Citizenship Ceremony cancelled due to Covid-19

[Doc2020]

Finally. Received the invitation from council.

Approval - 9th June
invitation received today. letter dated 20th Sept
Ceremony booked - 3rd Nov
Council - Bucks

Great news! Congratulations! And thanks for the update.

There’s hope!

[Tamera]

Hi,

I am also an early Sep approval applicant. My council is Maidstone. Still waiting for ceremony invite letter.

Could anyone pls advise me the H.O Citizenship and Nationalities phone number? so that I can contact them for an update. Thanks.

The phone number on which I have been reaching out to them is 0300 123 2253, but do not hold your breath. They would say that you should receive your invitation by the end of October, but not much more than that.

Also, if it is true that they are not necessarily sending invites in the chronological order with respect to the approval date, your wait time could be anything between a day and a few months from now. I know, pretty useless, but there we are.

Thank you for your kind respond!

[user5877]

Status update: I just received invitation letter through my letterbox.

I've made my application on 9th March 2020, was approved on 27th of May, and received ceremony invitation letter today, 29th September 2020. The date on the letter is 9th September 2020, so it took them 20 days to deliver with 2nd class standard letter

Now I wish my council would pick up the phone...

Status update 2: Just booked my ceremony for next week. No guests allowed but that's understandable. I'm glad that my 15 yrs journey to citizenship finally ends next week.

[Tamera]

Hi,

I am also an early Sep approval applicant. My council is Maidstone. Still waiting for ceremony invite letter.

Could anyone pls advise me the H.O Citizenship and Nationalities phone number? so that I can contact them for an update. Thanks.

You need to be patient mate... there are people who got approved in June, July and even August who haven't received invite.

Yours is just September so yoh are in for a long wait..

Hey, no need to be rude and unkind here, mate! If everyone needs to be patient the way you advise here, what is the purpose for everyone to be here. Think!

I’m asking for H.O number for an update, not for your advise to be patient! Submitted in March, approved in Sep, thats patience enough!

[Zigzag1100]

Congrats! I am also Notts City. Just got my approval email 18 Sept so it could be a while still. Please let me know how it goes. Thank you

Thank you. Just quick update, my invitation letter has been sent today, dated the 1st of sep. I did my application through solicitor so it went to them instead of me.(it's in different city so they probably need to send me it through a first class). I have been checking the mail everyday for no reason ahaha. I also spoke to the council, the lady who does ceremony booking is out of the office this week so they said she will give me a call when she is back next week. I hope I am able to do my ceremony next week. fingers cross!

Hi, have you heard anything from notts council yet? Or have you got your ceremony date?

I called them on Monday, they said they will call me back next week to book me in. They are only doing group ceremonies at the moment (15 people at a time). They didn’t say how often, maybe give them a call and see if they can tell you more information. I wish they did private ceremonies, would of been done with it quickly... so annoying. Could be weeks from now, especially with the students back to uni. I am hoping we don’t go into local lockdown.

I just called them and they said same thing. 15 people in a group and just once a month. This is so ridiculous! What I didn’t get from them was the next one is full and if it is 15th of October? I will try to clarify that. If it is so, then not until November next now smh

[saaji93]

Unbelievable news from Newham
Just right now the postman brought me the brown envelope! Yes! the wait is over!
Applied 30/01/2020 approval email 20/05/2020 Invitation Letter received on 25/09 dated 08/09/2020!!!
Hence, received 25 Sep, group ceremony booked for 29 Sept!!!
Thank you, guys! This forum was of enormous help and support for all of us!
See you all later in Passport application threat ))
XOXO from Newham

Hi Anatol

Did you book the citizenship ceremony via online or telephone ?
I can't able to get space until 27th Oct 20.

Hi saaji93,
Just came back from my ceremony at Newham, They are holding these ceremonies in groups of 6, just a heads up

Hi Anatol
Congratualtions !!!
I have rebooked the ceremony for next tuesday 6th OCt 20 .
I think they are doing ceremony every Tuesday and slot only showing for next 4 tuesdays online .

