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-   -   Help! Scared and confused about using one-way ticket (https://britishexpats.com/forum/moving-back-uk-61/help-scared-confused-about-using-one-way-ticket-831121/)

Speedwell Apr 12th 2014 3:04 pm

Help! Scared and confused about using one-way ticket
 
Hi, folks. Everything's sorted for our move back at the end of this month (pets, household goods, family we'll be staying with, etc.). We will be staying with family in Northern Ireland for a few weeks while we locate a home for ourselves in the Republic (we'll be renting a car and looking at places). Initially we're flying into the UK via Heathrow and then onward to Dublin, then taking a taxi back into Northern Ireland to where my husband's family lives. He is, of course, an Irish/UK citizen with both passports to prove it.

I read something that scared the hell out of me this morning. Apparently I (the USC) could run into a lot of trouble for not having a return or onward ticket. I read the airline (British Airways) might refuse to let me board, and immigration at Heathrow might refuse to let me onward, or even that I might get turned away at Dublin. :cry_smile:

I can't claim to not have immigrant intent in Ireland; that's the whole point. The recommended procedure on the Ireland website is for the non-visa-required national (me) to enter the country legally on a visitor visa, then present myself with my Irish-citizen husband and the appropriate paperwork to a Garda station so they can stamp my passport with permission to stay. Getting there in the first place is the problem.

I've read advice that says to buy a cheap onward ticket to the UK. I've read advice that says you must not do that because the UK might raise an eyebrow at that unless you have a ticket to somewhere outside the UK and Ireland, and you should buy a ticket to somewhere in Europe. I've even read advice that says you must not even do that, and that your onward ticket must be to somewhere outside Europe of even back home. I don't know what to think. :blink:

Can anyone settle my mind and give me some real advice? Maybe someone who's been through this? :confused:

Thanks very much everyone!!

rebeccajo Apr 12th 2014 3:09 pm

Re: Help! Scared and confused about using one-way ticket
 
Are your animals on the same flight as you? And you only have a one-way ticket?

I haven't actually been through this. But if the answer to both of these is yes ............ then anecdotally you have a recipe for disaster.

Speedwell Apr 12th 2014 3:11 pm

Re: Help! Scared and confused about using one-way ticket
 

Originally Posted by rebeccajo (Post 11215981)
Are your animals as the same flight as you? And you only have a one-way ticket?

I haven't actually been through this. But if the answer to both of these is yes ............ then anecdotally you have a recipe for disaster.

No, the cats are being shipped separately by a pet transport company to Dublin in conformance with Irish regulations.

Yes, right now I only have a one-way ticket because I used frequent flier miles to purchase it.

My husband, as an Irish citizen, will have no problem with his own one-way ticket, of course.

Don't promise disaster without an explanation, please, OK? I'm enough of a basket case as it is.

rebeccajo Apr 12th 2014 3:17 pm

Re: Help! Scared and confused about using one-way ticket
 

Originally Posted by Speedwell (Post 11215982)
No, the cats are being shipped separately by a pet transport company to Dublin in conformance with Irish regulations.

Yes, right now I only have a one-way ticket because I used frequent flier miles to purchase it.

My husband, as an Irish citizen, will have no problem with his own one-way ticket, of course.

Don't promise disaster without an explanation, please, OK? I'm enough of a basket case as it is.

Sorry.

If you had the animals with you I would say for sure they would turn you around.

It sounds like you are planning to do a tourist entry. But you haven't a return ticket. Yes, everything you have heard about the airline possibly not allowing you on board is true. Even if they do, USC's are always asked the purpose of their visit at border control in Heathrow. Your hubby has a British passport. If you tell them your purpose is to settle, they will turn you around.

If I were you, I would change that ticket to a Dublin entry.

Speedwell Apr 12th 2014 3:19 pm

Re: Help! Scared and confused about using one-way ticket
 

Originally Posted by rebeccajo (Post 11215986)
Sorry.

If you had the animals with you I would say for sure they would turn you around.

It sounds like you are planning to do a tourist entry. But you haven't a return ticket. Yes, everything you have heard about the airline possibly not allowing you on board is true. Even if they do, USC's are always asked the purpose of their visit at border control in Heathrow. Your hubby has a British passport. If you tell them your purpose is to settle, they will turn you around.

If I were you, I would change that ticket to a Dublin entry.

I'm sorry, I thought I made it clear that our final destination is Dublin. We cannot fly directly to Dublin from here. We are not planning to settle in the UK anyway, but in the ROI, and my husband is traveling on his Irish passport.

The way to immigrate to Ireland as the spouse of an Irish citizen is by entering the country first, as I explained above. It is completely OK for me to do so as a tourist and register for residency after I enter the country. The ROI website offers no other pathway. We will fall under 1A of the following guidelines: http://www.inis.gov.ie/en/INIS/Pages/WP07000024

rebeccajo Apr 12th 2014 3:23 pm

Re: Help! Scared and confused about using one-way ticket
 

Originally Posted by Speedwell (Post 11215987)
I'm sorry, I thought I made it clear that our final destination is Dublin. We cannot fly directly to Dublin from here.

