Irish people in UK, do you have British citizenship?

[SomersetBrie]

As above. I'm Irish, lived here most of my adult life and live my life quite happily on my Irish passport. I can vote and do almost exactly what a British passport holder can do.
In the light of recent comments from Farage about immigration, are any Irish people thinking of becoming citizens, or had you done it already? I kind of resent paying £900 to do it, but I obviously will if it makes my rights here safer.

As it happens I met Daniel O'Donnell and King Charles on the same day back in 2002, though I won't have to swear allegiance to the former.

@AndSheDid it is sad, isn’t it? The weird thing for me (and I appreciate this might be offensive to some of my fellow NIers) is that despite being 50% staunch Republican Catholic and deep down believing that reunification would be preferable, I have never considered myself to be Irish. I have always felt British. And proud of it. I was brought up with British media, British currency, British education - all of which would be different if I had been brought up over the border. I came to university in England at 19, my kids are English, I love where I live and would not want to go back to NI. So when people at times point me out as the Irish person because I still have my accent I find it pretty discombobulating. I think that identity issue is changing for those born after the GFA, which is a good thing. But I feel on some level that I don’t really ‘belong’ properly in either country.

Moving somewhere else across borders is discombobulating. My life in Ireland has been completely dismantled but I don't fully belong to Scotland either. Though at one stage when I first came over, I was listening to Irish radio a lot about the financial crisis (2008) and I went to the supermarket later that day and had completely forgotten I was in Scotland.

Not a word you typed suggested you knew anything about why the provisional IRA were conducting a bombing campaign on mainland Britain.

Do you know why there is a "Northern" Ireland of 6 counties that stands separate (to some) of the 26 counties of the Republic ?

I grew up in the 70s and 80s when it was quite common to have tube stations closed at random and to continue journeys overground on foot.

Not uncommon 😀And rather obscures the fact that in an age when Irish Catholics were unable to enter parliament in Westminster, he got himself elected (he was Catholic) repeatedly to eventually cause the Catholic Emancipation act of 1829 to be passed.

I dare any English reader who hasn't specifically studied history (and most of those that have) to honestly say they knew anything about that. And for a bunch of people who will not shut the fuck up about "heritage" and "history" it highlights how full of shit most Reform supporters are. Because they know fuck all about the history of their own country,

To a "You what ?!" from 80% of people living in England. You can win a few bets with that one if you like. Especially with people who think they know "British" history

I’m Irish and moved to the UK in 1987. Although then lived in a few different countries for years. Moved back to the UK in 2011.

Have never felt the need to apply for British citizenship or a UK passport. And don’t now.

DS was born in Dublin so has an Irish passport but also a UK one. DH is British.

To be honest if it gets bad enough here if Reform get in and things drastically change then I think I would just leave the UK.

I have never been subject to any anti Irish comments over my years here though unlike some of you.

I have duel British and Irish passports - born in Northern Ireland - my children English born can also have the same.

I have duel British and Irish passports -

Freudian slip ?

I'm Irish and have lived and worked in the UK for decades. I've never opted for British citizenship as I never saw the need. Irish citizens in the UK, and British citizens in the ROI enjoy fairly even reciprocal arrangments from various Acts of Parliament, which precede both EU entry and the Good Friday Treaty, which basically amounts to an equal recognition of rights and privileges. To remove that would require another Act of Parliament (I'm pretty sure) and would almost certainly fail.

I doubt that reform would consider the Good Friday Agreement in future, when they didn't consider it over brexit. But the vast majority of Irish who moved to Britain are white and English speaking, so I can't imagine it will be an issue. My folks still have Irish passports and they and their friends moved here in the 60's and 70's. Almost all of them picked up the accent of where they moved too, so you can't usually tell they are Irish until they are on the phone to back home.

I doubt that reform would consider the Good Friday Agreement in future, when they didn't consider it over brexit.

Remember how many Tory MPs were surprised to discover it existed at all.

What's the official name of the Tory party ?

(Although it's telling where the word "tory" comes from ....)

Where I live in the Home Counties there are a fair number of Nigerians who got Irish passports then immediately came to England. I'm not sure if it was easier to get an Irish passport in the past but I work with quite a few people who have done that though they retain Nigerian passports too. Not all Irish immigrants in the UK are white.

Raises a glass to Phil Lynott ...

British citizens cannot vote in Irish presidential elections or constitutional referenda. Since brexit they cannot vote in European elections. They can vote in local elections (local councils) & general elections (Dail Éireann)

After living in Ireland for 20 years, my British DH applied for Irish citizenship in 2023. The online system works well & it was approved in about 4 months.
The wait for the ceremony was almost as long! The invite says only one guest, so DD didn’t come with us, but some people brought half a dozen guests. I was fuming we followed the rules. so if you have people to bring - just do it (nobody checks).
The passport application time is also quite long, and you can’t apply until you have your certificate. Start to finish it took 11 months from applying for citizenship to getting the passport.

That’s hardly surprising, surely. Not all Irish people are white.

The whole of Europe, including the UK, is celebrating Shane Lowry and the Ryder Cup win.

I am considering getting dual nationality, yes.

While I don’t think it’s inevitable that Farage will come into power, I would be wary of what might come in future years. I don’t want to become the Irish Windrush generation after building our lives here - partners and husbands, kids, investments, pension rights, etc. - only to need to make decisions quickly at a time I might not be as able to make them.

The world is changing and options are no bad thing.

The reason I wrote this is that an earlier poster thought that there would be no worries in the UK about Irish immigrants as they were largely white people. This is true but there are increasing numbers of black Irish people who are now moving over to the UK having attained Irish nationality. I have 3 co- workers from Nigeria who did this and its apparently an " easier" way to get in to the UK. None of them intended to stay in Dublin.
I think situations like this might make the likes of Farage turn attention to the reciprocal agreement we have and tinker with it in some way. I dont think its a safe arrangement and won't be challenged in the future, however legally difficult this may be. The times ahead are uncertain and worrying.

It comes from the Liberal Unionists who joined the Tories in protest over Home Rule for Ireland. No , I doubt many people are aware of that.

Michael Gove knows about the Good Friday Agreement - which he described as Treason. To Boris Johnson it was ' just a footnote in history '. Shudder.....

Wait a minute. Irish get a discount? Admittedly jealous!

I said that the vast majority of Irish people who have already migrated here are white English speaking people. The op was talking about citizenship for people who have already lived here for years. I absolutely agree that the demographic of people moving will change over time, as Ireland is much more diverse now. I would still see it more likely that they do a line in the sand approach than go after people who settled here years or decades ago. I went to Catholic school and would say at least half the kids had one or more Irish parents. That would be a heck of a lot of people to kick out!

Does the UK-Ireland agreement cover Irish citizens, or just people born in Ireland ? There can be a distinction.