Citizenship Ceremony cancelled due to Covid-19

Kindsoul wrote: ↑

Wed Feb 10, 2021 12:18 pm

nnn15 wrote: ↑

Tue Feb 09, 2021 10:51 pm

Kindsoul wrote: ↑

Tue Feb 09, 2021 11:46 am

Hi everyone, I have emailed to the home office numerous times to send my invitation letter via email or by post as my local council has received my naturalization certificate. But they are not giving me any reply. Now I have to cancel my citizenship ceremony which is tomorrow.

It is really frustrating now. Can anyone please help me in this matter

Some councils do citizenship ceremonies without the invitation letter, they ask for the approval letter instead. Try that first. If your council refuses, I'd recommend submitting a complaint to the Home Office (https://www.ukvi-complaints.homeoffice.gov.uk/reason) and reaching out to your MP. There is a Home Office hotline for the MPs, so your MP can either force a response from the Home Office or convince your council to do your citizenship ceremony just with the approval letter as other councils do that (apparently invitation letters going astray in the post is a common issue).

Unfortunately, my local council is not doing the Citizenship ceremony without invitation letter. Today they called me and asked about the invitation letter ( which I did not receive so far). Now they have cancelled my oath ceremony and just said they can't help me in this matter.
It is very disappointing.

Gard wrote: ↑

Wed Feb 10, 2021 2:23 pm

jasmine89 wrote: ↑

Tue Feb 09, 2021 7:21 pm

Gard wrote: ↑

Mon Feb 08, 2021 7:24 pm

jasmine89 wrote: ↑

Mon Feb 08, 2021 2:18 pm

Got another email from council saying you will have the certificate by the end of the week. This is an absolute joke. How can they take 10 days to deliver a certificate within the same city. When they say please be patient i think the don’t realise how long we have been waiting and have been patient and the emotional strain of this draining process that we have had to go through

Did you email them? This is shame jasmine. We can't do anything but wait. It's hard to wait for the certificate after finishing everything. I live one mile away from the city centre and still have to wait 10 days.

Hi syed. Did you receive your certificate by any chance today?

Hi jasmine, I have received the certificate today. What about you?

PhantomPermit wrote: ↑

Wed Feb 10, 2021 2:24 pm

anyone still waiting around 15th october approvals?

jasmine89 wrote: ↑

Wed Feb 10, 2021 5:30 pm

Gard wrote: ↑

Wed Feb 10, 2021 2:23 pm

jasmine89 wrote: ↑

Tue Feb 09, 2021 7:21 pm

Gard wrote: ↑

Mon Feb 08, 2021 7:24 pm

Did you email them? This is shame jasmine. We can't do anything but wait. It's hard to wait for the certificate after finishing everything. I live one mile away from the city centre and still have to wait 10 days.

Hi syed. Did you receive your certificate by any chance today?

Hi jasmine, I have received the certificate today. What about you?

Hi syed. Yes i have finally received mu certificate. congratulations. Have you applied for passport?

aliabbas wrote: ↑

Wed Feb 10, 2021 7:05 pm

PhantomPermit wrote: ↑

Wed Feb 10, 2021 2:24 pm

anyone still waiting around 15th october approvals?

Iam 16th October approval still waiting . When will this end

Bengomango wrote: ↑

Thu Feb 11, 2021 11:36 am

Hi guys please somebody answer me ? Do u know where I can make the digital passport photo as every shop is not doing it now ?

Bengomango wrote: ↑

Thu Feb 11, 2021 11:36 am

Hi guys please somebody answer me ? Do u know where I can make the digital passport photo as every shop is not doing it now ?

Kamana wrote: ↑

Thu Feb 11, 2021 1:05 pm

Guys. My application was approved back in Nov and on the letter I received from HO they mentioned not to call the council, so I have been waiting to get some sort of communication either from HO or the council, and this morning I thought I will give Stockport Council a ring to see if they have received my docs from HO.

The lady I spoke was really helpful and she has booked in me for a virtual ceremony for next week.

Hope it all goes well for you

Thanks

Teedee wrote: ↑

Thu Feb 11, 2021 12:22 pm

Bengomango wrote: ↑

Thu Feb 11, 2021 11:36 am

Hi guys please somebody answer me ? Do u know where I can make the digital passport photo as every shop is not doing it now ?

Have you tried Big Tesco or Sainsbury’s?

Bengomango wrote: ↑

Thu Feb 11, 2021 3:38 pm

Hi guys just a question about virtual ceremony
They need me to have invitation and photo I’d
As well as to prove I am in the uk ?
So please can you tell me what they mean to prove that I am in the uk ? Thanks a lot

Kamana wrote: ↑

Thu Feb 11, 2021 1:05 pm

Guys. My application was approved back in Nov and on the letter I received from HO they mentioned not to call the council, so I have been waiting to get some sort of communication either from HO or the council, and this morning I thought I will give Stockport Council a ring to see if they have received my docs from HO.

The lady I spoke was really helpful and she has booked in me for a virtual ceremony for next week.

Hope it all goes well for you

Thanks

Kindsoul wrote: ↑

Fri Feb 05, 2021 8:18 am

Hi all, just a quick question. I did not receive any invitation letter from the home office and in the council email they are asking me to get ready your invitation letter on the ceremony day. My virtual ceremony is on Wednesday and I received only one email in November from the home office regarding my approved application (nothing else).
Can anyone advice me in this matter

PhantomPermit wrote: ↑

Wed Feb 10, 2021 2:24 pm

anyone still waiting around 15th october approvals?