[Finddd]

Thank you for your answer. I have also emailed the council and they said I must wait for the invitation letter as I need to have it with me when I book the ceremony. It's a bit frustrating that they don't give any information about the certificates they have received, or where they are with the ceremonies. Hopefully you'll receive your invitation soon, please keep me updated. I have applied at the end of March and received my approval at the beginning of July.

I have tried checking on their website but I reach a point where, after filling in the Home Office reference number and my full name, there is a submit button. I didn't press submit as I wasn't sure if it's going to complicate things or not. Have you done that? Have you tried checking this way if they have your certificate?

Yes after you press the submit button it does a check of your surname and the home office reference number. You will likely get an alert popup which says ‘Your record cannot be retrieved blah blah...’ and it will say ‘We are unable to find your record’. Otherwise if it does find your record I don’t exactly know what will happen but given they told me to try and do it every day I think you will get presented with an option to book a ceremony.

I see, thank you for this information.

[Cocobana]

Hi,

I am also an early Sep approval applicant. My council is Maidstone. Still waiting for ceremony invite letter.

Could anyone pls advise me the H.O Citizenship and Nationalities phone number? so that I can contact them for an update. Thanks.

You need to be patient mate... there are people who got approved in June, July and even August who haven't received invite.

Yours is just September so yoh are in for a long wait..

Hey, no need to be rude and unkind here, mate! If everyone needs to be patient the way you advise here, what is the purpose for everyone to be here. Think!

I’m asking for H.O number for an update, not for your advise to be patient! Submitted in March, approved in Sep, thats patience enough!

Hi Tamera,
I am Maidstone too and got approved in early September.
No need to be upset. I have not contacted HO as I assumed we sept approval have to do some waiting. But I did email Maidstone and they confirmed that certificates have not been coming to them on a regular basis but from post on here I beg to differ with that info. I reckon we will receive our I.v soon enough.

[rayyfar]

i tried to chase up my application which was approved on 23rd of july
Birmingham city council said today that they sadly still don't have my certificate following is the reply i got

"Thank you for your email.



Unfortunately we have still not received your certificate from the Home Office as they are working through the backlog and are sending certificates to us in date order currently for people who have been approved from April/May onwards, so we cannot book a ceremony for you just yet.



Once we receive your certificate from the Home Office we will automatically send out your invitation letter so we will contact you with a date for your ceremony as soon as we are able but please bear in mind that this still may be some weeks off. Currently we are booking small group ceremonies and unfortunately have no plans to offer virtual ceremonies.



I hope this information helps.



Best wishes

Xxxxxx

Citizenship Ceremonies Officer

Register Office

Holliday Wharf

Holliday Street

BIRMINGHAM

B1 1TJ"

[amitsainisharp]

Hi,

Has anyone heard from Brent Council, North-West London? i got my approval email in the last week of May and still nothing in my mailbox. Starting to worry a little bit.

Thanks in advance!
Our approval dates are close to each other. Mine is on the 3rd of June and I am with Brent. They don't have my certificate and I haven't recieved any letter.

You should give them a call and ask. They usually get certificates every Tuesday.

Thanks, I wrote them an email today.

[Stef03]

Just got an email from my local MP. They are receiving the same generic email as we all do


Dear Mr MP (I removed his name)



Thank you for your email correspondence of 28 August 2020 on behalf of Mr xxxxx of (my address), about his application for naturalisation as a British citizen.



On 28 January 2020, Mr xxxxxx submitted his naturalisation application. His ceremony was approved on 10 June 2020. We apologise for the delay in Mr xxxxxxx receiving his citizenship certificate.



We are currently working with Local Authorities throughout the UK and with overseas diplomatic posts as they begin to resume Citizenship Ceremonies. Service has not yet returned to normal due to continuing adherence to Government advice on social distancing – which is subject to some local and International variance.



Our current guidance is that if you have received an invitation to attend a citizenship ceremony, please contact your local authority office to book an appointment. You are required to attend a citizenship ceremony within six months of the date printed on your ceremony invitation. Your Local Authority will confirm the ceremonies available.



If you have received confirmation that your application for citizenship has been successful but have not yet received a citizenship ceremony invitation, please be assured that a citizenship ceremony invitation will be issued to you by post within the next 8 – 12 weeks. You are required to attend a citizenship ceremony within six months of the date printed on your ceremony invitation.



