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Citizenship Ceremony cancelled due to Covid-19

A section for posts relating to applications for Naturalisation or Registration as a British Citizen. Naturalisation

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ferrano86
Newly Registered
Posts: 1
Joined: Fri Mar 12, 2021 2:05 pm
Italy

Re: Citizenship Ceremony cancelled due to Covid-19

Post by ferrano86 » Fri Mar 12, 2021 2:14 pm

gk777 wrote:
Fri Mar 12, 2021 12:05 am
yezi0432 wrote:
Mon Mar 08, 2021 4:11 pm
yezi0432 wrote:
Tue Feb 23, 2021 11:23 am
Timeline:
Application fee paid: March 2020
Biometric enrolled: June 2020
Approval received: 03/11/2020
Invitation letter: 06/03/2021

After emailing UKVI multiple times and calling the support line, I finally got this below from UKVI.

"Upon investigation I can confirm that your citizenship ceremony documents have not yet been printed or despatched to the local authority due to a system error. Your citizenship paperwork will be generated in coming weeks when current restrictions due to Coronavirus are eased. "

Not sure how many people are stuck here like me due to "system error". Looks like will be still a few weeks longer of waiting. Good luck!
Finally got the invitation letter on 06/03/2021 (printed on 25/02/2021) after I wrote to UKVI again to ask for the letter to be expedited. Council was very fast, reached out to book a virtual ceremony today already. Thanks a lot for all the info on the forum. And good luck to everyone who is patiently waiting!
Congratulations. What email id did you use to contact UKVI?
Hi gk777,
I am new on forums, hence I am not sure I am replying the correct way, however I can tell you the email address I used to contact them: CT2caseworkenquiries@homeoffice.gov.uk. I have received the approval on Dec 18th, but no invitation letter as yet (the three month-deadline expires next week): I sent an email to request clarifications to the email above and the clerk replied the following day saying they are late and cannot give me a time frame in relation to sending that beloved piece of paper. Happy days.

JKAR25142
Newly Registered
Posts: 18
Joined: Sun Dec 13, 2020 2:52 am
Swaziland

Re: Citizenship Ceremony cancelled due to Covid-19

Post by JKAR25142 » Fri Mar 12, 2021 2:32 pm

ferrano86 wrote:
Fri Mar 12, 2021 2:14 pm
gk777 wrote:
Fri Mar 12, 2021 12:05 am
yezi0432 wrote:
Mon Mar 08, 2021 4:11 pm
yezi0432 wrote:
Tue Feb 23, 2021 11:23 am
Timeline:
Application fee paid: March 2020
Biometric enrolled: June 2020
Approval received: 03/11/2020
Invitation letter: 06/03/2021

After emailing UKVI multiple times and calling the support line, I finally got this below from UKVI.

"Upon investigation I can confirm that your citizenship ceremony documents have not yet been printed or despatched to the local authority due to a system error. Your citizenship paperwork will be generated in coming weeks when current restrictions due to Coronavirus are eased. "

Not sure how many people are stuck here like me due to "system error". Looks like will be still a few weeks longer of waiting. Good luck!
Finally got the invitation letter on 06/03/2021 (printed on 25/02/2021) after I wrote to UKVI again to ask for the letter to be expedited. Council was very fast, reached out to book a virtual ceremony today already. Thanks a lot for all the info on the forum. And good luck to everyone who is patiently waiting!
Congratulations. What email id did you use to contact UKVI?
Congratulation. If you don't mind me asking what is the email contact for UKVI?
Thanks
Hi gk777,
I am new on forums, hence I am not sure I am replying the correct way, however I can tell you the email address I used to contact them: CT2caseworkenquiries@homeoffice.gov.uk. I have received the approval on Dec 18th, but no invitation letter as yet (the three month-deadline expires next week): I sent an email to request clarifications to the email above and the clerk replied the following day saying they are late and cannot give me a time frame in relation to sending that beloved piece of paper. Happy days.

goodcitizen
Newly Registered
Posts: 7
Joined: Tue Mar 02, 2021 11:15 am
Isle of Man

Re: Citizenship Ceremony cancelled due to Covid-19

Post by goodcitizen » Fri Mar 12, 2021 4:11 pm

goodcitizen wrote:
Tue Mar 02, 2021 11:23 am
I got my nationality approval email on 30th November 2020 but hadn't received any correspondence from the Home Office since then. I then actually emailed the nationality casework decision service, the address of which was in the email I received with the decision. In my case this was CT3CaseworkEnquiries@homeoffice.gov.uk. Please note that this will be different depending from case to case. I got a reply within 2 hours with the pdf of my invitation letter, the date printed on the letter is 10th February and I haven't received it yet. It was also stated on the email that I should wait till 17th March for the letter. Hope this info helps
Update: I never received anything in the mail, got confirmed today with the Walthamforest council that they have received my citizenship certificate

JKAR25142
Newly Registered
Posts: 18
Joined: Sun Dec 13, 2020 2:52 am
Swaziland

Re: Citizenship Ceremony cancelled due to Covid-19

Post by JKAR25142 » Fri Mar 12, 2021 5:30 pm

Guys, I am new to forums!

