windsong

I am receiving such mixed comments about what to do and I am SO confused. An ex immigration officer (i this forum) has now told me that it is not advisable to travel with my US passport, my old expired UK passport AND my dogs at the same time. This means the dogs would have to travel separately.

His comments underscore what the Border Agency told me last year - that having my dogs with makes it look as if I plan to stay even with a return ticket (since I would be entering on a US passport and presenting a very much expired UK old blue book passport).

I am completely disgusted that the UK does not have some measures at hand to help someone in this situation. And whoever runs HMPO should be FIRED!

You'd think that since I applied online AND paid for my passport to be renewed that seeing that paperwork would help the IO realize I am a British citizen because no one would do that if they had renounced citizenship. Surely!

For a British citizen to have to endure this experience - nightmare! - is abominable! And to not be able to take my dogs with me on the same journey is also abominable.

rebs

And other ex-pats reading this might want to think about the potential consequences of making the choice not to keep their UK passport up to date.

windsong

Yes, definitely - as I would have done if I could have afforded to do even that while unemployed for so long. Survival was my priority at that time. As soon as I got a job, it was the first thing I worked on but couldn't even send off my supporting documents because I got news the day I was sending them that the job and the place where I live and work is now being sold imminently. It is a real crisis. Not renewing my passport was NOT a choice I deliberately made. Thankfully, there are FAR better job prospects for me in the UK and, as many of you know, I have great skills and qualifications in a few different areas.

Now I still have my old UK passport in hand because I don't know whether to send it in or take it with me.

windsong

When travelling on a US passport (to exit the US and enter the UK) but also presenting my expired UK passport, would I enter through the EU channel or the non-EU channel? Again, I am getting conflicting information. One person has said one thing and someone else another.

englishguygoinghome

Take the same paperwork you were going to provide as proof of citizenship in order to get the new passport. How ere you intending to prove that you hadn't renounced in that case? You weren't
Your absolute worst case scenario in all of this is that they ask you to stpe aside and wait an hour or so while they validate your lack of renunciation in their systems. But that is highly unlikely to happen unless you give them some reason to think you are trying to cheat them.

englishguygoinghome

Whichever will get you in faster. The EU queue will be moving a lot faster so only go to the non-EU queue if there are less than 1//10 to 1/20 the number of people than in the EU queue (assuming equal numbers of staff checking)

lansbury

In the circumstances I think that might be bad advice. If there is a problem and further inspection is needed it is normally done by the IO to whom the passport was first presented. An IO on the EU desk will just not be able to leave the desk and she is likely to experience a longer delay until they are free to resolve the issue. If it were me I'd go to the correct desk for a US passport holder.

rebeccajo

That's the same advice that was given on tripadvisor.com (link given earlier in either this thread or another on the same topic).

windsong

So does that mean I should go through the non-EU queue or the EU queue? (I am getting quite confused, probably because I am so nervous about all this.)

lansbury

Not sure what advice you are saying was given earlier, mine or the post I was replying to. My reply was based on experience of working in the immigration halls at Heathrow alongside the IOs, and seeing what they did in practice. I also quite often was part of the follow up examinations when there was a problem.

If it were me I'd use the non-EU queue.

windsong

Okay. So on arrival at the non-EU queue I would present my US passport plus expired UK passport and explain. Correct?

Upon interrogation, how nasty are they in their manner? Would it be an hour or two of intense questioning or simply two hours of waiting for them to verify I am a citizen? If I have some idea what to expect, it might help to calm my nerves. (However, it will be replaced by the worry about getting my pets there without me on board. Hopefully, there won't be a problem with my friend putting them on the plane the next day - a nonstop flight - and me picking them up on arrival.)

windsong

I will put this in the thread, too, so others may learn . . .

lanbury, you mentioned to me earlier that the US may have some concern upon exiting the USA that if I am with my dogs on the same plane AND with an expired UK passport, they have no proof I am authorized to land in the UK and could prevent me going - even regardless of whether the dogs were with me on the same flight. Seems the US has to be sure I have the documents I need to land in the UK before departure from the US. Surely, as a US passport holder, a citizen of the USA, I am free to travel to the UK on a US passport with the same freedom and rights as any other US citizen?

If I were to make a special flight - to the UK go one day and back in two days - to get my old blue book expired passport renewed in person. Would that work? Surely that would eliminate ALL problems and allow the dogs to travel with me.

rebeccajo

Oh, sorry. That must have come out wrong.

Someone in another thread gave windsong a reference to a thread on tripadvisor.com. In that thread the person was advised to us the US line.

I was just trying to say you were giving the same good advice.

rebeccajo

It's not the "US" that prevents people from boarding. It's the airline. They don't want to be responsible for getting you back to the US if Border Control turns you away.

windsong

Yes, true, but my question stands. Simply substitute "airline in the USA" for "US".