We will keep ceremony deadlines under constant review. Please be assured that no adverse decisions will be made on your application because of delays caused by Coronavirus (unless there is a material change in your circumstances, for example, you are convicted of a criminal offence).



We ask that applicants do not contact their Local Authority until they have received as invitation, as the certificate required to conduct their ceremony will not have been received before this time.



During this time, UKVI are receiving a high volume of enquires that may take longer than usual for a reply. Please do not contact Visas and Citizenship department to request a ceremony be held in another location based on ceremony date availability as such requests cannot be accommodated and will be declined.



Unfortunately, I am unable to provide a timescale. We are issuing ceremony invitation letters in strict date order and will contact Mr xxxxxx as soon as is possible. If Mr xxxxx believes that his ceremony should be expedited, he should provide us with the reasons and evidence and we will forward it to the casework team for consideration.



Yours sincerely

[Frou01]

i tried to chase up my application which was approved on 23rd of july
Birmingham city council said today that they sadly still don't have my certificate following is the reply i got

"Thank you for your email.



Unfortunately we have still not received your certificate from the Home Office as they are working through the backlog and are sending certificates to us in date order currently for people who have been approved from April/May onwards, so we cannot book a ceremony for you just yet.



Once we receive your certificate from the Home Office we will automatically send out your invitation letter so we will contact you with a date for your ceremony as soon as we are able but please bear in mind that this still may be some weeks off. Currently we are booking small group ceremonies and unfortunately have no plans to offer virtual ceremonies.



I hope this information helps.



Best wishes

Xxxxxxxxx

Citizenship Ceremonies Officer

Register Office

Holliday Wharf

Holliday Street

BIRMINGHAM

B1 1TJ"

That’s funny. I have received an email by them they have last week received end May certificates.
And a week later they are back at April/ May...


Btw I would edit out the name of the caseworker/ officer as this is a public forum.

[Learning18]

Just got an email from my local MP. They are receiving the same generic email as we all do


Dear Mr MP (I removed his name)



Thank you for your email correspondence of 28 August 2020 on behalf of Mr xxxxxx of (my address), about his application for naturalisation as a British citizen.



On 28 January 2020, Mr xxxxx submitted his naturalisation application. His ceremony was approved on 10 June 2020. We apologise for the delay in Mr xxxxxx receiving his citizenship certificate.



We are currently working with Local Authorities throughout the UK and with overseas diplomatic posts as they begin to resume Citizenship Ceremonies. Service has not yet returned to normal due to continuing adherence to Government advice on social distancing – which is subject to some local and International variance.



Our current guidance is that if you have received an invitation to attend a citizenship ceremony, please contact your local authority office to book an appointment. You are required to attend a citizenship ceremony within six months of the date printed on your ceremony invitation. Your Local Authority will confirm the ceremonies available.



If you have received confirmation that your application for citizenship has been successful but have not yet received a citizenship ceremony invitation, please be assured that a citizenship ceremony invitation will be issued to you by post within the next 8 – 12 weeks. You are required to attend a citizenship ceremony within six months of the date printed on your ceremony invitation.



We will keep ceremony deadlines under constant review. Please be assured that no adverse decisions will be made on your application because of delays caused by Coronavirus (unless there is a material change in your circumstances, for example, you are convicted of a criminal offence).



We ask that applicants do not contact their Local Authority until they have received as invitation, as the certificate required to conduct their ceremony will not have been received before this time.



During this time, UKVI are receiving a high volume of enquires that may take longer than usual for a reply. Please do not contact Visas and Citizenship department to request a ceremony be held in another location based on ceremony date availability as such requests cannot be accommodated and will be declined.



Unfortunately, I am unable to provide a timescale. We are issuing ceremony invitation letters in strict date order and will contact Mr xxxxxxx as soon as is possible. If Mr xxxxxx believes that his ceremony should be expedited, he should provide us with the reasons and evidence and we will forward it to the casework team for consideration.



Yours sincerely

I received the same response from the home office to the MP lol. Copy and paste answer except your name and approval dates.

[Learning18]

I just called Brent and they informed me that have not received a batch in months and the one they received was for April and may!!