I have got approved in July 2020
I am still waiting for an invitation letter. it has been eight months :|

Is there anyone same my situation?

Thanks

JKAR25142
Newly Registered
Posts: 18
Joined: Sun Dec 13, 2020 2:52 am
Swaziland

Re: Citizenship Ceremony cancelled due to Covid-19

Post by JKAR25142 » Fri Mar 12, 2021 6:19 pm

MALCOM2 wrote:
Fri Mar 05, 2021 12:12 am
memoa wrote:
Thu Mar 04, 2021 11:41 pm
Hi all,


I have applied for BC on the first week of August 2020, Iand I have received the email dissension on 29 sep 2020.

The email explains that the letter of the invitation of the ceremony could take up to 12 weeks., but now it's more than 30 weeks and no letters received.

I emailed the nationality enquiries and an automatic reply saying the ceremony letters all processed up to 15 November 2020.

I have tried to call the home office but no one has reply,

I have also contacted the local council and the reply was we haven't received any letters with your info.

My MP never reply to my email or answer the calls

Any advice to my case?

Thanks
May they didn’t print your certificate due to the error . Make sure keep pushing them . Everyday you wake up make sure you send them email .may be one of them should respond to you . furthernationalityenquiries@homeoffice.gov.uk
Hi there

if you don't mind me asking have you got your invitation letter?

thanks

JKAR25142
Newly Registered
Posts: 18
Joined: Sun Dec 13, 2020 2:52 am
Swaziland

Re: Citizenship Ceremony cancelled due to Covid-19

Post by JKAR25142 » Fri Mar 12, 2021 6:26 pm

successorxx wrote:
Tue Feb 23, 2021 10:00 pm
SamcoSamco wrote:
Tue Feb 23, 2021 2:38 pm
I have been waiting since July and nothing yet. I have seen others mentioning this system error before and wonder if UKVI is checking how many are affected by it.
Hey Samco Can't beleive you're still waiting...I dont know whether to laugh or cry right now as I am totally exhausted...I have been waiting since August..Here is the last email I got from them

Thank you for your enquiry about your citizenship ceremony.

Apologies for the delay, but as explained in our previous email there was an IT issue that incurred a delay in your invitation being printed that has now been resolved and your application has been forwarded on to our Ceremonies and Citizenship Support department.

Unfortunately, due to the strict social distancing measures currently in place and to ensure the safety of our staff, regrettably, resources in our Ceremonies and Citizenship Support department are extremely limited, at present.


Please be assured that our ceremonies and citizenship support team will issue your ceremony invite letter by post within the next 8 – 12 weeks. You are required to attend a citizenship ceremony within 6 months of the date printed on your ceremony invitation. Upon receipt of the invitation letter, you can make the necessary arrangements with your local authority.
Hi mate
it the same here I am waiting since July with no even a reply! what email did you use?
thanks

N S
Newly Registered
Posts: 21
Joined: Mon Jun 15, 2020 5:32 pm
Pakistan

Re: Citizenship Ceremony cancelled due to Covid-19

Post by N S » Fri Mar 12, 2021 10:32 pm

JKAR25142 wrote:
Fri Mar 12, 2021 6:26 pm
successorxx wrote:
Tue Feb 23, 2021 10:00 pm
SamcoSamco wrote:
Tue Feb 23, 2021 2:38 pm
I have been waiting since July and nothing yet. I have seen others mentioning this system error before and wonder if UKVI is checking how many are affected by it.
Hey Samco Can't beleive you're still waiting...I dont know whether to laugh or cry right now as I am totally exhausted...I have been waiting since August..Here is the last email I got from them

Thank you for your enquiry about your citizenship ceremony.

Apologies for the delay, but as explained in our previous email there was an IT issue that incurred a delay in your invitation being printed that has now been resolved and your application has been forwarded on to our Ceremonies and Citizenship Support department.

Unfortunately, due to the strict social distancing measures currently in place and to ensure the safety of our staff, regrettably, resources in our Ceremonies and Citizenship Support department are extremely limited, at present.


