Brisbane forced to act amid worst citizenship backlog in Australia

Brisbane City Council has been forced to schedule more citizenship ceremonies to cope with a surging number of new Australians wanting to call the region home.

After passing a test, applicants must pledge their commitment at a ceremony organised by their local council before they are given citizenship and its benefits, such as eligibility for an Australian passport.

According to the Department of Home Affairs, Brisbane has the country’s longest waiting list for a citizenship ceremony – more than 4600 people.

Kiwi politician Chris Hipkins (left) and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese tuck in at a citizenship ceremony in Brisbane.Credit: AP

Numbers swelled after the Albanese government brought in a “direct pathway” to Australian citizenship for New Zealanders 12 months ago.

One-third of those applying under this process were Queensland residents, with Logan, Ipswich and the Gold Coast now having more than 1000 people waiting for a ceremony.

Michelle Rani campaigned for the city council to hold more citizenship ceremonies to deal with the backlog.

On Wednesday, after inquiries from this masthead, Brisbane City Council announced it would schedule an extra four ceremonies this year to manage the backlog, making space for 2300 more people.

Michelle Rani, who passed her citizenship test in January, said she felt like her life was on hold as she waited to learn when her citizenship ceremony would take place.

“It’s all about the waiting game,” said the New Zealand-born retail worker, who has lived in Brisbane since she was 19.

“This month will be the fifth month … I keep checking my emails, even when I’m on shift at work – nothing from them.

“Each time I contact Home Affairs and Brisbane City Council, they keep giving generic copy-and-paste replies, which is nothing really meaningful, and causes me anxiety and stress.”

Rani was behind a campaign to get Brisbane to put on more ceremonies to deal with the backlog, launching an online petition and rallying support in a Facebook group for aspiring citizens.

Other members of that group told of having to delay overseas travel plans, and being prevented from applying for certain government and private sector jobs, while they waited.

Rani said she was “so happy” to hear more ceremonies were planned in Brisbane.

“I have my fingers crossed to be in one of the August ceremonies, hopefully,” she said.

“[Citizenship means] having more security, opens the doors to more opportunities … and being able to do more studies.”

Fiona Cunningham, the civic cabinet chair for finance and city governance, said people from around the world were moving to Brisbane because “it’s a great place to live, work or raise a family”.

“This has resulted in extra people wanting to be sworn in at citizenship ceremonies in Brisbane City Hall, which was already a popular venue,” she said.

“While we would welcome funding for citizenship ceremonies given federal government decisions have significantly increased the number of new citizens, we have made the decision to schedule an extra four ceremonies this year.”

Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner and Premier Steven Miles have criticised the Commonwealth for allowing population growth to surge, putting pressure on infrastructure and services.