Dual nationality

[gildalilly]

I'm thinking about applying for dual nationality for UK and Italy. I was wondering if anybody else has done this and for which countries. Also, any advice on possible pitfalls or irritations in the process would be welcome too.

Anyone?

Which nationality do you have already, where do you live, what is your basis for eligibility?

I technically have dual nationality for UK/Ireland. I’ve only ever had a UK passport, but am an Irish citizen and could get a passport if I wanted.

I have applied for Irish citizenship now for my kids so they have EU membership as the eldest in particular is looking at studying abroad.

The only worry I can see is that if you are a citizen of a country, that countries rules apply to you. So if you are imprisoned in that country, the UK embassy can’t help, as you’re an Italian/Irish citizen. Not so much of a worry in european or western countries, but I believe this is part of the issue with Nazarin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, as she holds Iranian nationality it means Britain does not have the diplomatic sway they would have were she just British.

As for irritations in the process, the paperwork! Birth certs, death certs, marriage certs, all original. Certified copies of passports and photographs, which can only be certified by certain professionals who have known you at least two years. I had to send both kids, mine, and my parents documents.

Plus every man and his dog are discovering their heritage in an attempt to maintain EU membership. Current processing time for ireland is 12-18 months instead of the usual 6.

I have dual nationality for EU and another country. It is fantastic for travelling and also knowing that I have options for living and working elsewhere. No downsides at all, save for having to check for any secret tax obligations before you do it (I think this applies to US citizenship but not to mine) and having to remember to renew both passports.

I agree with PP, check the legal requirements of both countries. Someone I know had concerns about their child being eligible for military service if they held dual nationality - over a decade ago so mightn’t be an issue now but it mightn’t just be tax obligations that need considered.

I've dual citizenship, UK and a commonwealth country. Commonwealth country is my birth country, found out I was eligible for UK passport whilst applying for a work visa. Luckily I found out/applied when I did as you had to declare any nationalities prior to being 18. There would have been a million more hoops to jump through to get it as an adult.

Check the requirements of the dual country.

Thanks everyone. I would be GB and Italian. I think I'll be eligible as grandparent was Italian. I've looked at the consulate website but need to do more reading. There seems to be lots of organisations who will assist your application. Anybody have any opinions on these? Are they just money-making and to be avoided?

My family are dual citizens of U.K. and Australia. I can’t see any pitfalls really. We just have two passports.

I'm in the process of applying for Maltese citizenship. Among other things I had to get copies of birth and marriage certificates going back to my grandparents (which is kind of weird as I'm applying through being born there, not through parents).

I found that contacting the Embassy was very useful. They clarified the exact process for me.

I have to apply for nationality, then once I have that I will apply for a passport. I will have to go to the Embassy in person at least once - it's 1,000 miles away so that will be a trip.

It can be time-consuming, expensive and frustrating - they create the hoops, you jump through them.

Be very organized with your paperwork, especially when you send it in. Make it as easy for them as possible. Provide everything they ask for.

One thing to watch out for. Sometimes you have to send in your current nationality passport - and sometimes they keep it for a loooooong time.

@ZZTopGuitarSolo thanks, lots of good tips there. In terms of them keeping the passport for ages, now might be a good time as I don't think I'll be going anywhere for a bit!

I would avoid any agencies for an Italian application - it should be quite straightforward and I doubt you'd get your money's worth. Just triple-check your paperwork and make sure everything is sent with the best courier and tracking available. Agree with everything @ZZTopGuitarSolo warns about - I actually didn't end up applying to another country for which I was entitled to citizenship, because of the length of time they would have held my current passport (10-12 months).

Thanks @Nandocushion I hadn't realised what a Lengthy process it will be. I'm glad I asked on here now. At least I know what to expect.

I looked recently for friend with Italian grandparent. I came away with distinct impression that Italian beaurocracy (omg have tried to spell that every way!) grinds fine and slow. The forms ! Good luck op.

My husband has dual Irish/English nationality and applied for the children a few years ago.
The sometimes use the Irish passport and sometimes the U.K. one. I’m not eligible as we’ve never lived in Ireland.

I have dual British/German nationality.
Various friends have dual British/Italian/German/Irish nationality.
We all applied as a result of Brexit.
The process was not complicated or overly bureaucratic (which was a surprise), however, I am not sure whether the simplicity will change after the transition period is over.

@gildalilly I’ve got dual British and Irish nationality. Many benefits to having dual nationality - particularly when applying for visas for other countries there may be a price difference or variation in lengths available so you can use whichever is most convenient for whichever country you’re applying for I.e. India used to allow longer visas for U.K. citizens, now Irish citizens can get same length, but paper visa costs are lower for Irish citizens travelling to India.

If you’re worried about giving your current passport, check if you can just go to the embassy/similar - when I applied for my Irish passport I was able to book an appointment at the visa office in London (others available in U.K. too I think) took about 15 mins and they checked my paperwork and gave me my passport back there and then. Got the Irish one through about 6 weeks later. Based on my experience I wouldn’t pay an agency for any assistance, and we have used them in the past for visas through work.

@FraughtwithGin I might ask you a few questions as just sent out my application.

Thanks for the advice everyone. I'm going to sort the form out over the weekend. Wish me luck!

I'm Australian who emigrated to the UK 12 years ago and now have British citizenship. Besides the massive cost and paperwork for me to get British citizenship there's no downside having dual citizenship. My wife and children are British so I don't know what faff there is for them to get Australian citizenship, but i have some peace of mind that if things go to pot here we have access to a backup option

My children have dual nationality for an EU country. I found the process straight forward.
However, be vigilant about the required paperwork. We made a check list with everything required. The embassy in question, does not accept any form of postal service so we had to do everything in person, including collecting the passports. It's time consuming and costly. But will be worth it in t the long run!

If you’re worried about giving your current passport, check if you can just go to the embassy/similar - when I applied for my Irish passport I was able to book an appointment at the visa office in London (others available in U.K. too I think) took about 15 mins and they checked my paperwork and gave me my passport back there and then. Got the Irish one through about 6 weeks later

In the case of Irish Nationality, you can only do this if you already have citizenship and are applying for a passport.

If you are applying for citizenship via the foreign births register, it can only be done by post. You don’t have to send your passport though, just a certified copy.

Blue blue, I’m still having a hard time understanding what the French Consulate meant by having to register on the French birth registry. They want an original birth certificate that is three months old? Well how the hell do you do that? Not to mention, I’ve lived for most of my life outside of France, well I’ve never lived there, and French is not the best of the language as I speak. I speak many, but just not good French, and I had a real idiot I was dealing with at the consulate. Not to mention, I have a disability, and her main focus was why am I alone? Wait to get my blood boiling

I have dual French and British nationality. You can order a copy of your French birth certificate easily on the government website. By original they mean the copy they send you not a photocopy.

Good luck OP. I have dual nationality/citizenship and it's well worth it.

@Hellokittymania you need to order the copy online through the registry, and it needs to be less than three months old when you send off the paperwork so I ordered it once I'd got my documents translated.

OP I'm dual UK/French. I had always planned to obtain the French one through marriage but Brexit made the wait times huge. Don't pay an organisation, it shouldn't be that hard to do it yourself and the embassy/consulate should help. Also check there is no residency requirements.

For anyone applying for a French nationality through marriage, one of the most important steps is to register your marriage with the consulate and obtain a livret d'famille. This took months to be processed back in 2015.