Should I change my council?

[vincent11]

Hi everyone,

I hope somebody can advise me with this. My citizenship application is based on being an EU citizen with EUSS, 5 years of residence. No fines or anything, all pretty standard. I submitted my application end of December, did my biometrics 4 weeks later in January and I’m waiting to hear the outcome.

I selected my council in Edinburgh as I study here and I was foolishly expecting to be done with this whole process by the end of term. However, in less than a month, I will be moving back home to Cornwall. I will be back in Edinburgh at the end of September.

Even if I heard my application was successful tomorrow, there is still a 2-3 month ceremony delay so nothing is going to get done in the next month. My dilemma is now whether to change my council to my home address, where I’m going to be until end of September? I know changing the council is not advisable but with that in mind I would seriously like to avoid making a trip from one side of Britain to another.

Fortunately, I used my home address so I won’t be missing any correspondence.

Any advice appreciated.

[travel_master]

Hi everyone,

I hope somebody can advise me with this. My citizenship application is based on being an EU citizen with EUSS, 5 years of residence. No fines or anything, all pretty standard. I submitted my application end of December, did my biometrics 4 weeks later in January and I’m waiting to hear the outcome.

I selected my council in Edinburgh as I study here and I was foolishly expecting to be done with this whole process by the end of term. However, in less than a month, I will be moving back home to Cornwall. I will be back in Edinburgh at the end of September.

Even if I heard my application was successful tomorrow, there is still a 2-3 month ceremony delay so nothing is going to get done in the next month. My dilemma is now whether to change my council to my home address, where I’m going to be until end of September? I know changing the council is not advisable but with that in mind I would seriously like to avoid making a trip from one side of Britain to another.

Fortunately, I used my home address so I won’t be missing any correspondence.

Any advice appreciated.

Whilst the geographical distance from the south west England to Scotland can be challenging once you move back from Edinburgh, I personally do not recommend you to change your council to one you have indicated on your online application form. It may be that the Home Office already sent your naturalisation certificate to a council in Edinburgh while the decision is pending. Changing the venue of your naturalisation ceremony may cause further delays.

I understand waiting for a decision on your application can be a distressing time. Hope you'll hear from the Home Office sooner rather than later.

[CULLINAN]

Also note, some members reported choosing a different council when they applied (other than their local council) but HO ignored that request and sent the certificate to their local council anyways.

In your case, there are chances your certificate will be sent to Cornwall instead of Edinburgh anyways if HO ignores the request. You will only know this later if it happens.

There is a 3-4 months corona delay after approval for ceremony invitation to be received. Then depending on the council’s availability, it can take another 1-3 months to get a slot with the council.

You will have 6 months AFTER the ceremony invitation to book the ceremony also. You can book at your convenience.

For now, stay put, keep an eye on your email/junk folder and also the address you mentioned for official correspondence. Ceremony invitation can be sent via email or post.

I would advise against changing the council at this point as it may result in a nightmare.