Very contradicting information as I was informed almost every week that they were getting a batch on a weekly basis

[N1234]

Thank you. Just quick update, my invitation letter has been sent today, dated the 1st of sep. I did my application through solicitor so it went to them instead of me.(it's in different city so they probably need to send me it through a first class). I have been checking the mail everyday for no reason ahaha. I also spoke to the council, the lady who does ceremony booking is out of the office this week so they said she will give me a call when she is back next week. I hope I am able to do my ceremony next week. fingers cross!

Hi, have you heard anything from notts council yet? Or have you got your ceremony date?

I called them on Monday, they said they will call me back next week to book me in. They are only doing group ceremonies at the moment (15 people at a time). They didn’t say how often, maybe give them a call and see if they can tell you more information. I wish they did private ceremonies, would of been done with it quickly... so annoying. Could be weeks from now, especially with the students back to uni. I am hoping we don’t go into local lockdown.

I just called them and they said same thing. 15 people in a group and just once a month. This is so ridiculous! What I didn’t get from them was the next one is full and if it is 15th of October? I will try to clarify that. If it is so, then not until November next now smh

Wow that’s just ridiculous. I sent them an email how they should consider to put back the private ceremonies and they sent me some generic email...


I sent this:

“
Hope you are having a great week!

I just wanted to follow up with couples of questions in regards to the ceremony now that I have received my invitation letter from the home office last week.

How often is the group ceremony held?

I understand that you are also dealing with a back log, how long is the current wait to book a ceremony?

When should I be expecting to be contacted and is it via phone or mail?

I also noticed that you are no longer providing private ceremonies, I just wanted to take the time out to politely suggest or perhaps make a case for opening them again.
Some people who may be vulnerable to Covid (such as age, having pre existing conditions and people they live with) may be uncomfortable with attending group ceremony and generally avoid grouping.
With the case rising and rules continuously changing, there is case to be made for various options of doing things.
I have been working from home and I generally avoid groups as it is the law, but also for my girlfriend, who has asthma and which puts her in a vulnerable group.

“

And this is what I got:


“
Good afternoon and thank you for your email,



We will write to you and advise you of your ceremony date when your certificate arrives.



In the meantime, we would ask that you please bear with us, as the home office are sending certificates sporadically, so we can’t give any precise details as to when we will receive yours.

We are currently arranging ceremonies for people whose cases were decided in May, so there is a fairly long backlog at the moment.

Thank you for your patience at this difficult time.

“

I think it’s ridiculous to do it once a month. In that case I won’t be seeing anything till possibly November or December.

Could we write to the mp in regards to do with the council? I think we should. Especially not having the option to attend the private ceremony.

[baybars1]

Hi,

I am also an early Sep approval applicant. My council is Maidstone. Still waiting for ceremony invite letter.

Could anyone pls advise me the H.O Citizenship and Nationalities phone number? so that I can contact them for an update. Thanks.

The phone number on which I have been reaching out to them is 0300 123 2253, but do not hold your breath. They would say that you should receive your invitation by the end of October, but not much more than that.

Also, if it is true that they are not necessarily sending invites in the chronological order with respect to the approval date, your wait time could be anything between a day and a few months from now. I know, pretty useless, but there we are.

Thank you for your kind respond!

You are most welcome and good luck! Also, please do post here if you are able to obtain more specific information, especially with regards to whether they are still on track to clear the backlog by the end of the next month.

[nnn15]

Westminster council told me today that they are still on the April backlog. And that the HO sends certificates irregularly, so they don't know when certificates for a given approval date will arrive, but the HO told them they expect to clear the backlog by the end of November.

In August it was "by the end of October", back in spring it was 28 days, the timelines are shifting further in the future

[baybars1]

Westminster council told me today that they are still on the April backlog. And that the HO sends certificates irregularly, so they don't know when certificates for a given approval date will arrive, but the HO told them they expect to clear the backlog by the end of November.

In August it was "by the end of October", back in spring it was 28 days, the timelines are shifting further in the future

As new approvals are being added to the backlog, the Home Office needs to work through pending invitations much faster than they normally do in order to catch up, but that might not be feasible during the pandemic.

