Proof of Australian citizenship 106-06020060

In new claims, the system will attempt a match or refresh of the customer's immigration information using the Immigration Datalink. If successful, and the information is available, the customer's record will automatically update with Australian citizenship grant date (if granted since 2001) and passport details.

The error ‘Country of citizenship as Australia has not been verified’ may happen where:

• the customer states they or their partner are an Australian citizen, and
• 'AU' is coded as the Country of Citizenship on the Legal Residence Details (RSLEG) screen

The above error happens unless:

• a suitable confirmation document is recorded on the POI Historical Details (POIH) or Identity Summary screens
• the Immigration Datalink has verified Australian citizenship
• an identity confirmation exemption has been recorded

This procedure can be followed when:

• processing a new claim
• an activity lifts a residence quarantine, and the customer's Australian visa or citizenship information is updated by the Immigration Datalink
• error E520RS or S520RS ‘Country of citizenship as Australia has not been verified’ is presented in a claim

To check if:

• Australian citizenship details have been recorded:
• go to the RSLEG screen
• check the Country of citizenship
  Note: if a customer and/or their partner do not have Australian citizenship recorded but have a permanent visa or are a protected SCV holder, this can generally be used for qualification purposes
• Australian passport details have been recorded:
• go to the Immigration Enquiry (RSIMME) screen
• Australian citizenship has previously been manually verified by staff in Centrelink International Services (CIS):
• go to the Residence Savings (RSS) screen
• check the Aust Citizenship Verification Ind: field for a ‘Y’

The Channel code: field on residence screens shows who verified the information:

• IMM - information came from the Immigration Datalink
• IMC - staff in CIS verified the information
• CSO - a staff member not in CIS coded the information

Note: if the data provided by the Immigration Datalink is inconsistent with what the customer has advised, see Referring inconsistencies in overseas departure and arrival information to CIS

Is there:

• an immigration record of the person as an Australian citizen on the RSLEG screen with a channel code of IMM?, or
• an Australian passport on the RSIMME screen with a channel code of IMM or IMC? If yes, check the date of event for Australian citizenship on RSLEG is correct, and update if applicable, or
• confirmation Australian citizenship has been manually verified on the RSS screen?

Yes, and

• error E520RS or S520RS is presenting, see Table 2, Step 8
• the claim is rejecting for a residence-related reason, such as NSR (not sufficient residence), NPV (no permanent visa), or NWA (NARWP assessment not met), the customer may not have met other residence rules. See the relevant ‘Residence assessment for [applicable payment]’ Operational Blueprint page. Procedure ends here
• no error is presenting and there is nothing indicating that there are issues with residence, continue with the assessment. Procedure ends here

No, go to Step 3

The customer/partner may have given evidence of Australian citizenship as part of the Identity Confirmation process.

Check verification history for Australian citizenship documents, passport, or birth certificate. In:

• Process Direct
• go to the Identity Summary screen (via Identity Confirmation Dashboard)
• Customer First
• go to Identity Summary via the CRN/BP tab (for older records, the POI Historical Details (POIH) screen may need to be checked)
• Proof of Identity (POI) screen
• scanned images in Document Tools

Has the customer/partner provided an Australian citizenship document or passport?

• Yes, check that the Australian citizenship is recorded on the RSLEG screen and the date of event for Australian citizenship is correct. Update if applicable, procedure ends here
• No, if the customer has:
• provided an Australian or Norfolk Island birth certificate, and/or they began to reside in Australia (including Norfolk Island) before 26 January 1949, go to Step 5
• provided a Papua New Guinea birth certificate dated before 16 September 1975, go to Step 6
• not provided any documents proving Australian citizenship, go to Step 4

Check the customer’s visas on the RSLEG screen.

If the visa in the Subclass Code: field is:

• 444, check the New Zealand residence status: field. This will show if the customer is a protected (GRF or TRA) or non-protected (NOT) SCV holder
• not a 444, check if the visa is a permanent or temporary visa. See the References page for a link to the Social Security Guide, Chapter 9.2, Visa subclasses and payment eligibility for visas issued after 1/9/1994

Note: if the Subclass Code: field is blank, see Activating the Department of Home Affairs datalink and contingency procedures if datalink is unavailable.

Is the customer a protected SCV holder or do they hold a permanent visa?

• Yes, see Table 2, Step 3
• No, see Table 2, Step 1

Was the person:

• born before 26 January 1949, and
• from information in their claim, or on the Country of Residence (CRES) screen, were they residing in Australia or Norfolk Island on 26 January 1949?

