Australian Citizenship by Conferral: Residence, Test and Process (2026)

Citizenship by conferral is the main pathway to becoming an Australian citizen if you are a permanent resident. In simple terms, you apply, you generally sit a test, you attend a ceremony, and you make a pledge. The rules that decide whether you are eligible sit mostly around one thing: how long you have lawfully lived in Australia, and how much of that time you were a permanent resident.

As of 1 July 2026, the adult application fee is AUD $595, and that single fee covers your application, your test and your ceremony. The general residence requirement asks for four years of lawful residence immediately before you apply, with the last 12 months held as a permanent resident.

This post walks through what conferral is, who qualifies, how the residence rule counts your time in and out of Australia, what the citizenship test looks like in 2026, the fee, and the final steps at the ceremony. It also explains how conferral differs from citizenship by descent, which is a common point of confusion.

What is citizenship by conferral?

Citizenship by conferral is the process a permanent resident uses to become an Australian citizen. It is the pathway most migrants take after living in Australia for a number of years on a permanent visa.

It is different from citizenship by descent, which is for people born outside Australia to a parent who was an Australian citizen at the time of their birth. If you were born overseas and one of your parents was already an Australian citizen, the descent pathway is usually the relevant one, and we cover it in our guide to Australian citizenship by descent. Conferral, by contrast, is earned through residence in Australia rather than through a parent’s status.

Before you can apply by conferral, you generally need to hold, and have held, permanent residence. If you are still working towards that stage, our overview of Australia’s permanent residency pathways explains the visas that lead there. Conferral is the step that usually comes after permanent residence, not instead of it.

The Department of Home Affairs sets out the full criteria on its citizenship by conferral page. It is worth reading alongside this guide, because your individual visa history can change how the residence rule applies to you.

The residence requirement, explained

This is the part that decides most applications, so it is worth slowing down on.

To meet the general residence requirement, you must have been lawfully resident in Australia for four years immediately before you apply. Within that four-year period, the last 12 months must have been spent as a permanent resident, or as a holder of a Special Category visa (SCV), which is the visa many New Zealand citizens hold.

Time spent in Australia on temporary visas can count towards the four years, provided it was lawful. What cannot be shortened is the final 12 months of permanent residence. Even if you have lived in Australia for a decade on student and work visas, you generally still need to hold permanent residence for the last full year before you apply.

There are also two absence limits built into the four years:

• You can be outside Australia for no more than 12 months in total across the whole four-year period.
• You can be outside Australia for no more than 90 days in the 12 months immediately before you apply.

Both limits apply at the same time. A single long trip, or a run of shorter ones, can push you over either threshold and reset your eligibility date, which is a frustrating discovery to make after you have already lodged. The Department confirms these figures on its citizenship by conferral page, and it is sensible to map your travel dates against them before applying.

A quick way to check your dates

Before you apply, it helps to lay your last four years out plainly:

1. Confirm the date you became a permanent resident, and check it is at least 12 months before your intended application date.
2. Add up every day you spent outside Australia over the four years, and confirm the total is under 12 months.
3. Add up your days outside Australia in the most recent 12 months, and confirm the total is 90 days or fewer.
4. Confirm your presence in Australia was lawful for the whole four years, with no periods where you held no valid visa.

If any of those four checks is close to the line, that is usually the moment to get advice rather than guess.

Other things you need to satisfy

Residence is the largest hurdle, but it is not the only one. To be eligible for citizenship by conferral, you generally also need to:

• Be a permanent resident both at the time you apply and at the time the Department decides your application. If your permanent visa lapses in between, that can be a problem.
• Intend to reside in Australia, or to maintain a close and continuing link with Australia. This matters most for people who spend significant time overseas.
• Be of good character. For applicants aged 18 and over, the Department runs a character assessment. The kinds of concerns that arise under the character test for visas, which we explain in the context of visa refusals on character grounds, can also affect a citizenship application.

Good character is assessed on the whole of your conduct, not just formal convictions. Honesty in your application matters, and undisclosed history is often more damaging than the underlying issue would have been on its own.

The Australian citizenship test in 2026

Most adult applicants sit the citizenship test as part of the conferral process. It is designed to check your knowledge of Australia and, importantly in the current version, your understanding of Australian values.

Here is how the test works in 2026:

• It has 20 multiple-choice questions.
• You have 45 minutes to complete it.
• The pass mark is 75%, meaning you need to answer at least 15 of the 20 questions correctly.
• You must answer all 5 Australian values questions correctly to pass, regardless of your overall score.

The test is based on the official resource booklet, “Australian Citizenship: Our Common Bond”. The questions are drawn from that material, so preparation is genuinely about reading and understanding the booklet rather than memorising trivia. The Department publishes the current format and the study resource on its citizenship test page.

Not everyone has to sit it. The test is generally not required for applicants under 18, or aged 60 and over, and certain other exemptions can apply depending on individual circumstances. If you fall into one of those groups, you may still attend an interview, but the multiple-choice test may not apply to you.

One piece of reassurance: re-sits are free. If you do not pass the first time, you are usually given further opportunities without paying the application fee again. The fee you paid at the start covers the test, including subsequent attempts within the process.

