Australian citizenship processing time, November 2026
Citizenship by conferral: 50% decided within 38 days, 90% within 5 months. 47,970 applications on hand. Department of Home Affairs figures, checked daily.
Citizenship, 5 official figures
Big number: the 90% figure. Small line: the 50% figure.
90% of Australian citizenship by conferral applications are decided within 5 months
Australian citizenship processing time: 50% decided within 38 days, 90% within 5 months. After approval, 90% can attend a ceremony within 6 months.
Official page updated · Checked by us · Official citizenship processing times
Day 60since 15 September 2026 (example date, change it to yours)
- If the latest percentiles held, 50% of applications lodged that day would be decided by 23 Oct 2026 and 90% by 14 Feb 2027. This is arithmetic on the official percentiles, not a predicted decision date.
- From application to ceremony, 50% of conferral applicants took 6 months or less and 90% took 10 months or less.
What this can't tell you
- When your own application will be decided. Nobody outside the Department can see individual cases.
- When your ceremony will be. The ceremony wait differs from council to council.
- The Department says that if your application is within the published processing times, it has no further information to give.
Months in the official figures are converted at 30.44 days for the day count. Nothing you enter here leaves your device.
All citizenship processing times, November 2026
| Application type and period | 25% | 50% | 75% | 90% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Citizenship by conferralApplication to decision | 31 days | 38 days | 70 days | 5 months |
| Citizenship by conferralApproval to ceremony | 71 days | 4 months | 5 months | 6 months |
| Citizenship by conferralApplication to ceremony | 5 months | 6 months | 8 months | 10 months |
| Citizenship by descentApplication to decision | 25 days | 31 days | 63 days | 4 months |
| Evidence of Australian citizenshipApplication to decision | 3 days | 5 days | 7 days | 15 days |
As published by the Department. "Decision" includes approved, refused, withdrawn and invalid applications.
Conferral applications on hand: 47,970
| On hand at | On hand | Received that month |
|---|---|---|
| 47,970 | 22,723 | |
| 74,292 | 17,898 | |
| 90,880 | 13,490 | |
| 130,493 | 14,694 | |
| 152,859 | 16,280 | |
| 127,505 | 17,500 | |
| 117,789 | 16,978 | |
| 113,982 | 16,973 |
Latest 8 of 20 counts. Full series in the backlog section below.
Is Australian citizenship processing getting faster? 90% within 5 months now, 15 months in November 2022
Conferral, from application to decision, and from approval to ceremony, on every copy of the official page we hold since November 2022. No copy exists between October 2024 and August 2025, so changes in that gap are not shown.
| Seen | 50% to decision | 90% to decision | 90% approval to ceremony |
|---|---|---|---|
| recorded by us | 38 days | 5 months | 6 months |
| web archive | 4 months | 8 months | 6 months |
| web archive | 6 months | 10 months | 5 months |
| web archive | 8 months | 10 months | 5 months |
| web archive | 8 months | 11 months | 5 months |
| web archive | 7 months | 11 months | 7 months |
| web archive | 6 months | 10 months | 6 months |
| web archive | 6 months | 10 months | 7 months |
| web archive | 5 months | 9 months | 7 months |
| web archive | 5 months | 11 months | 7 months |
| web archive | 5 months | 16 months | 7 months |
| web archive | 4 months | 11 months | 6 months |
| web archive | 84 days | 10 months | 6 months |
| web archive | 5 months | 11 months | 8 months |
| web archive | 6 months | 11 months | 8 months |
| web archive | 7 months | 13 months | 9 months |
| web archive | 7 months | 15 months | 9 months |
| web archive | 7 months | 15 months | 7 months |
| web archive | 7 months | 14 months | 8 months |
| web archive | 10 months | 15 months | 9 months |
Months in the chart; day figures converted at 30.44 days per month. The table shows the Department's own wording.
How many citizenship applications are on hand? 47,970, down from 152,859 in June 2025
Conferral applications on hand at the end of each reported month, and new conferral applications received in that month. Counts include children aged 15 or younger included in a parent's application. The Department notes the numbers come from a live system and may differ slightly from other reports.
| On hand at | On hand | Received that month |
|---|---|---|
| 47,970 | 22,723 | |
| 74,292 | 17,898 | |
| 90,880 | 13,490 | |
| 130,493 | 14,694 | |
| 152,859 | 16,280 | |
| 127,505 | 17,500 | |
| 117,789 | 16,978 | |
| 113,982 | 16,973 | |
| 107,406 | 20,353 | |
| 100,185 | 19,090 | |
| 94,569 | 17,553 | |
| 85,840 | 18,307 | |
| 88,657 | 18,497 | |
| 84,019 | 14,685 | |
| 90,838 | 12,398 | |
| 95,336 | 13,416 | |
| 96,232 | 12,367 | |
| 96,526 | 10,191 | |
| 99,593 | 11,376 | |
| 112,024 | 12,139 |
20 monthly counts since September 2022.
Citizenship by descent and evidence of citizenship: 90% within 4 months and 15 days
Citizenship by descent: 50% within 31 days, 90% within 4 months. Evidence of Australian citizenship: 50% within 5 days, 90% within 15 days. For applicants in Australia the Department says to allow an extra two weeks for printing and posting the certificate, and about six weeks outside Australia without an Australian postal address.
What do the citizenship processing time figures count? 4 things to know
- A decision includes applications approved, refused, withdrawn and those that cannot be considered (invalid).
- The conferral figures cover applications where, in the reporting month, a decision was reached or someone became a citizen at a ceremony.
- The Department reads its percentiles strictly: at the 50th percentile, 49 applications in every 100 took less than the figure shown.
- Factors the Department lists as affecting an application: whether it was complete, how promptly requests were answered, the time to check information, and the time other agencies take for character and national security checks.
10 questions about Australian citizenship processing time, answered from November 2026 figures
How long does Australian citizenship take in 2026?
For citizenship by conferral, the Department of Home Affairs reports 50% of applications decided within 38 days and 90% within 5 months. From application to ceremony, 90% took 10 months or less.
What is the current citizenship processing time?
Conferral: 25% within 31 days, 50% within 38 days, 75% within 70 days, 90% within 5 months, from application to decision. Figures checked 14 November 2026.
How long after approval is the citizenship ceremony?
The Department says 90% of approved conferral applicants have the opportunity to attend a ceremony within 6 months of approval. Half had their ceremony within 4 months. The wait differs from council to council.
How many citizenship applications are waiting?
47,970 conferral applications were on hand on 31 October 2026, down from 152,859 on 30 June 2025. In the latest month the Department received 22,723 new conferral applications.
Is citizenship processing getting faster?
The 90% figure from application to decision was 15 months in November 2022 and is 5 months now. Applications on hand went from 112,024 (30 September 2022) to 47,970 (31 October 2026).
How long does citizenship by descent take?
50% of citizenship by descent applications are decided within 31 days and 90% within 4 months.
How long does evidence of Australian citizenship take?
50% within 5 days, 90% within 15 days. The Department says to allow about two extra weeks in Australia for the certificate to be printed and posted.
What counts as a decision in the citizenship processing time?
The Department counts applications approved, refused, withdrawn, and those that cannot be considered because they are invalid. The conferral figures include applications where a decision was reached, or where someone acquired citizenship at a ceremony, in the reporting month.
Can Home Affairs tell me more if my application is within the processing time?
The Department says that if your application is within the advertised processing times, there is no further information it can provide at that stage.
Is this a government website?
No. Visa Processing Time is independent and is not affiliated with the Department of Home Affairs.