Who can have a citizenship ceremony
If you’re aged 18 years or over, you must attend a citizenship ceremony to become a British citizen. You’ll receive your naturalisation certificate at the ceremony.
If you’re under 18 years old, you don’t need to go to a ceremony - a family member can collect your certificate on your behalf. However, you can attend a ceremony if you would like to.
Please do not book a ceremony unless the Home Office have told you to do so.
When and where to book your citizenship ceremony
The Home Office will contact you when your citizenship application has been approved, and will invite you to book a citizenship ceremony. You must attend a ceremony within 3 months of the date of the Home Office invitation.
Spaces on a ceremony may not be available for several weeks, so we would recommend booking your ceremony as soon as you receive authorisation from the Home Office.
The Home Office invitation will also tell you which Local Authority to contact for your ceremony, please check that you are booking with the correct one or your ceremony will not be able to go ahead.
Please note: we are a different Local Authority to Cambridgeshire. You can only attend a ceremony with us if the Home Office have told you to contact Peterborough City Council.
Citizenship ceremonies options
There are two options for citizenship ceremonies - group or private.
Group citizenship ceremonies
We hold group citizenship ceremonies several times a month on a Tuesday or Thursday afternoon. We will let you know the available dates when you contact us. These ceremonies will usually take place at Sand Martin House.
There is no fee for this type of ceremony.
When you come to the ceremony, please bring a form of photo identification with you, such as passport, driving licence or other ID card. The identification must be valid.
More detailed information will be sent to you once you have made your booking.
Private citizenship ceremonies
We hold private citizenship ceremonies at Peterborough Register Office, by arrangement. We will discuss available dates when you contact us.
We currently offer private citizenship ceremonies on weekdays only. The fee is £240 until 31 March 2026. A single fee covers multiple members of the same immediate family.
We will update our fees for 1 April 2026 onwards nearer the time.
Dignitaries do not attend private ceremonies, and there is no reception afterwards. However, we still hope to make it a memorable occasion.
Booking a ceremony
To book either a group or private ceremony, please call us on 01733 864646.
Please also get in touch if you have any questions about the ceremony.