Please be assured that our ceremonies and citizenship support team will issue your ceremony invite letter by post within the next 8 – 12 weeks. You are required to attend a citizenship ceremony within 6 months of the date printed on your ceremony invitation. Upon receipt of the invitation letter, you can make the necessary arrangements with your local authority.
Hi mate
it the same here I am waiting since July with no even a reply! what email did you use?
thanks



Call this number 08006781767 I am sure they will help you if not wright a letter to your case worker you can find the details of your case worker on your approval email or approval letter if you still haven't got it then send it to


UK Visas and Citizenship
4th floor Silver zone The
Capital Building New Hall
Place Liverpool
L3 9PP

good luck

JKAR25142
Newly Registered
Posts: 18
Joined: Sun Dec 13, 2020 2:52 am
Swaziland

Re: Citizenship Ceremony cancelled due to Covid-19

Post by JKAR25142 » Sat Mar 13, 2021 9:15 am

yezi0432 wrote:
Tue Feb 23, 2021 11:23 am
Timeline:
Application fee paid: March 2020
Biometric enrolled: June 2020
Approval received: 03/11/2020
Invitation letter: still pending

After emailing UKVI multiple times and calling the support line, I finally got this below from UKVI.

"Upon investigation I can confirm that your citizenship ceremony documents have not yet been printed or despatched to the local authority due to a system error. Your citizenship paperwork will be generated in coming weeks when current restrictions due to Coronavirus are eased. "

Not sure how many people are stuck here like me due to "system error". Looks like will be still a few weeks longer of waiting. Good luck!
Hi mate what is the email for UKIV, please I am waiting since July 2020!

nnn15
Member
Posts: 193
Joined: Mon Mar 30, 2020 11:55 am

Re: Citizenship Ceremony cancelled due to Covid-19

Post by nnn15 » Sat Mar 13, 2021 9:35 am

JKAR25142 wrote:
Fri Mar 12, 2021 5:30 pm
Guys, I am new to forums!

I have got approved in July 2020
I am still waiting for an invitation letter. it has been eight months :|

Is there anyone same my situation?

Thanks
Hi, I had this problem. Apparently the HO forgot to print the paperwork for some applications. You should call the Home Office helpline and ask them to escalate your case as you've been waiting for 8 months and your invitation letter still hasn't arrived. If they tell you to wait, respond that back in November 2020 the HO confirmed they printed and sent the paperwork for all the applications approved through August 2020. Evidently yours hasn't arrived, so there's been some mistake and if nothing is done, they probably aren't going to work on printing your application. Once your case has been escalated, you should get a confirmation email (I got one within an hour) and they are supposed to respond within 10 working days (I never got a response). If you don't get a confirmation email it probably means they haven't escalated, so you should call the helpline again and convince the agent to escalate.

You should also email Citizenship.Support@homeoffice.gov.uk, NationalitySupportTeamFMT@homeoffice.gov.uk and FurtherNationalityEnquiries@homeoffice.gov.uk and ask when your paperwork is going to be printed and sent. In my experience they are very slow in responding (citizenship.support replied to me after 3 months) or don't respond at all, but some people on this forum got responses.

Since the Home Office failed to print and send your paperwork when they were processing applications with similar timelines, you can submit a complaint here https://www.ukvi-complaints.homeoffice.gov.uk/reason. They respond within 20 working days.

If you don't get a reasonable response after trying all the above, you can reach out to your MP, explain that you've tried all the HO support channels to no avail, and then the MP office can submit an enquiry to the Home Office as well. The Home Office is legally obliged to respond to the MPs, so after some time you'll get an answer addressing the details of your case.

JKAR25142
Newly Registered
Posts: 18
Joined: Sun Dec 13, 2020 2:52 am
Swaziland

Re: Citizenship Ceremony cancelled due to Covid-19

Post by JKAR25142 » Sat Mar 13, 2021 9:42 am

nnn15 wrote:
Sat Mar 13, 2021 9:35 am
JKAR25142 wrote:
Fri Mar 12, 2021 5:30 pm
Guys, I am new to forums!

I have got approved in July 2020
I am still waiting for an invitation letter. it has been eight months :|

Is there anyone same my situation?

Thanks
Hi, I had this problem. Apparently the HO forgot to print the paperwork for some applications. You should call the Home Office helpline and ask them to escalate your case as you've been waiting for 8 months and your invitation letter still hasn't arrived. If they tell you to wait, respond that back in November 2020 the HO confirmed they printed and sent the paperwork for all the applications approved through August 2020. Evidently yours hasn't arrived, so there's been some mistake and if nothing is done, they probably aren't going to work on printing your application. Once your case has been escalated, you should get a confirmation email (I got one within an hour) and they are supposed to respond within 10 working days (I never got a response). If you don't get a confirmation email it probably means they haven't escalated, so you should call the helpline again and convince the agent to escalate.

