History
In December 2006, it was announced that applicants for Australian citizenship who are over 18 and under 60 years old will need to pass an Australian citizenship test. The objective of the test is to prove an applicant's grasp of English language and understanding of Australia’s "values", history, traditional and national symbols. Citizenship applicants are required to study a booklet produced by the Department of Immigration and Citizenship.
On 2 January 2008, it was announced that the test would be reviewed when statistics showed that over 20% of those sitting the test failed on their first attempts. On 28 April 2008 the Minster for Immigration and Citizenship, Senator Chris Evans, announced the appointment of an independent committee to conduct a review of the Australian citizenship test since its implementation on 1 October 2007. This review was commissioned to examine the operation of the citizenship test after six months experience and whether there were ways to improve its operation and effectiveness as the pathway for residents to become Australian citizens. On 22 November 2008, the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Chris Evans, released the Citizenship Test Review Report Moving Forward … Improving Pathways to Citizenship and the Government’s response. The report and the Governments response are located online.
On 19 October 2009, changes to the citizenship test came into effect. Under the new rules, a mark of 75% (15 out of 20 questions correct) is required to pass. Previously, a mark of 60% plus answering three mandatory questions correctly was required. Applicants will need to pass the test before a decision made on their citizenship application, i.e. the application must be lodged before the test takes place.
Read more about this topic: Australian Citizenship Test
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