# New Zealand Citizenship Application Timelines



## gponniah

Hi there,

Does anyone knows the time line for NZ Citizenship application at DIA, Manukau office?

I read many success stories in this forum and have applied my citizenship application at DIA Manukau office in person on 4th Dec.2019. Till now the case officer has not been assigned. Is this the usual time frame that it takes 4 months to assign a case officer? 

Thanks,

Kind regards
Ganesh


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## escapedtonz

gponniah said:


> Hi there,
> 
> Does anyone knows the time line for NZ Citizenship application at DIA, Manukau office?
> 
> I read many success stories in this forum and have applied my citizenship application at DIA Manukau office in person on 4th Dec.2019. Till now the case officer has not been assigned. Is this the usual time frame that it takes 4 months to assign a case officer?
> 
> Thanks,
> 
> Kind regards
> Ganesh


Citizenship timeline on the NZ government website states 4-6 months before hearing if you will be successful and then you'll have to attend a citizenship ceremony before you officially become a citizen.


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## Jasonnz

gponniah said:


> Hi there,
> 
> Does anyone knows the time line for NZ Citizenship application at DIA, Manukau office?
> 
> I read many success stories in this forum and have applied my citizenship application at DIA Manukau office in person on 4th Dec.2019. Till now the case officer has not been assigned. Is this the usual time frame that it takes 4 months to assign a case officer?
> 
> Thanks,
> 
> Kind regards
> Ganesh


It looks like the immigration is putting people with more family and investments first. If you have an immediate family or own a house in Nz, then you get citizenship quicker. It's hopeless without money. Many foreigners marry kiwis to get citizenships


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## escapedtonz

Jasonnz said:


> It looks like the immigration is putting people with more family and investments first. If you have an immediate family or own a house in Nz, then you get citizenship quicker. It's hopeless without money. Many foreigners marry kiwis to get citizenships


You may be confusing the methods by which a person can gain Citizenship - either by Descent or by Grant.
If you have a parent that was born in NZ then it is likely you are immediately eligible to receive Citizenship by Descent, so yes you would then be able to gain Citizenship quickly as there isn't any other criteria you have to meet to prove your dedication to remaining in NZ and declaring you will live within the laws and regulations of the country etc.
To gain Citizenship by Grant, you must spend the time to prove your dedication first and hold a permanent class of visa for a minimum of 5 years before you become eligible.
For us we didn't apply after we'd reached the 5 year milestone......we didn't see the benefit at the time and we'd just built our first home in NZ so had many other things to spend the money on, however when Covid hit we figured we'd be way better off with Citizenship and NZ passports so we went through the process.


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