You should also email Citizenship.Support@homeoffice.gov.uk, NationalitySupportTeamFMT@homeoffice.gov.uk and FurtherNationalityEnquiries@homeoffice.gov.uk and ask when your paperwork is going to be printed and sent. In my experience they are very slow in responding (citizenship.support replied to me after 3 months) or don't respond at all, but some people on this forum got responses.

Since the Home Office failed to print and send your paperwork when they were processing applications with similar timelines, you can submit a complaint here https://www.ukvi-complaints.homeoffice.gov.uk/reason. They respond within 20 working days.

If you don't get a reasonable response after trying all the above, you can reach out to your MP, explain that you've tried all the HO support channels to no avail, and then the MP office can submit an enquiry to the Home Office as well. The Home Office is legally obliged to respond to the MPs, so after some time you'll get an answer addressing the details of your case.
Thanks, mate for replying and the help you gave to me, but I have tried all of these above with no response from the OH!
Idk what to do more than that :?

Moha007
Newly Registered
Posts: 6
Joined: Sun Jan 03, 2021 6:39 am
Mood:

Re: Citizenship Ceremony cancelled due to Covid-19

Post by Moha007 » Sat Mar 13, 2021 10:21 am

Is it possible for naturalisation to be retrieved once it’s approved due to speeding penalty. As I am waiting for the citizenship ceremony letter.
Approved 22 jan 2021

Coacoa
Newly Registered
Posts: 2
Joined: Tue Dec 22, 2020 10:43 pm
Kiribati

Re: Citizenship Ceremony cancelled due to Covid-19

Post by Coacoa » Sat Mar 13, 2021 11:14 am

Date on Approval letter: 22 December 2020
Date of receipt of approval: 22 December 2020
Date of receipt of ceremony letter: 13 March 2021
Letter dated: 05 March 2021 (2nd class)
Date of Ceremony: waiting

N S
Newly Registered
Posts: 21
Joined: Mon Jun 15, 2020 5:32 pm
Pakistan

Re: Citizenship Ceremony cancelled due to Covid-19

Post by N S » Sat Mar 13, 2021 10:51 pm

Simba2021 wrote:
Wed Mar 10, 2021 12:56 am
Eligibility criteria:18 years in UK, 7 on ILR Refugee Settlement route
Language/LIUK Criteria: MA/MSc from UK & LIUK pass
Nationality: Zimbabwean
Method of application:Online
Date of application :23 September 2019
Payment method: Visa Debit
Date of acknowledgement: 24 September 2019
Date of debit of fees:24/09/2019
Date of biometric letter received/issued:
Date Biometrics enrolled: 6/October/2019 on the UKVIS paid £60
Emails after emails and complaints to HO
Date on Approval letter: 18 December 2020
Date of receipt of approval: 19 December 2020
Date of receipt of ceremony letter: waiting
Date of Ceremony: waiting

Still waiting for the letter, its now 12 weeks since I received approval letter, anyone in similar circumstances




Have you received your invitation yet.....? my approval is the day as you 19 December 2020 I still haven't receive mine .

nnn15
Member
Posts: 193
Joined: Mon Mar 30, 2020 11:55 am

Re: Citizenship Ceremony cancelled due to Covid-19

Post by nnn15 » Sat Mar 13, 2021 11:40 pm

JKAR25142 wrote:
Sat Mar 13, 2021 9:42 am
nnn15 wrote:
Sat Mar 13, 2021 9:35 am
JKAR25142 wrote:
Fri Mar 12, 2021 5:30 pm
Guys, I am new to forums!

I have got approved in July 2020
I am still waiting for an invitation letter. it has been eight months :|

Is there anyone same my situation?

Thanks
Hi, I had this problem. Apparently the HO forgot to print the paperwork for some applications. You should call the Home Office helpline and ask them to escalate your case as you've been waiting for 8 months and your invitation letter still hasn't arrived. If they tell you to wait, respond that back in November 2020 the HO confirmed they printed and sent the paperwork for all the applications approved through August 2020. Evidently yours hasn't arrived, so there's been some mistake and if nothing is done, they probably aren't going to work on printing your application. Once your case has been escalated, you should get a confirmation email (I got one within an hour) and they are supposed to respond within 10 working days (I never got a response). If you don't get a confirmation email it probably means they haven't escalated, so you should call the helpline again and convince the agent to escalate.

You should also email Citizenship.Support@homeoffice.gov.uk, NationalitySupportTeamFMT@homeoffice.gov.uk and FurtherNationalityEnquiries@homeoffice.gov.uk and ask when your paperwork is going to be printed and sent. In my experience they are very slow in responding (citizenship.support replied to me after 3 months) or don't respond at all, but some people on this forum got responses.

