to ask if Irish vs U.K. passport makes a difference?

[OneOfTheseNights]

Hi, some friends have emigrated from a non European country to Ireland.

They moved there with two young dc, and are wondering whether to try to get their dc Irish passports.

I know next to nothing of how they go about this, and I’m sure they are more than capable.

i just wondered, if they are applying for passports for their dc, would they benefit more from an Irish passport, or if possible, would it be better to apply for a U.K. passport ?

🙏🏻

An Irish passport is often more beneficial not just for EU benefits. Some countries charge less for visas with an Irish passport.

I worked with a guy who had an ancestral Irish passport. He found it better for travel and did go to some far flung places. Although I did point out if he was kidnapped, being on a non-UK passport would probably mean the government and the SAS wouldn’t try to rescue him 😂

If they are immigrating from a non European country to Ireland…. Why would they be able to apply for a UK passport???? Where does the UK come into it?

Yes, they will.

the condition of Irish citizenship is one parent must be a citizen at the time of your birth.

so your dh was automatically a citizen of his mum was born in Ireland or had a FBR. Your children are now Irish citizens having registered their birth abroad.

any children will have an Irish citizen parent, so can apply to the FBR for their own citizenship.

as long as offspring register on the FBR before their own children are born the next generation is also entitled to citizenship.

where it fails is when a parent doesn’t FBR before the birth.

It diesn’t sound as though they’re eligible for either?

As for o/p’a friends and children, they would have to naturalise- be living there for 5 years then apply for citizenship.

if they naturalise NI that may mean they can apply for both Irish and uk passports.

It needs to be a parent or a grandparent is/was Irish to have the automatic right to an Irish passport and then you have to provide the evidence.

Irish - if eligible but the children would need a born in Ireland grandparent or parent OR to go and live there for several years and go through the residency route.

Irish of the easiest passports to travel on AND still in the EU so none of the going through the new systems that are in place for UK passports.
Plus Irish and U.K. citizens are treated equally in each others countries which predates thenEU etc so working rights, healthcare, voting etc is equal. A Brit can go to Ireland and be treated the same as an Irish citizen and vice Versa.

Bluntly, in many parts of the world, if you were kidnapped, having an Irish passport rather than one that retains unpleasant colonial connotations for many might mean the difference between being released or shot.

That’s too far back BUT if they are legally in Ireland and working there etc and stay 5+ years then the children should be able to get Irish citizenship eventually.

Depends what's important to them.

The Irish passport is the top of the list worldwide for freedom of travel:
Countries without visas 149

https://immigrantinvest.com/passport-index/rating/travel-freedom/

UK passport has a few less countries that don't require visas, but are also limited to 90 day stays in some. That's mostly in the EU countries I think, whereas Irish passports don't have that limit.

So that's 2 countries. What are the others. I've got british and NZ passport. Brother had Irish passport. He's certainly not gained any advantage in Thailand. Japan Mexico etc that I can see

The UK has twice as many embassies across the globe for non-terrorist related travel problems.

DP has an Irish passport as his mum was Irish. He had issues obtaining a copy of her birth certificate because it was in Irish and the record office couldn't find her under the English name she was known by. Luckily a family member in Ireland was able to physically go there are help identify the correct record. Ironically only the younger generations of the family speak Irish, his mother never did.

When we travel together he either has to hang around waiting for me and other family members after passport control or, when we get home, has a human border control agent check his passport and I get through quicker via the machines.

You obviously didn't read properly I said IN THE REST of the world it makes no difference

If they eligible i definitely for Irish passport. You have access to whole the EU and can move there…

The UK is a non EU country. They might have moved to Ireland from the UK.

Yes. Both my children have become Irish citizens (haven’t sorted out passports yet) based on their paternal grandmother being Irish.
Any children my children have in the future will be able to claim Irish citizenship and this continues for perpetuity.

If the children are going to stay in Ireland or U.K. long term an Irish passport gives them the freedom to travel, work and study in EU countries… not something easily done anymore for young people with U.K. passports only.

It's not a non-European country though as per the op.

US friends immigrated to Ireland when their kids were toddlers, family are now citizens and the kids are as Irish as they come - they went though resident rules and are now dual Irish/USA citizens

If the children grow up in Ireland they are more likely to follow their friends to Australia, Canada and the US (and the UK) than anywhere in the EU.

You’re not taking my point.

If I was untroubled abroad I’d 100% be showing my Irish passport over the U.K. one!
Don’t underestimate the destain many countries and people have for the British…

Yes, I am - most British travellers are not kidnapped but they often require other consular/embassy assistance - therefore having twice as many embassies across the globe is clearly going to be a benefit.

Irish is the better one to have especially after brexit.

I have both UK and Irish as was born in Northern Ireland but now mainly travel on my British as dh and dd have British ones but if I was travelling solo I would use my Irish.