Yes, the person is an Australian citizen. Make sure the Country of Residence (CRES) screen reflects the correct date the customer commenced residing in Australia or Norfolk Island. Code Norfolk Island as Australia. See Table 2, Step 7

No, go to Step 7

To be an Australian citizen, one of the person’s parents must have been born in Australia and an Australian citizen at the time of the person’s birth.

Check for evidence that the parent’s held this status at the time of the person’s birth. This could include parent’s birth certificates, citizenship certificates or information found through the Department of Home Affairs Movements Reconstruction (MR) Database. Staff need specific access for the database. If staff do not have access and cannot find the information through other means, answer ‘No’ to the below question.

Is there evidence that one of the parent’s was born in Australia and was an Australian citizen at the time of the persons birth?

• Yes, the person is an Australian citizen, see Table 2, Step 7
• No, see Table 2, Step 4

Was the person born in Australia before 20 August 1986?

• Yes, the person is an Australian citizen, see Table 2, Step 7
• No, go to Step 8

Was the person born in Australia, either:

• after 20 August 1986 and at least one of their parents, at the time of the person's birth, was:
• an Australian citizen,
• a permanent visa holder or
• a protected SCV holder?
• between 1 September 1994 and 26 February 2001, or after 1 July 2022 and at least one of their parents was a New Zealand SCV holder (protected or non protected)?

Yes, or unsure, go to Step 9

No, go to Step 10

To confirm Australian citizenship, verification that one of their parents is an Australian citizen, permanent visa holder or SCV holder is needed.

Note: if the person was born on Norfolk Island, they should provide verification that one of their parents was at that time:

• an Australian citizen, or
• Permanent visa holder, or
• official Norfolk Island resident

Verification may be:

• information found on parent’s Centrelink record such as their Australian:
• birth certificate
• passport (current or expired) or
• Citizenship Certificate
• evidence of parent’s permanent visa

Check for evidence of Australian permanent legal residence for one of the customer’s parents. This could include parent’s birth certificates, citizenship certificates or information found through the Department of Home Affairs Movements Reconstruction (MR) Database. Staff need specific access for the database. If staff do not have access and cannot find the information through other means, answer ‘No’ to the below question.

Has relevant Australian residence status been verified for one of the customer’s parents?

• Yes, the person is an Australia citizen, see Table 2, Step 7
• No, go to Step 10

A person may acquire Australian citizenship if they were born in Australia and have lived here for 10 years regardless of what type of visa their parent(s) had.

Consider information in the claim and/or on the customer’s record, including the Immigration Advised Movements (RSIM) and CRES screens, to determine if it appears the customer resided in Australia until their 10th birthday. For help, see Assessing if a customer is an Australian resident.

Was the person born in Australia after 20 August 1986 and does information on their record indicate they may have resided in Australia up until their 10th birthday?

• Yes, a decision on whether the customer is an Australian citizen must be made by immigration. Do not code the customer as an Australian citizen at this point. Make sure their period residing in Australia has been recorded on the Country of Residence (CRES) screen. See Table 2, Step 3
• No, go to Step 11

An Australian or Norfolk Island birth certificate is not proof of citizenship.

To establish that the customer is an Australian citizen, they must provide either an Australian:

• passport
• Citizenship Certificate
• Citizenship extract

Check the customer's record (include scanned images, POIH, RSIMME or Identity Summary screens) to see if they have already provided this evidence.

Has the customer provided evidence?

• Yes, see Table 2, Step 7
• No, see Table 2, Step 3

Check the reason for updating citizenship, is it:

• as part of the First Contact Services Offer (FCSO) workflow
• as part of a verbal claim for a Low Income Health Care Card (LIC), or
• to prevent cancellation for a residence related reason due to an update, for example, portability interview, Health Care Card reissue?

Is the reason for updating citizenship listed above?

• Yes, go to Step 2
• No, Australian citizenship or permanent visa must be verified before the claim or update can be finalised
• Contact the customer and ask for documentation that verifies their Australian citizenship
• If a customer provides relevant documents, repeat the process from Table 1
• If the customer cannot provide relevant documents, go to Step 3

The Service Officer is:

• indexing a claim using the First Contact Service Offer (FCSO) workflow
• processing a LIC verbal claim, or
• correcting a cancellation for a residence related reason

Generally, residence information may be accepted pending return of the information, unless the Service Officer has justifiable doubts as to the validity of the information provided.

If necessary, ask the customer to provide verification within 14 days. Staff should record the information provided by the customer on the system. Do not finalise the claim without this verification being provided.