How to prepare for the test

The most reliable preparation is straightforward:

1. Read “Australian Citizenship: Our Common Bond” in full, not just the testable section.
2. Pay particular attention to the Australian values chapter, since all five of those questions must be correct.
3. Use the free official practice test to get used to the multiple-choice format.
4. Sit the test in a language you are comfortable reading in; the test is conducted in English, which is part of what it assesses.

Applicants who treat the values questions casually are the ones most likely to be caught out, because a strong overall score does not save you if you miss those five.

What it costs in 2026

From 1 July 2026, the standard adult application fee for citizenship by conferral is AUD $595. That fee covers the whole process: your application, the test, and the ceremony. You are not charged separately for each stage.

There are two important variations:

• A concession fee of AUD $80 applies for eligible holders of a pensioner concession card.
• A child under 16 included on a responsible parent’s application generally has no separate fee.

Citizenship fees are reviewed periodically, and they sit alongside the wider round of Home Affairs charge changes that took effect on 1 July 2026. Before you pay, confirm the current amount on the Department’s current visa pricing page, because charges are reviewed each year and the figure can change.

Compared with the cost of many permanent visas, the conferral fee is modest. The larger investment is usually time, in the form of the residence you have already built and the care you put into getting the application right the first time.

The final steps: ceremony and pledge

Passing the test and receiving approval is not the moment you become a citizen. That comes at the ceremony.

Once your application is approved, you are invited to attend a citizenship ceremony. Ceremonies are usually run by local councils, and they are often held on or around significant national dates, though they take place throughout the year. There can be a wait between approval and your ceremony invitation, depending on local scheduling.

At the ceremony, you make the Australian Citizenship Pledge. This is the step that legally confers citizenship. The pledge is a public commitment to Australia, its people, and its laws, and you become a citizen at the moment you make it.

A few practical points worth knowing:

• You generally must attend a ceremony and make the pledge within a set period after approval.
• Bring the identification and paperwork the invitation asks for.
• Most people bring family; it is a genuine milestone, and the ceremonies are built around that.

Until you have made the pledge, you remain a permanent resident, not a citizen. That distinction can matter if you are planning international travel around the time of your ceremony.

How conferral differs from citizenship by descent

It is worth drawing the line clearly, because people often use “citizenship” as if it were one process.

Citizenship by conferral is for permanent residents who have lived in Australia long enough to meet the residence requirement. It involves the four-year rule, usually the test, and a ceremony. It is the pathway this post is about.

Citizenship by descent is for people born outside Australia whose parent was an Australian citizen when they were born. There is no residence requirement and no test; the question is your parent’s citizenship at the time of your birth. We explain that route separately in our post on claiming Australian citizenship by descent.

If you are unsure which applies to you, the deciding factors are usually where you were born and whether a parent was already Australian at that time. Getting that categorisation right at the start saves lodging the wrong application.

Frequently asked questions

What is the residence requirement for citizenship by conferral?

You must have been lawfully resident in Australia for four years immediately before you apply, including the last 12 months as a permanent resident or Special Category visa holder. Within those four years, your total time outside Australia must be no more than 12 months, and no more than 90 days in the 12 months before you apply.

How much is the citizenship application fee in 2026?

From 1 July 2026, the standard adult fee for citizenship by conferral is AUD $595, which covers the application, test and ceremony. A concession fee of AUD $80 applies for eligible pensioner concession card holders, and a child under 16 on a parent’s application usually has no separate fee. Confirm the current figure on immi.gov.au before paying.

What is the pass mark for the citizenship test?

The pass mark is 75%, meaning at least 15 correct answers out of 20. You must also answer all five Australian values questions correctly, regardless of your overall score. Re-sits are free.

How much time can I spend outside Australia during the four years?

No more than 12 months in total across the whole four-year period, and no more than 90 days in the 12 months immediately before you apply. Both limits apply at the same time, so long trips can affect your eligibility date.

Who is exempt from the citizenship test?

The test is generally not required for applicants under 18 or aged 60 and over, and some other exemptions may apply depending on individual circumstances. Exempt applicants may still attend an interview even where the multiple-choice test does not apply.

A realistic next step

If citizenship by conferral is on your horizon, the realistic next step is to map your last four years of residence and travel against the residence requirement before you lodge, and to confirm you have held permanent residence for the full final 12 months. If any of your dates sit close to the 12-month or 90-day limits, or if you have a character history you are unsure about, that is the point to get advice rather than assume.

If you would like your eligibility checked before you apply, you can book a consultation with our migration lawyers and we will review your dates, your residence history and your options. Our team assists clients nationally, including from our Sydney immigration law office.

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About the author: Tina Nematian is the Principal Lawyer at One Planet Migration Law. She is admitted as an Australian Legal Practitioner and is a Registered Migration Agent, and has guided clients through partner, skilled, employer-sponsored, student, and humanitarian visa applications across Australia.

Visa fees, thresholds and processing times in this article were current as of 3 July 2026. Always check immi.gov.au before lodging.

This article is general information only and does not constitute legal or migration advice. Visa rules change frequently and outcomes depend on individual circumstances. Speak with a registered migration lawyer or agent before making any application.