Entering the UK- or going to happen now

I think the aim is to tighten up on illegal immigration and to show the public they are Doing Something 🤔, but, like many government initiatives, successive governments seem to target the wrong people.

There is a need to bring us in line with other countries with ETAs but why people with dual British/Other nationalities are not allowed to use their non-British passport plus an ETA is puzzling, especially if they are not regular travellers or there is a family emergency.

It definitely appears that British citizens are being disciminated against because Britain allows people to have dual citizenship, and it seems difficult to renounce British citizenship.
Many countries do not allow dual citizenship, eg India. If you become a citizen of another country, you lose your Indian citzenship. If UK had that rule, it would be easier for people like Nanna, but I suspect there are others who like to be dual citizens.

denbylover

Nanna8, there’s a great deal of angst across the ditch as well.
Primarily the short lead-in time between announcement and implementation.

Also the requirement for someone, not a family member with a current UK passport who has known you for 2 years, to sign your application form. This 2nd ask is causing difficulty as many do not know others outside family with current UK passports.

I guess the dust will settle, as these things do, but it sounds like a tremendous revenue gathering exercise as I understand NZPost is charging in the vicinity of $200.00 just for courier fees!

Hope they get lots of complaints. It is not a good look, is it ? Going to mainland European countries seems a lot easier, at least it was for us . I think it is a money grabbing exercise, too. Especially sad if you have to go to a loved one’s funeral, you have enough problems without this added stress. This friend is very,very upset about it.

Well, it works both ways. My 3 Australian/British grandchildren were unable to go to Australia for a funeral because their Australian passports had expired. They were not allowed to use their British passports!

Oops, sorry, I gave the wrong link on my post above. I’ll try again!

uk.embassy.gov.au/lhlh/DualNationals.html

nanna8

Allsorts

Nanna, you are an Australian and not a British Citizen. Why would you not apply for a ETA to visit. They are just a few pounds. As a British Citizen I would have to do the same to visit your country.

I’m not eligible for that. You have to get a passport. I seriously think some people on here have literacy issues. No, my grandchildren were not born in the UK but they still have to pay for and use a British passports if they want to visit. Stupid rule. Look, I have said how it is, I am not telling lies and I object to the people who are saying I am just making things up. End of.

I sympathise nanna8. Sorry you have not been treated very well on here.

How much warning was given about the change? Is that the issue? I feel very sorry for anyone caught up in it if it’s been sprung on them with little notice, but we’re only catching up with what’s always happened in other countries. My American friend and her children (born here) have always had to keep both passports up to date to travel back there on visits. And it looks as though dual UK/Australian nationals living in the UK face the same issue if they travel to Australia. With the added problem of an Australian passport costing a whopping £314 when applied for from here.

www.smartraveller.gov.au/before-you-go/who-you-are/dual-nationals

Nanna8, there’s a great deal of angst across the ditch as well.
Primarily the short lead-in time between announcement and implementation.

Also the requirement for someone, not a family member with a current UK passport who has known you for 2 years, to sign your application form. This 2nd ask is causing difficulty as many do not know others outside family with current UK passports.

I guess the dust will settle, as these things do, but it sounds like a tremendous revenue gathering exercise as I understand NZPost is charging in the vicinity of $200.00 just for courier fees!

This is something I don't understand. My family emigrated to Australia in the 60s, so my brothers were British citizens originally. Yet they are regarded as foreigners and have to visit on a visa.

Allsorts

Nanna, you are an Australian and not a British Citizen. Why would you not apply for a ETA to visit. They are just a few pounds. As a British Citizen I would have to do the same to visit your country.

I’m not eligible for that. You have to get a passport. I seriously think some people on here have literacy issues. No, my grandchildren were not born in the UK but they still have to pay for and use a British passports if they want to visit. Stupid rule. Look, I have said how it is, I am not telling lies and I object to the people who are saying I am just making things up. End of.

Allsorts

Nanna, you are an Australian and not a British Citizen. Why would you not apply for a ETA to visit. They are just a few pounds. As a British Citizen I would have to do the same to visit your country.

Nanna8 is a British citizen and the new rules apply. This has been made very clear on the thread.

I don't agree with dual passports decide where your loyalty lies.

Nanna, you are an Australian and not a British Citizen. Why would you not apply for a ETA to visit. They are just a few pounds. As a British Citizen I would have to do the same to visit your country.

Doodledog

How is it legal for people who don't live here to vote here? If they've lived abroad for years they can only have a partial understanding of the way the country currently works, and as has been said, don't have to live with the consequences of their vote anyway.

I'm not sure I even agree with the idea of dual citizenship. Maybe temporary emigrants/immigrants should keep the citizenship of their home country (as most do), and if/when they become long-term residents they should choose where their loyalties lie. I could be persuaded otherwise, though - it's not something I've thought about much, and it may be more complex than that.

