British Citizenship
COVID-19 update
We will not be able to book a ceremony until we have your Certificate of Naturalisation. Do not make an online request until you get your Home Office Invitation Letter.
Virtual Citizenship Ceremonies
- You can now have your citizenship ceremony virtually without having to leave home.
- To request a ceremony, please use the button below and we will get back to you with a date and time, please state any dates or times that you cannot do when booking
You must be in the United Kingdom at the time of your ceremony
Microsoft Teams
We will use Microsoft Teams to do your ceremony, if you do not have Microsoft Teams the app can be downloaded free of charge (external link).
Getting your certificate
After your ceremony we will post your certificate you using Royal Mail Special Delivery, we can only post your certificate to the address that Royal Mail has given us.
- Although the Home Office says you should contact us within 21 days, you currently have six months from when approved to have a ceremony. There is no need to rush to try and book a ceremony if your certificate is not about to expire
Please note that it can take three to four months from being approved for citizenship to getting a Home Office Invitation letter. Please do not contact us to book a ceremony until you have received your Home Office Invitation Letter.
If after three months of being approved you have still not had a Home Office Invitation Letter, feel free to contact us.
The Home Office will send your Certificate of Naturalisation to us around two working days after you get your Home Office Invitation Letter. We will not have your certificate and we will not be able to book your ceremony until you have received your Home Office Invitation Letter.
Please try to avoid contacting us or the Home Office to hurry up your certificate, as you may be stretching resources and further delaying the processing of citizens applications.
As ceremony sizes are small, we ask that where possible new citizens under 18 years of age do not attend.
This will allow more people that do need to attend a ceremony to attend more quickly. Children under 18 do not need to attend and no guests are allowed at present. We do not have the space to host guests and there is no covered waiting area or public toilets at George Meehan House.
Please dress for the weather when coming to our building and wrap up warm, please bring an umbrella if it is raining and/or wear a hat if it is cold. All citizens must wear a face-covering inside the building unless they are exempt. Please also bring your own pen.
Request a Citizenship Ceremony
To request a Citizenship Ceremony please call 020 8489 1775, or use our online form:
We will not be able to book a ceremony until we have your Certificate of Naturalisation. Do not make an online request until you get your Home Office Invitation Letter.
Once we have your certificate, we will send you an email confirming which date and time to attend. Do not attend unless we confirm that we have booked a space for you at a ceremony.
We hold small group ceremonies every Friday and some other times to help meet demand. Each citizen is assigned an arrival time and we then deliver the ceremony as small groups of around three people at roughly 10-minute intervals. No guests are currently allowed to attend ceremonies. We aim to see you as close to your assigned arrival time but please dress for the weather and be prepared to wait outside.
The Home Office has extended all Certificates of Naturalisation by three months to enable people to attend a ceremony, otherwise you have three months from being approved to have your ceremony.
Please remember that you will not be seen unless we have already made an arrangement with you.
Important: there are no public toilets or inside waiting areas at George Meehan House. If you are attending a ceremony, please dress for the weather and do not arrive too early.
About your Citizenship Ceremony
New Citizens are required to swear an Oath and make a Affirmation of Allegiance to the crown and a promise to be a good citizen. The ceremony lasts about 20 minutes and includes an introduction from the Superintendent Registrar, a presentation of Certificates by the Mayor, Past Mayor or Haringey Councillor, the National anthem, and afterwards an opportunity to take photos.
Unfortunately some service offers may be reduced due to COVID-19 restrictions.
The fees already paid to the Home Office cover the cost of the ceremony.
Oath
"I swear by Almighty God that on becoming a British citizen, I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second, her heirs and Successors, according to law."
Affirmation
"I do solemnly, sincerely and truly declare and affirm that on becoming a British citizen, I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second, her Heirs and Successors, according to law."
Arranging your Ceremony
New citizens will receive a letter from the Home Office informing them that they have been granted British Citizenship. At the same time the Home Office will send us your certificate. The letter states you should call us within 14 days. We cannot book an appointment for you until we have received your certificate. To book your ceremony please click on the appointment button above. Please use our Nationality Checking eform if you have another enquiry.
Even if you do not live in Haringey we are still happy for you to have your Citizenship Ceremony with us. We can normally offer you a ceremony in the same week that your application for citizenship has been approved. Our venue is only 25 minutes from Central London via the nearby Wood Green Underground Station on the Piccadilly Line, making us the ideal venue if you need to get quickly to work after your ceremony. If you live outside Haringey and wish to have your ceremony with us please state that you want to hold your ceremony in Haringey.
