I just got a job in Edmonton. Moving from Ottawa. CIC is wasting my time. I was hoping to attend the citizenship ceremony in the November ceremonies but they have not sent notifications yet.
Is there a way I can swear the oath in absentia. I don't want to start flying back to Ontario again for ceremony and if they were to transfer the file to Edmonton knowing how sluggish there it will take forever to get a new oath date.
You have to be present to attend the ceremony. A no-show might start a procedure for abandonment. As per CIC:
"Ceremony (oath) no-show: Applicants are given one opportunity to appear for their citizenship ceremony and take the oath of citizenship using notice CIT 0024. Those who do not attend their ceremony will not be rescheduled automatically into a new event. Applicants who do not or cannot attend their event must notify CIC within 30 days from the date of their event. Applicants must provide a reasonable excuse for not being able to attend their event."
If you're moving, call CIC to inform them of the address change. While it could take a bit longer to transfer your application to another office, you will still be invited to a ceremony in the near future and will be able to attend it at the location you will be living. Don't risk not being able to attend it.
I agree that CIC tends to make things more complicated than they should/could, but if you're moving, there's not much they could do other than move your file and schedule it at your new location.