However, provided they are indeed working in "strict date order", as quoted in recent posts on this thread, perhaps it would be useful to suggest that they start publishing a running update, along the lines of:

"Update as of dd/mm/2020. We are currently sending citizenship invitations to individuals whose applications were approved between date-1 and date-2 (alternatively, in month xyz of 2020"

If anything, posting such an update would greatly reduce the volume of relevant individual enquiries they are receiving (even if they do not concern themselves much with customer service quality).

[Zigzag1100]

Hi, have you heard anything from notts council yet? Or have you got your ceremony date?

Yes I think we need to get the MP involved. It’s so not right to wait all the while for certificate and now for ceremony. Not to talk about passport yet!

I called them on Monday, they said they will call me back next week to book me in. They are only doing group ceremonies at the moment (15 people at a time). They didn’t say how often, maybe give them a call and see if they can tell you more information. I wish they did private ceremonies, would of been done with it quickly... so annoying. Could be weeks from now, especially with the students back to uni. I am hoping we don’t go into local lockdown.

I just called them and they said same thing. 15 people in a group and just once a month. This is so ridiculous! What I didn’t get from them was the next one is full and if it is 15th of October? I will try to clarify that. If it is so, then not until November next now smh

Wow that’s just ridiculous. I sent them an email how they should consider to put back the private ceremonies and they sent me some generic email...


I sent this:

“
Hope you are having a great week!

I just wanted to follow up with couples of questions in regards to the ceremony now that I have received my invitation letter from the home office last week.

How often is the group ceremony held?

I understand that you are also dealing with a back log, how long is the current wait to book a ceremony?

When should I be expecting to be contacted and is it via phone or mail?

I also noticed that you are no longer providing private ceremonies, I just wanted to take the time out to politely suggest or perhaps make a case for opening them again.
Some people who may be vulnerable to Covid (such as age, having pre existing conditions and people they live with) may be uncomfortable with attending group ceremony and generally avoid grouping.
With the case rising and rules continuously changing, there is case to be made for various options of doing things.
I have been working from home and I generally avoid groups as it is the law, but also for my girlfriend, who has asthma and which puts her in a vulnerable group.

“

And this is what I got:


“
Good afternoon and thank you for your email,



We will write to you and advise you of your ceremony date when your certificate arrives.



In the meantime, we would ask that you please bear with us, as the home office are sending certificates sporadically, so we can’t give any precise details as to when we will receive yours.

We are currently arranging ceremonies for people whose cases were decided in May, so there is a fairly long backlog at the moment.

Thank you for your patience at this difficult time.

“

I think it’s ridiculous to do it once a month. In that case I won’t be seeing anything till possibly November or December.

Could we write to the mp in regards to do with the council? I think we should. Especially not having the option to attend the private ceremony.

[Zigzag1100]

Hi, have you heard anything from notts council yet? Or have you got your ceremony date?

I called them on Monday, they said they will call me back next week to book me in. They are only doing group ceremonies at the moment (15 people at a time). They didn’t say how often, maybe give them a call and see if they can tell you more information. I wish they did private ceremonies, would of been done with it quickly... so annoying. Could be weeks from now, especially with the students back to uni. I am hoping we don’t go into local lockdown.

I just called them and they said same thing. 15 people in a group and just once a month. This is so ridiculous! What I didn’t get from them was the next one is full and if it is 15th of October? I will try to clarify that. If it is so, then not until November next now smh

Wow that’s just ridiculous. I sent them an email how they should consider to put back the private ceremonies and they sent me some generic email...


I sent this:

“
Hope you are having a great week!

I just wanted to follow up with couples of questions in regards to the ceremony now that I have received my invitation letter from the home office last week.

How often is the group ceremony held?

I understand that you are also dealing with a back log, how long is the current wait to book a ceremony?

When should I be expecting to be contacted and is it via phone or mail?

I also noticed that you are no longer providing private ceremonies, I just wanted to take the time out to politely suggest or perhaps make a case for opening them again.
Some people who may be vulnerable to Covid (such as age, having pre existing conditions and people they live with) may be uncomfortable with attending group ceremony and generally avoid grouping.
With the case rising and rules continuously changing, there is case to be made for various options of doing things.
I have been working from home and I generally avoid groups as it is the law, but also for my girlfriend, who has asthma and which puts her in a vulnerable group.

