Citizenship ceremonies have been held across the country on Australia Day.
Vijay Kumar Thiyagarajan said it was a "dream come true" after becoming a citizen at a ceremony in Wagga Wagga, in central NSW.
He and his wife, Anitha Stanley, and two children moved to the rural town five years ago.
"We like this place, it's nice people. We're very comfortable here," he told SBS News.
Ms Stanley initially moved to Australia to work on a 457 visa.
"Being a citizen means a lot to us, being a part of a country that has got a great culture and great traditions is a good thing," she said.
Nurse Soumyamole Wilson moved from India to Ireland, before settling in Australia.
Vijay Kumar Thiyagarajan with his family. Source: SBS
"We wanted a nice place where we can go out in the sun and the seaside," she told SBS.
The regional NSW town is home to 112 nationalities, and 107 languages are spoken.
Wagga Wagga Mayor Greg Conkey, who conducted the citizenship ceremony this morning, said the town had long been a multicultural place.
The citizenship ceremony in Wagga Wagga. Source: Omar Dabbagh/SBS News
"They add to the flavour, to the vibrancy of the community," he said.
In Canberra, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull celebrated Australia Day by welcoming some of the country's newest citizens.
Speaking at the national citizenship ceremony, Mr Turnbull paid tribute to the nation's First Peoples.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Governor-General Peter Cosgrove pose with new Australian citizens after an Australia Day Citizenship Ceremony. Source: AAP
"All of us, including our newest citizens, are heirs to this history, and it's our duty to learn, embrace, and help preserve it," he said on the shores of Lake Burley Griffin.
'They come together here and are happy'
An American family from New Jersey, a pair of Croatian foodies and a Papua New Guinean psychologist are among the 24 people from 14 countries who became Australian at the City of Sydney's harbourside citizenship ceremony on Friday.
Ana and Thomas Vicario arrived in Australia from Croatia five years ago and say they immediately fell in love with the culture, food and people, "what's not to love, people can be of any descent or heritage ... and they come together here and are happy".
Around 250 family, friends and well wishers joined the new Australians at Circular Quay to watch Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore welcome Australia's newest citizens to the country.
Labor leader Mr Shorten celebrated Australia Day by speaking at a citizenship ceremony in Melbourne's west, where he urged Australia to secure a fairer deal for indigenous and non-indigenous people alike.
"Today we embrace and welcome people from every faith and tradition knowing their diversity enriches us," he said.