Indexing a claim using FCSO

The Service Officer should code the minimum residence information provided by the customer on the system to allow FCSO to finalise.

This will generally require the following fields to be updated:

• Immigration Enquiry (RSIMME) screen:
• Country of Birth: and
• Lived or travelled outside Australia since 1 Sept 1994:
• Legal Residence Details (RSLEG) screen:
• Date of Event:
• Country of Citizenship:

Tell the customer to provide documents to verify their details when they lodge their claim. Verify the residence information before finalising the claim.

Processing a LIC verbal claim

Residence information should be entered on the system to allow the workflow to be completed. If the customer is already receiving payment, verification would generally not be necessary.

Cancellation for a residence related reason during a non-residence related update

Customers who have a residence quarantine on their record may have their payment cancelled for a residence related reason when their residence information is updated.

The customer’s residence information should be entered on the system to allow the update to be finalised without cancellation occurring. If their Country of Residence (CRES) screen shows that they were residing in Australia on and before 1 September 1994, update the RSLEG screen. Use the visa subclass '111' and visa grant date as the date they started residing in Australia to restore the payment.

Continue with the activity and tell the customer to provide documents as follow up if necessary.

Procedure ends here.

A customer and/or their partner do not need to be Australian citizens for the customer to be residentially qualified for a Centrelink payment if they meet other residence criteria.

If any of the following apply, it is generally not necessary to record a person's Australian citizenship before granting their claim:

• the person is a permanent visa or protected SCV holder, or
• the person qualifies for the payment or card as a non-protected SCV holder or a holder of a certain temporary visa that qualify customers for some payments (parental leave payments, family assistance and concession cards (excluding Ex Carer Allowance Health Care Card (EHC))

Note: the person will need verification of citizenship to allow the Australian citizen exemption from the NARWP if they are claiming a NARWP affected payment and:

• they have not served the NAWRP, or
• they do not have an exemption from the NARWP without reliance on their Australian citizenship

The customer may still need to serve a qualifying residence period for Age Pension, DSP or Parenting Payment.

Does the person residentially qualify for the payment or card they are claiming without needing Australian citizenship for NARWP exemption purposes?

• Yes, go to Step 9
• No, go to Step 4

The NAA website holds some citizenship records, particularly for people who have obtained citizenship through ‘naturalisation’.

Search the digital records on the National Archives website:

• Select Go to RecordSearch
• Select NameSearch tab
• Enter the surname and given name of the customer
• In the Category of records dropdown, select Immigration and naturalisation records
• Select Search

Has a record of the customer’s citizenship been found?

• Yes, go to Step 10
• No, go to Step 5

If the customer does not have any verification, Services Australia can help in verifying citizenship and/or permanent visa status for the customer and/or their partner.

To send a request for verification of citizenship to CIS:

In Process Direct:

• select > Referral
• Referral type: International Services (CIS)
• Referral reason: Residence Verification Service Request
• On the Referral details screen, complete the Additional information template

In Customer First:

• use Fast Note - select Auto text, use Centrelink International Services > Residence > Verify Citizenship Request
• complete the details in the template

Note: if the customer was born on or after 20 August 1986, and verification of one or both parents' details are needed, note this in the Referral or Fast Note. Detail if the parent is:

• an Australian citizen
• permanent visa holder parent
• an SCV holder (before 26 February 2001)
• a protected SCV holder (on or after 26 February 2001)

Place the new claim or activity on hold awaiting a response from CIS

CIS will investigate, code the record, document their findings and take the new claim or activity off hold for reallocation via WLM. If citizenship has been verified, CIS staff may have updated the Aust Citizenship Verification Ind: field on the Residence Savings (RSS) screen.

Has CIS verified the customer is an Australian citizen?

• Yes, go to Step 10
• No, go to Step 6

If staff have not been able to verify citizenship by any other means, tell the customer they can:

• apply for evidence of Australian citizenship through the Home Affairs website, or
• contact Home Affairs to ask for evidence

This is the customer's choice and there is a cost.

Note: Services Australia will not make the customer take this option and are just letting them know it is available.

Has the customer stated they will ask for evidence of citizenship from Home Affairs?

• Yes, put the claim or activity on hold awaiting return of the evidence. Procedure ends here
• No, go to Step 9

To be accepted, an Australian passport, citizenship certificate or birth certificate must be recorded:

• on the RSIMME screen
• as part of Identity Confirmation process, or
• previously on the POIH screen

If adding Australian passport details to the RSIMME screen, refresh the Immigration Datalink to verify the passport via the datalink.