“

And this is what I got:


“
Good afternoon and thank you for your email,



We will write to you and advise you of your ceremony date when your certificate arrives.



In the meantime, we would ask that you please bear with us, as the home office are sending certificates sporadically, so we can’t give any precise details as to when we will receive yours.

We are currently arranging ceremonies for people whose cases were decided in May, so there is a fairly long backlog at the moment.

Thank you for your patience at this difficult time.

“

I think it’s ridiculous to do it once a month. In that case I won’t be seeing anything till possibly November or December.

Could we write to the mp in regards to do with the council? I think we should. Especially not having the option to attend the private ceremony.

Yes I think we need to get the MP involved. It’s so not right to wait all the while for certificate and now for ceremony. Not to talk about passport yet!

[Tamera]

Hi,

I am also an early Sep approval applicant. My council is Maidstone. Still waiting for ceremony invite letter.

Could anyone pls advise me the H.O Citizenship and Nationalities phone number? so that I can contact them for an update. Thanks.

You need to be patient mate... there are people who got approved in June, July and even August who haven't received invite.

Yours is just September so yoh are in for a long wait..

Hey, no need to be rude and unkind here, mate! If everyone needs to be patient the way you advise here, what is the purpose for everyone to be here. Think!

I’m asking for H.O number for an update, not for your advise to be patient! Submitted in March, approved in Sep, thats patience enough!

Hi Tamera,
I am Maidstone too and got approved in early September.
No need to be upset. I have not contacted HO as I assumed we sept approval have to do some waiting. But I did email Maidstone and they confirmed that certificates have not been coming to them on a regular basis but from post on here I beg to differ with that info. I reckon we will receive our I.v soon enough.

Hi,

Thank you for your kind and encouraging words.

[Tamera]

Hi,

I am also an early Sep approval applicant. My council is Maidstone. Still waiting for ceremony invite letter.

Could anyone pls advise me the H.O Citizenship and Nationalities phone number? so that I can contact them for an update. Thanks.

The phone number on which I have been reaching out to them is 0300 123 2253, but do not hold your breath. They would say that you should receive your invitation by the end of October, but not much more than that.

Also, if it is true that they are not necessarily sending invites in the chronological order with respect to the approval date, your wait time could be anything between a day and a few months from now. I know, pretty useless, but there we are.

Thank you for your kind respond!

You are most welcome and good luck! Also, please do post here if you are able to obtain more specific information, especially with regards to whether they are still on track to clear the backlog by the end of the next month.

Hi,

Thank you. And yes, I will def keep all of us here posted.

[BoyTed]

Good Evening All,

Spoke with my council today H&F for almost half an hour she was chatty and giving me a lot of info the lady said they received May and also receive some August/September approval.
All of us approved in June/July will be the last to receive as people approved in August/September been getting ceremony invitation for couple of weeks now and we all know the month of May almost cleared.
Don't mind the wait but scared of lockdown before they clear the backlog.

[baybars1]

Finally. Received the invitation from council.

Approval - 9th June
invitation received today. letter dated 20th Sept
Ceremony booked - 3rd Nov
Council - Bucks

Based on this information and assuming the HO stopped sending invitations on 23 March 2020 and resumed sending them on 7 August 2020 (as indicated by them in earlier phone calls), as well as that they work in "strict date order", I have worked out that they are clearing approval granted during 78 calendar days within 44 calendar days.

If (a big if) they carry on at that pace, someone approved today should have their invitation printed by 23 November 2020 and receive the same 7-10 days thereafter, say by 2 December 2020.

Basically, the formula in Excel would be:

"Date on the Invite" =ROUNDUP(("Approval Date" - Date(2020,20,6))*44/78) + Date(2020,20,6)

[Laplap20]

Finally. Received the invitation from council.

Approval - 9th June
invitation received today. letter dated 20th Sept
Ceremony booked - 3rd Nov
Council - Bucks

I am pleased to hear you got your invitation letter. My approval was 19 June, and same council as yours - Bucks. So expecting my invitation letter in a week or so. But it seems ceremony for me will be late Nov. Hopefully not another lock down before then