New dual nationality rule

[Poxette]

I am British, I grew up in Britain with my British family. I have a British passport.

I now live in Norway. DH is Norwegian, our DC were born here and have Norwegian passports.

Is it really true that DC need to get British passports for us to travel to the UK?!

I'm also interested where this information has been clearly advertised since October 2024, since i only noticed when i went to UK in February 2025, and only then because there was an A5 notice taped to the outside of the French passport control booth at the port, I did get a leaflet given to me when i left the UK on that trip that advised that from 6th April I'd need an ETA, i was due to travel back to the UK on 15th April, but before 6th because it wasn't needed i couldn'T apply (as it turned out erroneously anyway) for it much beforehand.

The bit about the UK passport is something i only learned about last October. One full year after the "clearly advertised" information apparently went live. Hearing complaints from Australia has only confirmed that because they are usually pretty good about sharing info among the "expat" or immigrant communities.

What do you mean design border controls? They were already perfectly designed to allow dual nationals through on any valid passport. The changes will do fuck all to stop illegal immigration. It is purely a money grab and it is dual nationals that will be paying the price. Many of us were born dual nationals. We didn’t set out to collect passports like Pokémon as young adults.

It’s been very recent. I’ve been reading the ETA and ETIAS status reogiously and it was only December 25 that I saw the bit about ooops this is going to affect dual nationals.

all they would have to do is introduce a "visa" for any british citizens who hold other passports.

Also - you have to be careful when booking travel. Since now you have to travel into the UK on a UK passport, and into your other country with that passport. So you probably need - unless airline/ferrry/train operators allow you to enter a different passport number for each leg of your journey - you will need to book each trip separately.

Yes and multiple one way flights can individually cost more than a round trip flight. Same with doing two back to back round trips with a stopover in a 3rd country.

Yes, or a certificate of entitlement.

But honestly, it’s not a big deal. I’m a dual national. This has always been the rule in my home country. I actually didn’t even know it wasn’t the case in the UK as well. I just assumed all countries did this because it seems quite obvious.

It’s very helpful having 2 passports. When I don’t have any plans to travel to my home country (like I don’t at the moment as going through cancer treatment and wouldn’t risk it), I let the other passports expire and travel only on my UK one. I’ll renew them if/when we need them again.

Airlines aren’t bothered about your passport number on the booking, thats why people who renew after booking don’t need to amend their flight. People round the world have been having to do this for years, most of my family included, no one is booking seperate flights.

Its been a soft launch with full rules imposed from 26th. Carries can deny boarding, so advisable to comply and read questions carefully.

Almost 20 years ago now, my brother was told by an annoyed immigration agent that if he had a British passport, he needed to always enter the UK on it. He had tried to skip a longer line at immigration by using his American passport to come in when making a quick visit back home.

I've just booked a trip to UK and i had to make 2 bookings to enter the advanced passenger information on each leg correctly
I couldn't enter 2 different passport numbers at all

You just add one passport number, do you really think thousands of people arouns the world are booking one way flights?

https://www.gov.uk/dual-citizenship

Please read this link. Dual citizens cannot apply for an ETA (electronic travel authorisation) and so to travel to the UK you’ll need a British Passport or Certificate of Entitlement. All other nationals will need an ETA or a visa.

They’ll know because you’ll have to complete an ETA application prior to travel which will ask your nationality and entitlement to British citizenship.

Info on ETAs. https://www.gov.uk/eta

but it clearly is a big deal for a lot of people, otherwise it wouldn't be making such a huge splash.

The name thing for Spanish / Greek women is one immediately foreseeable thing.

Having said that: knowing that Spain doesn't allow dual citizenship unless parents have different nationalities, now i have realised that Brits in Spain have a potentially bigger problem on their hands if they have all ticked the box to say they renounced their British citizenship.

sigh.

To add your 2nd passport - becuase you use the UK passport to enter UK, and the EU passport (in my case German) to enter the EU - you have to make a separate booking (this is the case for Eurostar - it may have been a problem when i booked and other people haven't had this)

just because it has been ok FOR YOU, it is not necessarily the case for everyone.

Same boat. EU country and not Norwegian. My kids have two passports to ease border control issues and get around the ETA. Or consider a dhingy - might get a house in the UK if you go that route LOL

If you don’t want to get them UK passports take birth certs and be prepared to be told off by border control that without appropriate paperwork they can refuse entry. Pain in the arse so just get it done.

Very few British people in Spain willhl have Spanish citizenship, the majority of British immigrants in Spain don’t gain citizenship.

but you are aware, surely, that there are many people who did apply for Spanish citizenship after Brexit. Because that guardian article upthread highlighted exactly that.

You don’t need to add your second passport, you just need to add the details of one of your passports.

It isn’t just okay for us, its okay for hundreds of thousands of people around the world!

They are after you check in though.

They’re only bothered that your check in passport is the one you use at the departure gate.

and so you rock up when you are leaving the UK, with the airline desk clerk has your UK passport, but you are going back to an EU country with that passport and it is not the one you booked the ticket with. And there is zero issue?

Who as per Spanish rules will no longer have British citizenship if they have Spanish citizenship, as the UK isn’t currently on the allowed list. So they would correctly tick that they are not British citizens.

i once transposed my passport number on my API and they made a massive song and dance that i was trying to get on a plane with a fake passport.

That’s not going to work in the digitised future from what I’m reading. I know it’s ok now. I travelled to France on one passport and left on another a few months ago. I was warned that France is stopping that as are other countries. They want the same passport for outbound and inbound.

Yes (well not me, I’m the only person in the family with one passport, so my children and husband). When we travel to the UK they exit on their UK passports, so show that at check in and the gate at security (both will know when they do scan your passport that you have two, so every now and again ask to see the other passport). They then use their UK passport upon landing in the UK.

When we leave they leave on their Swedish passports and enter Sweden on their Swedish passports, while I get stuck in the ‘all other passports queue.