Minister of Internal Affairs Achieves Shortest Citizenship Wait Times in Five Years

Minister Brooke van Velden highlights significant improvements in citizenship application processing, with wait times reduced from 180 to 69 days, the shortest in five years. The Department of Internal Affairs prioritized clearing the backlog, resulting in a 70% decrease in the number of people waiting for a decision. Van Velden emphasizes the importance of recognizing and valuing the contributions of those applying for citizenship, acknowledging the efforts and sacrifices made by new Kiwis.