Arrange your citizenship ceremony

Book for a group or private citizenship ceremony

If you have not yet received an invitation letter from the Home Office you will not be able to make a booking and must wait until you have received it before attempting book.

Although your Home Office invitation letter states that you must book a citizenship ceremony within 21 days, you can book a ceremony as long as it is within 3 months from the date of the letter.

Attending a ceremony

Once your application for British citizenship is approved by the Home Office you will be invited to attend a citizenship ceremony. This is the final step on the journey to becoming a British citizen.

Full details of citizenship ceremonies are available on the Home Office website.

You must attend a citizenship ceremony if you are over 18 years old and living in the UK.

Children under 18 years old don't have to attend a ceremony but are encouraged to.

When and where Westminster ceremonies are held

Westminster holds public group ceremonies on Tuesday and occasionally Wednesday afternoons. You may also arrange a private ceremony.

Ceremonies are held at The Old Marylebone Town Hall, Westminster Council House, 97-113 Marylebone Road, London, NW1 5PT

What you should bring to the ceremony

Please bring:

• ​your original invitation letter from the Home Office or an email version if you’ve only received an email from home office
• your passport or photo ID
• face covering – you must wear a face covering while in the building

During the ceremony

You will:

• swear or affirm an oath of allegiance to the Crown and make a pledge to uphold UK values and laws
• the ceremony will be held by the Lord Mayor or Deputy Mayor
• be presented with a certificate of British citizenship and a welcome pack
• receive a gift from The City of Westminster
• have professional photographs taken which will be available to purchase

Guests

You are welcome to bring up to two guests. Please be aware that young children should be accompanied by adults.

If you arrange a private ceremony you may bring up to eight guests. Please be aware that when you make your booking online, the booking portal currently states that you are only able to bring a maximum of two guests to a private ceremony - but this can be ignored.

Private ceremonies

Private ceremonies are held at The Old Marylebone Town Hall on weekdays. Weekends can be considered upon request, but this will be dependent on availability. Please note there is a fee for this service.

If you book a private citizenship ceremony, you can order a “first toast” service to celebrate becoming a new British Citizen by having a drink with your guests. This is an additional service, available Monday to Thursday, that can only be ordered in advance of your private citizenship ceremony. You will have a choice of drinks to purchase from us so you will need to select what you would like. Please note that bringing your own drinks is not permitted.

Order a first toast service

Costs