Since the Home Office failed to print and send your paperwork when they were processing applications with similar timelines, you can submit a complaint here https://www.ukvi-complaints.homeoffice.gov.uk/reason. They respond within 20 working days.

If you don't get a reasonable response after trying all the above, you can reach out to your MP, explain that you've tried all the HO support channels to no avail, and then the MP office can submit an enquiry to the Home Office as well. The Home Office is legally obliged to respond to the MPs, so after some time you'll get an answer addressing the details of your case.
Thanks, mate for replying and the help you gave to me, but I have tried all of these above with no response from the OH!
Idk what to do more than that :?
Have you reached out to your MP and if so, have they replied?

Simba2021
Newly Registered
Posts: 5
Joined: Wed Mar 10, 2021 12:42 am
Zimbabwe

Re: Citizenship Ceremony cancelled due to Covid-19

Post by Simba2021 » Sun Mar 14, 2021 12:14 am

Simba2021 wrote: ↑
Wed Mar 10, 2021 12:56 am
Eligibility criteria:18 years in UK, 7 on ILR Refugee Settlement route
Language/LIUK Criteria: MA/MSc from UK & LIUK pass
Nationality: Zimbabwean
Method of application:Online
Date of application :23 September 2019
Payment method: Visa Debit
Date of acknowledgement: 24 September 2019
Date of debit of fees:24/09/2019
Date of biometric letter received/issued:
Date Biometrics enrolled: 6/October/2019 on the UKVIS paid £60
Emails after emails and complaints to HO
Date on Approval letter: 18 December 2020
Date of receipt of approval: 19 December 2020
Date of receipt of ceremony letter: 14 March 2021
Date of Ceremony: waiting

Unlike some of you my journey has been very long. The process took 18months to this stage. Monday morning will start trying to book ceremony. As a refugee, time means nothing in the British immigration system. But patience counts.

JKAR25142
Newly Registered
Posts: 18
Joined: Sun Dec 13, 2020 2:52 am
Swaziland

Re: Citizenship Ceremony cancelled due to Covid-19

Post by JKAR25142 » Sun Mar 14, 2021 10:07 am

nnn15 wrote:
Sat Mar 13, 2021 11:40 pm
JKAR25142 wrote:
Sat Mar 13, 2021 9:42 am
nnn15 wrote:
Sat Mar 13, 2021 9:35 am
JKAR25142 wrote:
Fri Mar 12, 2021 5:30 pm
Guys, I am new to forums!

I have got approved in July 2020
I am still waiting for an invitation letter. it has been eight months :|

Is there anyone same my situation?

Thanks
Hi, I had this problem. Apparently the HO forgot to print the paperwork for some applications. You should call the Home Office helpline and ask them to escalate your case as you've been waiting for 8 months and your invitation letter still hasn't arrived. If they tell you to wait, respond that back in November 2020 the HO confirmed they printed and sent the paperwork for all the applications approved through August 2020. Evidently yours hasn't arrived, so there's been some mistake and if nothing is done, they probably aren't going to work on printing your application. Once your case has been escalated, you should get a confirmation email (I got one within an hour) and they are supposed to respond within 10 working days (I never got a response). If you don't get a confirmation email it probably means they haven't escalated, so you should call the helpline again and convince the agent to escalate.

You should also email Citizenship.Support@homeoffice.gov.uk, NationalitySupportTeamFMT@homeoffice.gov.uk and FurtherNationalityEnquiries@homeoffice.gov.uk and ask when your paperwork is going to be printed and sent. In my experience they are very slow in responding (citizenship.support replied to me after 3 months) or don't respond at all, but some people on this forum got responses.

Since the Home Office failed to print and send your paperwork when they were processing applications with similar timelines, you can submit a complaint here https://www.ukvi-complaints.homeoffice.gov.uk/reason. They respond within 20 working days.

If you don't get a reasonable response after trying all the above, you can reach out to your MP, explain that you've tried all the HO support channels to no avail, and then the MP office can submit an enquiry to the Home Office as well. The Home Office is legally obliged to respond to the MPs, so after some time you'll get an answer addressing the details of your case.
Thanks, mate for replying and the help you gave to me, but I have tried all of these above with no response from the OH!
Idk what to do more than that :?
Have you reached out to your MP and if so, have they replied?
Yes, I have but they said I have to wait and they said they know it is frustrating! :?

