Eighteen new citizens have been welcomed to the Port Macquarie-Hastings region.
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The new citizens hail from all corners of the world including Philippines, India, Vietnam, New Zealand, Ireland, Kenya, Singapore and the United Kingdom.
The new citizens were granted their Australian Citizenship after making a solemn commitment to uphold the values, privileges and responsibilities of being Australian during a ceremony conducted by Mayor Peta Pinson.
Obed Soire from Kenya said he was "excited" to finally be a citizen.
"It is the culmination of a long journey," Mr Soire said.
"I am just excited to be identified as an Aussie and to contribute to this country which has welcomed my family.
"It is also a privilege to have the Australian passport which means I can travel to a lot of countries without worrying about visas."
Mr Soire has lived in Australia for eight years with his wife Caroline.
He moved to Australia to work as a youth pastor.
His baby son Taraji joined him at the ceremony but he was already a citizen because he was born in Australia.
"He beat me to it," Mr Soire joked.
Divya Divakaran from Kerala in south India has been in Australia for five years with her family.
She described the citizenship ceremony as a "beautiful moment".