Actually Doodledog we do very much have to live with the consequences of the vote. All our income comes from the UK and my occupational pension has always been taxed at source there. The decline in the exchange rate since Brexit is significant. We have the spreadsheets.
Not wishing to derail the thread, just pointing out that it isn't as simple as leaving the UK and knowing nothing about it.

nanna8

The worst thing is for my grandchildren. They are being forced to get British passports which they have never had and do not want. Ridiculous.

Were they born in the UK nanna8? My grandchildren were born in Spain, English father, Spanish mother. They have never applied for British citizenship and travel on their Spanish passports. The rules seem to be very complex and depend on when they were born, but it might be worth checking.

Allira we're in the same position as your DD's friend's parents. We visit them once a year, they can't afford the time or money to bring the whole family over here. Why would our son keep an up to date British passport which he won't need until there's an emergency? As his old one has expired I don't know if he even still has it.

X post.

Renewing a British passport in Australia is primarily done online through the GOV.UK website, costing £107 plus courier fees. The process requires a digital photo, your current passport, and a credit/debit card. Supporting documents must be sent via courier to the UK, with processing times taking several weeks.

More background to this:

www.gov.uk/government/publications/nationality-and-borders-bill-electronic-travel-authorisation-factsheet/nationality-and-borders-bill-electronic-travel-authorisation-factsheet

Quote:

Through the Nationality and Borders Bill, to fill the current gap in advance permissions, we will introduce an Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) scheme …

That bill was introduced by Priti Patel under the Johnson government to bring the UK in line with other countries and enacted in 2022 under Sunak.

I make the point because OP seems to want to blame Keir Starmer when this was already law before the change of government and was a necessary change anyway to bring the UK in line with other countries.

I ccanot stress this enough. The ETA has never been a document which gives permission to enter the UK. It is a document which allows someone who has passed the necessary criteria to get an ETA to travel. That is all it is. An electronic travel authorisation. Someone could arrive on an Australian passport plus ETA and be refused entry.

The roll out was always going to be phased: Gulf countries were first between Nov 2023 and Feb 2024 with the rest of the world and Europe in two phases from late 2024.

This from Time Out dated 7 January 2025 so over year ago.

Planning a UK trip? Australians will now need to apply for an ETA before travelling

Starting January 8 2025, all non-European travellers will need to apply for the new ETA. This applies to all Australians, including babies and children, with exceptions only for dual British or Irish citizens.

Those with dual citizenship have continued to be allowed to travel without an ETA but will now have to show a British passport before they can travel to prove they have right of abode.

The UK Home Office officially announced on 24 November 2025 that the "soft launch" period for the ETA scheme would end, with full, strict enforcement beginning on 25 February 2026

British and Irish dual citizens with other nationalities will no longer be able to use the "loophole" of using their other passport _without an ETA_; they will need a valid British or Irish passport.

Part of the change is to place an obligation on the carrier to check that those travelling have passed background checks which would indicate that the traveller might be admitted to the UK. I say might as an ETA does not guarantee entry. The difference is that someone with a British passport has an automatic right to enter the UK without having to pass any background checks before travelling. I would say that’s an advantage not a disadvantage.

A passport is valid for ten years. An ETA is only valid for two years.

A standard British adult passport for a dual citizen costs £94.50 if applying online from within the UK (£107 by paper). For applications from overseas, the cost is £120.50 plus a courier fee making a total of £143.51

X post Rosie51

Yes, it is sad and worrying. Applying for renewal of a British passport in Australia is not a speedy process either.

Allira

British citizens who apply for Australian citizenship are being penalised because they have to keep their British passport up-to-date at around £100 each time or for proof of British citizenship at around £500+.

🤔

But a passport is valid for 10 years- is £10 an “extortionate” amount?

No wonder it’s confusing 🙁

I'm confused as well Lazarus.

DD has a friend who does not keep her British passport up-to-date because she doesn't come back to the UK, her parents visit her as they have more free time. Presumably she will now need to as she can't use her Australian passport to come here in an emergency.

My son who is a dual Canadian/British citizen hasn't been back to Britain in 20 years. His British passport has long since expired. If he needed to come back in an emergency, say to see a dying parent, why should he have to pay an extortionate amount that he wouldn't be liable for as any other Canadian citizen, or keep renewing a British passport that he ordinarily never used? The lack of any empathy on this thread is so sad.

Allira

^Because if you come with British citizenship you can stay and work and are entitled to all the benefits of being a British Citizen.^

Well, that's a new one on me.

If any of my British family come to stay and need a GP they are entitled to emergency health care because the UK has a reciprocal arrangement with Australia. That is what we have been told. It is not because they are British citizens, they have to register as visitors.
They would not be entitled to benefits nor a pension unless they had paid the required NI for a SP.

I did Google it and got that answer about dual citizenship entitlement from 3 or 4 different legal sites. Athilaw was one, afraid I can’t remember the others.

But obviously you have direct knowledge so I bow to that.

No wonder it’s confusing 🙁

British citizens who apply for Australian citizenship are being penalised because they have to keep their British passport up-to-date at around £100 each time or for proof of British citizenship at around £500+.

🤔