Citizenship ceremonies
Attending a citizenship ceremony is the final stage in the process of becoming a British Citizen.
Invitation letters
If your application for British Citizenship has been successful, the Home Office will send you an letter inviting you to attend a Citizenship ceremony, this letter may be sent to you through by email. Note that if you have received a decision letter you must await the invitation letter before booking a ceremony.
Timescales for booking
Customers should normally be expected to book their citizenship ceremony within three months of being sent an invitation from the Home Office.
Types of ceremonies
The options are to have a group ceremony or an individual ceremony.
Group ceremonies
Group ceremonies will be held at Wandsworth Town Hall, Wandsworth High Street, London, SW18 2PU.
Parking is available at the Southside Shopping Centre NCP and Sainsbury’s car park on Garratt Lane, both a short distance from the Town Hall.
Private ceremonies
If you would prefer to have a private ceremony in one of our ceremony rooms at the Town Hall, complete our online form and the Registration Services team will contact you to arrange your booking.
The cost of a private ceremony is £117.70 for one person and £176 for couples and families.
What to bring to the ceremony
Remember to bring the following documents:
- The invitation letter from the Home Office, and
- Photo ID (your passport or photo driving licence)
During the ceremony
During the ceremony you will need to:
- Take either the oath or affirmation
- Say the pledge of loyalty to the UK
Taking the oath means that you will be swearing to God. If you do not want to swear to God, you can take the affirmation which has no religious words.
At the end of your ceremony you will be presented with a naturalisation certificate. You can then use this to apply for your British passport.
How to book
If you have just received your Home Office letter and your details are not recognised when booking online, be aware that:
- It can take up to two working days for us to input new citizens onto our system so try again, giving time for this to happen
- Ensure that you include the dash between each 4 digits of your 16 digit reference number
- If your Home Office reference number is not recognised this may be because we have not yet received the certificate from the Home Office. We only receive certificates once a week so try again after 7 days
When booking online, you will be prompted to enter the number of guests attending. You can bring up to two guests to the group ceremony.
Requesting a transfer to a different local authority
If you would like to have your ceremony in a different council, you will need to contact the Home Office and ask for a transfer request. If the transfer is approved, you will be contacted by the Home Office to arrange your ceremony.
Naturalisation certificates
Naturalisation certificates are issued by the Home Office. If there is a mistake on your certificate, or you need to have a duplicate reissued, you can order a replacement certificate on GOV.UK.
It's important to remember that your certificate is a legal document. You cannot laminate it or alter it in any way. This will result in the certificate becoming invalid.