Note: if any of these documents cannot be recorded as above (for example, Identity Confirmation is finalised and a different commencement or identity document is used), CIS staff must record the verification.

If the document/s have not already been recorded, attempt to record on the relevant screen/s.

Are the documents recorded?

• Yes, go to Step 10
• No, go to Step 8

Make sure all verification document/s have been scanned to the customer's record.

Refer the case to CIS for coding.

In Process Direct:

• select > Referral
• Referral type: International Services (CIS)
• Referral reason: Residence Verification Service Request
• Add relevant information, for example 'Australian cit. verification request' and list the documents verifying Australian citizenship that are attached to the customer’s record
• Select Finish

In Customer First:

• use Fast Note - select Auto text, use Centrelink International Services > Residence > RSS coding required for AU citizen

Place the new claim or activity on hold awaiting a response from CIS. CIS staff will record the Aust Citizenship Verification Ind on the RSS screen. Only CIS staff can code this screen.

When CIS complete their investigation, they will take the claim off hold for reallocation via WLM. The officer allocated this work item continues with this process.

Has citizenship been verified on the RSS screen?

• Yes, go to Step 10
• No, clarify any further requirements with CIS. Once rectified and the RSS screen is coded, go to Step 10

The relevant person is not to be recorded as an Australian citizen.

• If the person was born outside Australia, record their country of birth from the RSIMME screen as their country of citizenship on the RSLEG screen
• If the person first arrived in Australia:
• before 1 September 1994 and resided in Australia at the time, accept permanent residence, unless there is reason to believe otherwise. On the RSLEG screen record the country of citizenship as the country of birth. Manually add a visa, code '111' as the Subclass and 1 September 1994 as the Grant Date
• after 1 September 1994 and no immigration records can be found, do not grant the claim until the customer provides some proof of legal residence status
• Use the permanent residence visa information instead of Australian citizenship where:
• the person has proof of a permanent residence visa, or
• the RSLEG screen has a record of a permanent residence visa received from the Immigration Datalink
• Delete the entry on the RSLEG screen if the person has Australian citizenship recorded

For more help with coding, see Recording legal residence status.

Record information and reasons for decision on a Note/DOC.

Continue with the new claim or activity.

Procedure ends here.

• Make sure Country of Citizenship is recorded as Australia on the RSLEG screen and the date of event for Australian citizenship is correct
• Request the Immigration Datalink on the RSIMME screen if Australian passport details are not recorded with an IMM channel
• Finalise activity or continue with new claim (if relevant)
• Record details on a Note/DOC

CIS receives requests for verification of citizenship via a Process Direct Referral or Fast Note.

Review the Referral or DOC to determine the customer’s circumstances and reason for the request.

CIS staff must investigate the customer’s details to determine if they appear to meet general Australian citizenship rules. If there is any doubt, send a request to Home Affairs to verify if the customer is an Australian citizen.

Examine the DOCs and scanned images on the customer’s record for the relevant information provided. Depending on the circumstances, this may include:

• Australian birth certificate
• Papua New Guinea birth certificate
• parent’s names
• parent’s birth certificates
• verification of parent’s permanent visa or SCV

Depending on the request, check the customer's and/or their parent’s immigration record/s in the Department of Home Affairs Movements Reconstruction (MR) database for:

• travel movements
• visa/citizenship status (current and historical)
• passport details

Is there enough information to clearly show the person is an Australia citizen, (if there is any doubt, answer ‘No’)?

• Yes, go to Step 4
• No, and the customer:
• appears to meet the criteria to be an Australian citizen (for example, it appears they resided in Australia until their 10th birthday and they meet other related criteria), go to Step 3
• does not appear to meet any of the criteria to be an Australian citizen, go to Step 5

If it appears the customer meets general Australian citizenship rules, complete the Citizenship Details Request Form. The Resources tab has a link.

Submit the form, which will flow to Home Affairs. They will action the request and email a response to the CIS staff member who sent the request.

Review the response when it is received.

Is the response that the customer is an Australian citizen?

• Yes, go to Step 4
• No, go to Step 5

• Code the Australian citizenship details on the RSLEG screen, make sure the DOV for Australian citizenship is correct
• Update the Aust Citizenship Verification Ind: field on the RSS screen with ‘Y’
• DOC the record with the outcome and outline the reasons for determining the customer an Australia citizen
• Take the new claim or activity off hold so it can be allocated for processing

Procedure ends here.

• DOC the record with the outcome
• Take the new claim or activity off hold so it can be allocated for processing