Tyburnia
Newly Registered
Posts: 2
Joined: Thu Dec 24, 2020 12:36 pm
Wales

Re: Citizenship Ceremony cancelled due to Covid-19

Post by Tyburnia » Sun Mar 14, 2021 3:19 pm

Date of Receipt of Approval: 24-Dec-2020
Date on Approval Letter: 24-Dec-2020
Date of Receipt of Ceremony Letter: 14-Mar-2021, dated 5-Mar-2021
Date of Ceremony: virtual ceremony on 18-Mar-2021
Westminster

sydney19
Newly Registered
Posts: 15
Joined: Thu Aug 27, 2020 8:52 pm
Nigeria

Re: Citizenship Ceremony cancelled due to Covid-19

Post by sydney19 » Sun Mar 14, 2021 8:20 pm

sitidis wrote:
Thu Mar 11, 2021 5:37 pm
:o So just some information for those who need it !

I received my approval on the 02/12/20

I moved house and redirected my Mail,
After 12 weeks I realised my letter hasn’t arrived I called the home office they said it should have arrived.

I had to go to my old residence. It was there and arrived 2 weeks ago !

Please if you moved after the 12 weeks check your old residence.

Another thing they don’t send your certificate to the council you live in !

Mine was sent to Islington and I lived in Hammersmith before.

I asked Hammersmith Council before I got the letter just to see if there was a mismatch and they hadn’t received it either.

So my advice if you moved check you old house.

Thanks and all the best !
Thanks - meaning you didn’t communicate to home office you moved house ? I was approved 2/2/21 and I have done the Royal Mail redirection- I will be communicating with the people at the old flat . Just curious to know if you reported it to the home office. Thanks

aseef935
Newbie
Posts: 38
Joined: Wed Apr 08, 2020 7:35 pm
Pakistan

Re: Citizenship Ceremony cancelled due to Covid-19

Post by aseef935 » Mon Mar 15, 2021 8:30 am

Just received the invitation for my Virtual Ceremony! Was approved on 29/12/2020. I’m not in the UK at the moment so requested them to postpone my ceremony. Not sure if invitation letter has been delivered to my house or not yet!

nnn15
Member
Posts: 193
Joined: Mon Mar 30, 2020 11:55 am

Re: Citizenship Ceremony cancelled due to Covid-19

Post by nnn15 » Mon Mar 15, 2021 9:12 am

JKAR25142 wrote:
Sun Mar 14, 2021 10:07 am
nnn15 wrote:
Sat Mar 13, 2021 11:40 pm
JKAR25142 wrote:
Sat Mar 13, 2021 9:42 am
nnn15 wrote:
Sat Mar 13, 2021 9:35 am

Hi, I had this problem. Apparently the HO forgot to print the paperwork for some applications. You should call the Home Office helpline and ask them to escalate your case as you've been waiting for 8 months and your invitation letter still hasn't arrived. If they tell you to wait, respond that back in November 2020 the HO confirmed they printed and sent the paperwork for all the applications approved through August 2020. Evidently yours hasn't arrived, so there's been some mistake and if nothing is done, they probably aren't going to work on printing your application. Once your case has been escalated, you should get a confirmation email (I got one within an hour) and they are supposed to respond within 10 working days (I never got a response). If you don't get a confirmation email it probably means they haven't escalated, so you should call the helpline again and convince the agent to escalate.

You should also email Citizenship.Support@homeoffice.gov.uk, NationalitySupportTeamFMT@homeoffice.gov.uk and FurtherNationalityEnquiries@homeoffice.gov.uk and ask when your paperwork is going to be printed and sent. In my experience they are very slow in responding (citizenship.support replied to me after 3 months) or don't respond at all, but some people on this forum got responses.

Since the Home Office failed to print and send your paperwork when they were processing applications with similar timelines, you can submit a complaint here https://www.ukvi-complaints.homeoffice.gov.uk/reason. They respond within 20 working days.

If you don't get a reasonable response after trying all the above, you can reach out to your MP, explain that you've tried all the HO support channels to no avail, and then the MP office can submit an enquiry to the Home Office as well. The Home Office is legally obliged to respond to the MPs, so after some time you'll get an answer addressing the details of your case.
Thanks, mate for replying and the help you gave to me, but I have tried all of these above with no response from the OH!
Idk what to do more than that :?
Have you reached out to your MP and if so, have they replied?
Yes, I have but they said I have to wait and they said they know it is frustrating! :?
Tell them there's been a mistake as the Home Office has already confirmed 4 months ago that the paperwork for all applications approved up to August 2020 had been printed and processed. Therefore no one is likely to be working on your application and hence you'd like it to be investigated.

sitidis
Newly Registered
Posts: 2
Joined: Thu Mar 11, 2021 5:26 pm
Mood:
Fiji

Re: Citizenship Ceremony cancelled due to Covid-19

Post by sitidis » Mon Mar 15, 2021 9:26 am

sydney19 wrote:
Sun Mar 14, 2021 8:20 pm
sitidis wrote:
Thu Mar 11, 2021 5:37 pm
:o So just some information for those who need it !

