 out of 20 (75%)
• all 5 questions on Australian values must be correct.

At your appointment, staff confirm your identity and take your photo before you sit the test. Bring photo ID, such as a passport or Australian driver licence, and your appointment letter. Certified copies aren't accepted.

How to prepare

All the testable material is in the official resource book, Australian Citizenship: Our Common Bond. Home Affairs says it's available in 40 community languages, and there's a podcast and a practice test on its website. Home Affairs advises using only official test resources.

If you have low literacy and have completed at least 400 hours in the Adult Migrant English Program (AMEP), or have a relevant impairment, you may be able to sit an Assisted Test with 90 minutes instead of 45.

If you don't pass

Home Affairs will book another appointment at no extra cost. It won't affect your visa, and you can keep living in Australia. If you don't pass after three appointments, your application may be refused.

Character and other checks

If you're 18 or over, you must be of good character. Home Affairs may consider criminal convictions, court obligations, associations with people of concern, reported domestic violence, and whether you've been honest in past visa or citizenship applications.

There are also situations where Home Affairs must not approve an application. These include pending criminal proceedings, being a risk to national security, or not being able to prove your identity.

Step by step: from application to ceremony

1. Check eligibility. Use the Home Affairs Residence Calculator and read the eligibility criteria.
2. Gather documents. Include identity documents, evidence of your link to Australia and original police certificates.
3. Apply and pay. Lodge online in ImmiAccount or on paper, and pay the fee.
4. Attend your appointment. Confirm your identity and sit the test, if required.
5. Wait for a decision. Tell Home Affairs if you need to travel. It can't approve most applications while you're outside Australia.
6. Receive your ceremony invitation. It usually arrives about four weeks before the event.
7. Make the pledge. You become a citizen at that moment.
8. Apply for your passport.

How long it takes

In September 2026, the Home Affairs processing times page showed that for conferral:

Processing takes longer if your form is incomplete or Home Affairs needs more information. Check the latest figures before you plan travel or job changes.

The citizenship ceremony

Local councils usually run ceremonies. You can't choose the date or place, which depends on your address. Allow at least two hours on the day. The ceremony itself takes about an hour and includes speeches, the pledge of commitment and the National Anthem.

You can choose which version of the pledge to make. You don't become a citizen until you make it. After the pledge, you should receive your citizenship certificate, or it will be posted to you.

Children under 16 on your application become citizens at the same time as you. They don't have to make the pledge, but they're welcome to.

Scams and mistakes to avoid

• Paying for a "guaranteed" citizenship. Only Home Affairs decides applications. No one can promise approval or a faster ceremony.
• Unofficial test "cheat sheets". Home Affairs advises using only official test resources. Paid courses promising leaked questions are a red flag.
• Phone calls demanding fees. Treat unexpected calls or messages asking for payment to "fix" your application with suspicion, and check your ImmiAccount directly.
• Misjudging your travel days. Applying before you meet the residence rule wastes time and your fee.
• False information. Honesty in past visa and citizenship dealings is part of the character test.

If you pay for help, use a registered migration agent or an Australian legal practitioner, and check their registration on the official register yourself.

Your citizenship checklist

• Confirm you've been a permanent resident for at least 12 months.
• Run the Residence Calculator and check your days abroad.
• Order police certificates from every country required.
• Download and study Our Common Bond and take the practice test.
• Check the current fee before paying.
• Keep your address up to date so your ceremony invitation reaches you.
• Attend your ceremony and make the pledge.
• Apply for your Australian passport.

If you're still at the start of the journey, our guide to jobs in Australia with visa sponsorship explains how employer-sponsored visas can lead to permanent residence, and in time, to citizenship. For a look at which skills are most needed, see our guide to in-demand jobs in Australia.