6 December 2024

Message from the General Manager

Tēnā koe – hello.

This newsletter includes the table of average monthly candidates that will be ready to attend a citizenship ceremony, so you can plan when ceremonies are held.

After the ceremony, take care when confirming who attended it, because errors can cause stress to the candidate, especially if they cannot re-enter Aotearoa. Keep reading for more information.

Adrian Jarvis
General Manager
Services and Access

I wish you a peaceful and relaxing break with whānau and friends.

Meri Kirihimete ki a koutou katoa

Noho ora mai rā,
Adrian

Candidates for ceremony in your region

This the estimated average number of candidates each month that will need ceremonies over the year. Candidates should ideally attend a ceremony within 1 to 3 months of receiving a grant of New Zealand citizenship. Your council will need to host ceremonies for your existing waitlist plus the average approvals each month. If you do not know your current waitlist, contact CitizenshipCeremonies@dia.govt.nz.

Ensuring te reo Māori oath option is available

Most new citizens by grant are required to attend a ceremony and take an oath or affirmation to confirm their allegiance to New Zealand. Over the last few years, an increasing number of people have taken their oath in te reo Māori. The use of te reo Māori in this way offers an opportunity for a shared sense of national identity.

Feedback from our customer experience survey, however, shows that some new citizens would have taken up the option if they had known about it:

"I wasn't aware that I could take the oaths in Te Reo. Had I known I would have."
"I also wanted to say the oath in te reo Maori. However, the council CEO only said the oath in English which we were all asked to repeat."

We have included information about the Māori oath option in our application forms, candidates confirmation letters, and on our website. We commend the councils that promote the use of te reo Māori in their citizenship ceremonies. Make sure you convey to new citizens that they can say their oath in te reo Māori, and that your people are prepared to incorporate this into ceremonies using the resources below.

Spoken recording to assist councils with pronunciation

A spoken recording of the te reo Māori versions of the oath and affirmation is available at www.govt.nz/citizenship. The recording assists councils with the correct pronunciation.

Kirirarautanga o Aotearoa

Te Oati ki te Ariki Tapairu

Ko ahau, ko [say your name] e kī taurangi ana ka pirihonga ahau, ka piripono ki Te Ariki Tauaroa a Kīngi Tiāre te Tuatoru, te Kīngi o Aotearoa, me ōna uri ake me ōna whakakapi e ai ki te ture, ā, ka aro pirihonga ahau ki ngā ture o Aotearoa me te whakatutuki i āku mahi hei kirirarau o Aotearoa. Nō reira e te Atua, āwhinatia mai ahau.

Te Whakaū Pono i te Noho Pūmau

Ko ahau, ko [say your name]  tēnei e whakaū pono ana ka pirihonga ahau, ka piripono ki Te Ariki Tauaroa a Kīngi Tiāre te Tuatoru, te Kīngi o Aotearoa, me ōna uri ake me ōna whakakapi e ai ki te ture, ā, ka aro pirihonga ahau ki ngā ture o Aotearoa me te whakatutuki i āku mahi hei kirirarau o Aotearoa.

New Zealand Citizenship

Oath of Allegiance

I [say your name] swear that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to His Majesty King Charles the Third, King of New Zealand, his heirs and successors according to law, and that I will faithfully observe the laws of New Zealand and fulfil my duties as a New Zealand citizen. So help me God.

Affirmation of Allegiance

I [say your name] affirm that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to His Majesty King Charles the Third, King of New Zealand, his heirs and successors according to law, and that I will faithfully observe the laws of New Zealand and fulfil my duties as a New Zealand citizen.

Confirming attendance

Double-check they attended

Be very careful when you scan the certificates of the candidates that didn’t attend the ceremony. We use this information to record who became a citizen, and who did not. We invite those who didn’t attend to another ceremony.

If the council accidently fails to scan the certificate of someone who did not attend the ceremony, we record that person as having become a citizen. This can cause severe consequences for the candidate and their whanau: their residence visa will be cancelled and if they travel overseas, they will be refused re-entry into Aotearoa. If they were issued a New Zealand passport in error, that will also be cancelled.

In addition, they will not be invited to another ceremony because the Department's records show they have already attended a ceremony. If a person does not attend a ceremony within 12 months of approval, the approval will lapse and they have to apply for citizenship again.

Return ASAP

New citizens are often keen to apply for their first New Zealand Passport. Please return the scans of certificates for those that did not attend the ceremony as soon as you reasonably can after the ceremony, so we can update our systems. This is even more important if candidates have urgent travel.

Choice Whiriwhiria video

Reminder that the version of the Choice Whiriwhiria video being presented in citizenship ceremonies only has a message from Dame Cindy Kiro, the Governor-General of New Zealand.

The Choice Whiriwhiria video is available for download at www.psi.govt.nz/home/guidance/guidance-for-citizenship-ceremonies under the heading "Choice Whiriwhiria video". This special video has been developed for councils to welcome new citizens:

View on YouTube
Download MP4 file. Click on the link and allow a minute or so for the file to download as it is a large file. Once downloaded, go to your desktops "Download" folder to access the MP4 file. If you encounter issues contact CitizenshipCeremonies@dia.govt.nz.

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