I received my approval on the 02/12/20

I moved house and redirected my Mail,
After 12 weeks I realised my letter hasn’t arrived I called the home office they said it should have arrived.

I had to go to my old residence. It was there and arrived 2 weeks ago !

Please if you moved after the 12 weeks check your old residence.

Another thing they don’t send your certificate to the council you live in !

Mine was sent to Islington and I lived in Hammersmith before.

I asked Hammersmith Council before I got the letter just to see if there was a mismatch and they hadn’t received it either.

So my advice if you moved check you old house.

Thanks and all the best !
Thanks - meaning you didn’t communicate to home office you moved house ? I was approved 2/2/21 and I have done the Royal Mail redirection- I will be communicating with the people at the old flat . Just curious to know if you reported it to the home office. Thanks
Hi no I didn’t communicate this to HO, reason being I didn’t want to wait longer, incase they would take an extra 3 months to post it out to me. I believe yours should arrive on the last week of April or the first week of May. The letter comes in a brown 2nd class envelope.

Keep an eye out for it

Good luck 🤞

stronk
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Re: Citizenship Ceremony cancelled due to Covid-19

Post by stronk » Mon Mar 15, 2021 10:43 am

stronk wrote:
Mon Mar 01, 2021 12:32 pm
For anyone still waiting from November, here's what I'm doing in case it's any help.

My approval date was 18 November 2020.

I first wrote to my local council, who said no certificate has been received for me. If you're lucky, they might have received a certificate and they might be one of the councils that doesn't care about the Home Office invitation letter (Wandsworth isn't one of these councils).

Then I wrote to citizenship.support@homeoffice.gov.uk (the contact address in the approval letter PDF) and CT2caseworkenquiries@homeoffice.gov.uk (the contact address in the e-mail to which the PDF was attached; presumably you might have a different address in your e-mail as 'CT2' might be a specific team assigned to my application route). The e-mails ask them what the hold up is, referencing other applicants posting on immigration forums who are receiving invitations based on substantially later approval dates.

That was a week ago. I expect I might get a response around the end of May. Since it is probably going to take so long, I have also submitted a complaint using the form here: https://www.gov.uk/complain-uk-visas-immigration. There were no appropriate options in this form, so I chose what seemed to be the nearest appropriate complaint reasons: 'Waiting for a decision or documents' -> 'A decision on an application'.

I used the Home Office Ref # from the approval letter in the form. The text of my complaint was basically:

"I am complaining about the length of time UKVI is taking to print and mail my citizenship certificate and ceremony invitation letter following approval of my naturalisation application on [date]. You can resolve this complaint by sending out the necessary documents for me and my local council (Wandsworth) to complete the citizenship process."

Note that UKVI has a separate complaint form from the general Home Office one, so don't get caught out and have to wait another several months.

I haven't yet tried my MP. I will try them if I don't hear anything (or hear something useless) within 20 working days (morning of 30 March).

Hopefully this will all be unnecessary and I'll receive the letter soon. But if I'm subject to the dreaded 'technical error', the sooner I complain and start the months-long process of getting someone to respond, the better. If you're still waiting based on a mid-November or earlier approval, you might also want to start the process.
I received an invitation letter yesterday (14/3/2021, dated 3/3/2021), following approval on 18/11/2020. So that's nearly 4 months to print out and mail a letter. That's about a month later than expected based on other experiences posted in this thread, but not as long as the small number of people who have been waiting *much* longer than this. My application was based on being married to a British citizen and living in the UK for 5 years on spouse/partner visas prior to ILR. The team dealing with the application was 'CT2'. So perhaps that team is particularly slow? Or perhaps my complaints were seen and my application was found in a dusty box somewhere and progressed. I didn't receive any responses to any of my e-mails.

My advice is to write and complain as soon as you have been waiting for longer than others on this thread (based on approval date), as this just might dislodge your application from wherever it is stuck.

JKAR25142
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Re: Citizenship Ceremony cancelled due to Covid-19

Post by JKAR25142 » Mon Mar 15, 2021 10:55 am

goodcitizen wrote:
Tue Mar 02, 2021 8:36 pm
Teedee wrote:
Tue Mar 02, 2021 8:25 pm
goodcitizen wrote:
Tue Mar 02, 2021 8:06 pm
Bazaar wrote:
Tue Mar 02, 2021 6:16 pm


it's all so confusing.. all councils seem to do this differently , some they want the letter. some don't and the HO doesn't help either.
The email that came with my decision letter attached doesn't even have an email to reply to, it says do not reply to that email because it won't be monitored . It's not a CTcasework email either. So I don't have the option to email anyone if I wanted to ask the whereabouts of my invitation letter
The email that you received with your decision letter should have content like this:

Dear xxxxxxxx

This message is to confirm that your application to naturalise as a British Citizen has now been decided. Please find attached information regarding this decision.

