Who can apply
Residence requirement calculator: your earliest date to apply for citizenship
Add the date you started living here on a visa, the date your permanent visa began and each trip overseas: the calculator returns the first day all three rules are met.
Independent, non-government site: tests, applications and appointments are handled only on the Home Affairs website.
Earliest date you can apply
You can apply today
On that date
| Four years living in Australia on a visa | met |
| Permanent resident for the last 12 months | met |
| Days away in the four years (27 / limit 365) | met |
| Days away in the last 12 months (0 / limit 90) | met |
Still allowed today: 338 days away over four years and 90 in the last 12 months.
Limits: 4 years, 12 months as a permanent resident, 365 days away, 90 in the last year.
The general residence requirement for Australian citizenship is three tests that must all be passed on the day you apply. First, you must have been living in Australia on a valid visa for the 4 years immediately before that day. Second, you must have held a permanent visa (or, for a New Zealand citizen, a Special Category visa) for the last 12 months of that period. Third, your time outside Australia in the 4 years must not exceed 365 days in total, and no more than 90 of those days may fall in the final 12 months. Home Affairs counts the day you leave and the day you return as days in Australia, so a trip that leaves on a Monday and comes back the next Monday costs six days, not eight. The calculator above applies these rules to your own dates. Children under 16 do not need to meet the requirement, and time without a visa never counts.
How many days can I still spend overseas?
Days you can still add
50
| Four-year limit | 200 of 365 used |
| Last-12-months limit | 40 of 90 used |
| Departure and arrival days | count as days in Australia |
Questions, dates and fees by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How questions and dates are built
The three rules the calculator checks
| Rule | Limit | Window |
|---|---|---|
| Living in Australia on a valid visa | 4 years | immediately before the day you apply |
| Holding a permanent visa or SCV | 12 months | immediately before the day you apply |
| Total time away | no more than 365 days | the 4 years before you apply |
| Time away in the last year | no more than 90 days | the 12 months before you apply |
The four years and the twelve months are both counted backwards from the day you lodge. That is why the answer is a date rather than a yes or no: each new day pushes the window forward, an old trip drops out of it, and a new one may enter. If you go overseas after using the calculator, run it again with the new trip.
How days away are counted
A Home Affairs document released under freedom of information sets out the counting method: days on which you arrived from overseas or departed Australia are counted as days in Australia for the general residence calculation. A trip therefore costs the number of nights abroad minus one. Two weeks away, leaving on the 1st and returning on the 15th, uses thirteen days. The calculator applies the same method, so its total can be lower than a simple count from your passport stamps.
The 90-day limit is often the binding one. Someone who spent 265 days overseas in four years is well inside the four-year limit, but if 100 of those days fall in the last twelve months, the date moves back until enough of the recent trip leaves the window. The small panel below shows how many days you can still spend away before your planned date.
How many days can I still spend overseas?
Days you can still add
50
| Four-year limit | 200 of 365 used |
| Last-12-months limit | 40 of 90 used |
| Departure and arrival days | count as days in Australia |
When does permanent residence start?
Your permanent residence begins on the day the permanent visa was granted if you were in Australia at the time, or on the day you first entered Australia holding it if it was granted while you were overseas. An offshore grant followed by a late first entry can therefore cost months. New Zealand citizens on a Special Category visa have their own rules: those granted the visa before 1 July 2022 are treated as permanent residents from that date, and holders of a New Zealand stream subclass 189 visa granted on or after 1 January 2022 do not need the 12 months at all. The New Zealand citizens page explains both.
Time that may count differently
The Minister can treat some periods as if they met the rule. Time spent unlawfully, or on a temporary visa, because of an administrative error by the department can be counted as lawful or permanent residence. Time on a temporary visa can be counted as permanent residence if waiting would cause significant hardship. Time spent overseas as a permanent resident with an Australian citizen spouse or partner can be counted as time in Australia if you kept a close and continuing association with Australia. Time in prison or a psychiatric institution does not count unless the Minister finds it unreasonable to exclude it. None of this can be assessed before you apply: the ministerial discretion page lists the evidence for each case.
Who does not need the rule
Children under 16 on a parent’s form, people born to a former citizen who lost citizenship before 4 April 2002, people born in Papua before 16 September 1975 to an Australian-born citizen parent, and members of the defence forces with 90 days of qualifying service are exempt from the general rule. Elite athletes, some security-cleared staff and people whose work involves regular travel can use the lower day counts of the special residence requirement.
Check against the official tool
Home Affairs offers its own residence calculator. Use it as a second check before lodging, with exactly the same dates. If the two results differ by a day, trust the later date. The PR to citizenship page shows the wait in months when you have not travelled, and the travel page explains what happens if you go overseas after applying.