Mirinda wrote: ↑

Thu Feb 11, 2021 6:01 pm

Kindsoul wrote: ↑

Fri Feb 05, 2021 8:18 am

Hi all, just a quick question. I did not receive any invitation letter from the home office and in the council email they are asking me to get ready your invitation letter on the ceremony day. My virtual ceremony is on Wednesday and I received only one email in November from the home office regarding my approved application (nothing else).
Can anyone advice me in this matter

Hi Kindsoul, please what date was on your invitation letter?

Mirinda wrote: ↑

Thu Feb 11, 2021 5:52 pm

Kamana wrote: ↑

Thu Feb 11, 2021 1:05 pm

Guys. My application was approved back in Nov and on the letter I received from HO they mentioned not to call the council, so I have been waiting to get some sort of communication either from HO or the council, and this morning I thought I will give Stockport Council a ring to see if they have received my docs from HO.

The lady I spoke was really helpful and she has booked in me for a virtual ceremony for next week.

Hope it all goes well for you

Thanks

Hi Kamana, is it ok to ask your approval date? I was approved on 25 Nov and also still waiting.

shahkb wrote: ↑

Fri Feb 12, 2021 10:13 am

*UPDATE*

Just got a call from a lovely lady from our council (Northumberland County Council) saying they have received my Naturalization certificate and will be sending a letter soon so we can arrange ceremony ASAP. No virtual ceremony. I called them every Friday last 3 weeks so they kept my name and number so they can call me when the certificate arrives.

Application date - 21/09/2020
Approval date - 23/11/2020

I will be updating when I have the letter and ceremony.

stronk wrote: ↑

Fri Feb 12, 2021 11:13 am

shahkb wrote: ↑

Fri Feb 12, 2021 10:13 am

*UPDATE*

Just got a call from a lovely lady from our council (Northumberland County Council) saying they have received my Naturalization certificate and will be sending a letter soon so we can arrange ceremony ASAP. No virtual ceremony. I called them every Friday last 3 weeks so they kept my name and number so they can call me when the certificate arrives.

Application date - 21/09/2020
Approval date - 23/11/2020

I will be updating when I have the letter and ceremony.

So either your council isn't explaining things properly to you, or they have decided to take their own approach. Because 'The Invitation Letter' for everyone else comes directly from the Home Office. Maybe the council was trying to say that because they have received the certificate they think it's likely the HO will send out your invitation letter soon. Or maybe they don't care about the HO letter and will just send their own invitation to you. If it's the latter, that's good news for you.

shahkb wrote: ↑

Fri Feb 12, 2021 11:21 am

stronk wrote: ↑

Fri Feb 12, 2021 11:13 am

shahkb wrote: ↑

Fri Feb 12, 2021 10:13 am

*UPDATE*

Just got a call from a lovely lady from our council (Northumberland County Council) saying they have received my Naturalization certificate and will be sending a letter soon so we can arrange ceremony ASAP. No virtual ceremony. I called them every Friday last 3 weeks so they kept my name and number so they can call me when the certificate arrives.

Application date - 21/09/2020
Approval date - 23/11/2020

I will be updating when I have the letter and ceremony.

So either your council isn't explaining things properly to you, or they have decided to take their own approach. Because 'The Invitation Letter' for everyone else comes directly from the Home Office. Maybe the council was trying to say that because they have received the certificate they think it's likely the HO will send out your invitation letter soon. Or maybe they don't care about the HO letter and will just send their own invitation to you. If it's the latter, that's good news for you.

I will ring them today and get a clarity on this.

Update to follow.

stronk wrote: ↑

Fri Feb 12, 2021 11:08 am

Mirinda wrote: ↑

Thu Feb 11, 2021 5:52 pm

Kamana wrote: ↑

Thu Feb 11, 2021 1:05 pm

Guys. My application was approved back in Nov and on the letter I received from HO they mentioned not to call the council, so I have been waiting to get some sort of communication either from HO or the council, and this morning I thought I will give Stockport Council a ring to see if they have received my docs from HO.

The lady I spoke was really helpful and she has booked in me for a virtual ceremony for next week.

Hope it all goes well for you

Thanks

Hi Kamana, is it ok to ask your approval date? I was approved on 25 Nov and also still waiting.

FYI - we were approved on 18 November 2020 and are still waiting for an invitation letter. Since it has been over 12 weeks, I've now written to Wandsworth council to ask if they have received the certificate and can book a ceremony. Their website states that an invitation letter is required, implying that they won't let me. I really can't fathom what they are trying to achieve by having the Home Office delay ceremonies by not sending out letters. Even with a letter, we still have to contact the local council to book a ceremony, and that's where the burden of running the ceremonies lies. Once the Home Office has printed and mailed the naturalisation certificate, they appear to have no further role. So why not leave it to the councils to decide how to manage their own capacity?

It seems vanishingly unlikely that there are so many successful naturalisation applications that they are physically overwhelmed by the number of certificates and letters they have to print and send. And if they are overwhelmed, why insist on the letter being sent physically? The decision letters are e-mailed; why not the invitation letters?

Wandsworth council also appear to be charging £100-150 for a virtual ceremony, on the grounds that they only run private ceremonies virtually. Didn't we already pay for the ceremony in the application fee? If it's the only option they are offering, I find it odd they think they are allowed to charge extra for it. This seems like one of those 'Covid ate my homework' excuses, just being used to generate more income.