AUSTRALIAN IMMIGRATION NEWS

Australia Commences New Citizenship Test

Wednesday, 21 October 2009

On Monday, October 19, the new Australian Citizenship test commenced. The test assesses prospective Australian citizens on their understanding of Australian civics, and the privileges and responsibilities of citizenship.

Minister for Immigration & Citizenship, Senator Chris Evans said the test is based on the pledge of commitment that new Australians make when becoming citizens.

The test contains 20 multiple choice questions which have all been drawn from the revised citizenship test resource book, 'Australian Citizenship: Our Common Bond', which was launched in September this year.

Senator Evans made it clear that the new test was "not a general knowledge quiz about Australia", and stated "We want people applying for citizenship to understand the values of Australian society, our democratic beliefs, our rights and our system of law and what it means to be an Australian citizen".

The new test will also require a higher pass mark (75% or 15 correct answers from 20) compared to 60% from the previous citizenship test.

Also, there are no more 'mandatory' questions, which are questions that must be answered correctly. Previously, an applicant that answered 19 out of 20 questions correctly could still fail the test if the one question they did not answer one of the 3 mandatory questions correctly.

The revised citizenship resource book, 'Australian Citizenship: Our Common Bond' is available through the Government Citizenship Website (www.citizenship.gov.au).

If you are interested in Visas to Australia, contact Migration Expert for information and advice on which visa is best suited to you. You can also try our visa eligibility assessment to see if you are eligible to apply for a visa to Australia.