This email is intended for xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx and if received in error should be deleted immediately. If you have received this email in error, please notify us via CT3CaseworkEnquiries@homeoffice.gov.uk.

Please DO NOT respond to this e-mail as this inbox will not be monitored.

Kind Regards

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Mine didn't have the above though. It was pretty much a blank email with the attachment. The only content was:

"This email and any files transmitted with it are private and intended
solely for the use of the individual or entity to whom they are addressed.
If you have received this email in error please return it to the address
it came from telling them it is not for you and then delete it from your system.
This email message has been swept for computer viruses."
Right, try sending an email to CT3 or CT4, maybe they direct to the right department :)
Hi Teedee
if you do not mind me asking have you tried to send an email to CT3 OR CT4 my problem same as yours?
Thanks

Teedee
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Re: Citizenship Ceremony cancelled due to Covid-19

Post by Teedee » Mon Mar 15, 2021 10:57 am

Teedee wrote:
Mon Mar 01, 2021 10:16 am
Teedee wrote:
Sat Feb 27, 2021 4:52 pm
Teedee wrote:
Wed Feb 24, 2021 11:55 am
saquebahmed wrote:
Wed Feb 24, 2021 11:32 am
Reading your update made me optimistic - my approval date is 15/12/2020 so expecting invitation letter soon. I wish there was a helpline where we can call and push for the update, their email address is just non responsive like other home office departments

Mine is the 03/12/2020. Sent an email to HO in January and was advised they’ll respond in 20 working days. It has been over 20 working days now, no response. I hear their deadline is 12 weeks, well, mine will be 12 weeks next Wednesday so I really hope I receive my invitation this week. Reached out to Hampshire council on Monday and they confirmed they still do not have my paperwork from HO. So frustrating :(


Update!!!

God did it!!! I have just received my invitation letter from HO! Finally!!! 💃🏽 Timelines below:

Application date - 30/09/2020
Biometrics - 28/10/2020
Approval email received - 03/12/2020
Invitation letter received - 27/02/2021

Will be contacting Hampshire council on Monday for my virtual ceremony. Hang in there guys, yours is coming soon! See you all on the passport thread x
I don't know how I landed with PORTSMOUTH ceremonies office. Their information was included in my ceremony invitation letter so I called them this morning to arrange my ceremony. I must have mistakenly selected them during my Naturalisation application. I was told they do not offer virtual ceremony and I have to wait till the 13th of April for a 1:1 ceremony. Another waiting game :(
Following confirmation from Portsmouth council that the earliest ceremony date was the 13th of April, I started calling them every week to see if they could squeeze me in earlier. I called them on Friday 5th March and was told they were currently looking into marriages and deaths but they'll see what they can do the following week. That day, I received an email from them stating they had 2 slots the following week: Wednesday 10th and Thursday 11th, went for the former. Did my 1:1 ceremony on Wednesday, collected my certificate, started my British passport application the same day and uploaded my photo using my phone. Identity verification was done on Thursday 11th and I sent my documents off on Friday 12th. Good luck everyone :)

JKAR25142
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Swaziland

Re: Citizenship Ceremony cancelled due to Covid-19

Post by JKAR25142 » Mon Mar 15, 2021 11:12 am

Teedee wrote:
Tue Mar 02, 2021 7:25 pm
Bazaar wrote:
Tue Mar 02, 2021 6:16 pm
goodcitizen wrote:
Tue Mar 02, 2021 2:01 pm
Bazaar wrote:
Tue Mar 02, 2021 11:54 am


you still have to wait for the physical letter on the post? why not the pdf they sent you?
I'm not sure because my council hasn't received my certificate either. I had mentioned this in the email, now even if i assume the pdf is enough, they still want me to wait for the certificate to come in to the council
it's all so confusing.. all councils seem to do this differently , some they want the letter. some don't and the HO doesn't help either.
The email that came with my decision letter attached doesn't even have an email to reply to, it says do not reply to that email because it won't be monitored . It's not a CTcasework email either. So I don't have the option to email anyone if I wanted to ask the whereabouts of my invitation letter
Something worth trying: Your approval letter should have details of the department that worked on your application. This should be at the end of the letter, the signature basically. Mine is CT4.

Can you replace this email (CT3CaseworkEnquiries@homeoffice.gov.uk) with the department info? For instance, if I wanted to contact them for mine, I would use CT4CaseworkEnquiries@homeoffice.gov.uk

Hope it makes sense
Hi there
I have tried this email and I got a reply (Undeliverable:)!!
I put my department instead of CT4, I put this CT6CaseworkEnquiries@homeoffice.gov.uk?!
Is this should be right?
Thanks

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