Brisbane citizenship ceremony backlog causes travel dilemmas

A growing backlog of Australian citizenship ceremonies in the Brisbane City Council area is creating significant travel and financial dilemmas for approved applicants. According to Home Affairs data, 7,223 approved applicants are currently waiting for a ceremony, the longest waitlist in the country. Two years ago, the number of people on the list was 4,600.

Because attending a ceremony to pledge loyalty is a compulsory final step, applicants cannot access the privileges of citizenship, such as Australian passports, until the event occurs. This delay forces families to choose between expensive travel costs or waiting months for ceremony dates. For instance, traveling internationally without a citizenship passport requires a resident return visa, the cost of which recently increased from $490 to $1,475 per person.