There is a "pass through" at Heathrow for onward flights to the Republic. So you won't have to do the normal immigration control at Heathrow. And I have been through that. But it's been so long ago that I don't recall the types of questions.

I know the routes to Dublin have changed through the years but......you really can't find a flight directly there? At least you can't find one that doesn't go through Heathrow?

rebeccajo Apr 12th 2014 3:27 pm

Re: Help! Scared and confused about using one-way ticket
 

Originally Posted by Speedwell (Post 11215987)
I'm sorry, I thought I made it clear that our final destination is Dublin. We cannot fly directly to Dublin from here. We are not planning to settle in the UK anyway, but in the ROI, and my husband is traveling on his Irish passport.

The way to immigrate to Ireland as the spouse of an Irish citizen is by entering the country first, as I explained above. It is completely OK for me to do so as a tourist and register for residency after I enter the country. The ROI website offers no other pathway.

Yes, I'm familiar with that process. I have experienced an unwelcome reception though as the non-EU spouse of a UK citizen at Dublin, and that was with a return ticket. You should go prepared with copies of the law that explain you can go through.

I'm not trying to unnerve you. I realize you are upset at the moment. I'm sorry about that, but you need to know worse case scenarios.

Speedwell Apr 12th 2014 3:29 pm

Re: Help! Scared and confused about using one-way ticket
 

Originally Posted by rebeccajo (Post 11215996)
Yes, I'm familiar with that process. I have experienced an unwelcome reception though as the non-EU spouse of a UK citizen at Dublin, and that was with a return ticket. You should go prepared with copies of the law that explain you can go through.

I'm not trying to unnerve you. I realize you are upset at the moment. I'm sorry about that, but you need to know worse case scenarios.

He is an IRISH dual citizen entering on an IRISH passport. Our flights have been booked for weeks. We used frequent flier miles to book them, on BA so we were charged hundreds of dollars in fees (but still a lot less than buying the actual tickets). Our tickets are not the cancellable kind. Direct flights to Dublin are not available from our city or anywhere near it, sorry, but we did check.

I don't have copies of the "law". I only have the immigration website's directions that I linked above.

I do appreciate your advice, but I would really love to hear from someone who can be more on-point. I am not looking for "what I want to hear". I am looking for useful advice from people who have SUCCESSFULLY navigated this hurdle or who know what needs to be done. Thanks.

Bluegrass Lass Apr 12th 2014 4:31 pm

Re: Help! Scared and confused about using one-way ticket
 
Hiya Speedy, the best I can do is suggest another forum for you to ask some advice on. Head over to the www.talk.uk-yankee.com forum - it's primarily for Americans heading over the pond to join their Brit OHs.

Mallory Apr 12th 2014 4:52 pm

Re: Help! Scared and confused about using one-way ticket
 
Concerning the rental car I don't believe you can take a car rented in NI to ROI. The insurance fees on rental cars in ROI are very high. They won't accept insurance from your credit card etc. We were there three years ago, and it was a rip off. Check out the details before you make plans. :frown:

If you have to cancel yr ticket purchased with BA miles, I think they only charge you $40 to do that, and the miles go back in the pot.

Downton Gabby Apr 12th 2014 4:53 pm

Re: Help! Scared and confused about using one-way ticket
 
Try this website...this is the link for looking up your particular situation, but you can find lots of other info here, too, and you can call them and speak to someone who might be be able to help you.

"Contact Us
If you have a question relating to this topic you can contact the Citizens Information Phone Service on 0761 07 4000 (Monday to Friday, 9am to 8pm) or you can visit your local Citizens Information Centre."

It's the Citizens Information Board in Ireland.
http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/mysituation.html

Speedwell Apr 12th 2014 5:29 pm

Re: Help! Scared and confused about using one-way ticket
 
Thanks, folks.

Bluegrass Lass, that's a good idea; I'll do that.

Mallory, we know about the ROI rental thing and it's possible for us to rent a car in the ROI itself or use a taxi... we will be quite close to the border. It's doable. Thanks for the heads up on that and on the BA thing. We are trying to figure out whether the ticket really needs to be cancelled, or whether we just have to get some sort of onward or return ticket.

durham_lad Apr 12th 2014 6:16 pm

Re: Help! Scared and confused about using one-way ticket
 
Is it possible to buy a refundable ticket back from Dublin in a few weeks/months after you arrive, and then cancel it once you are there?

lgabriel73 Apr 12th 2014 7:02 pm

Re: Help! Scared and confused about using one-way ticket
 
You may have problems getting on board the plane with just a one way ticket and no British passport. BA is definitely one of those airlines that play by the rules and unless you can show that you have the right to stay where you are heading they can refuse to let you board. Even when I am returning from a trip to the UK I have to show my green card at the ticket desk and everywhere else to even get on the plane. Once you land at Heathrow you do have to go through several check points even when connecting to your other flight. This includes border control as well as security. If I were you I would change the ticket just to be on the safe side. good luck.

Pollyana Apr 12th 2014 7:12 pm

Re: Help! Scared and confused about using one-way ticket
 

Originally Posted by Speedwell (Post 11216001)
He is an IRISH dual citizen entering on an IRISH passport. Our flights have been booked for weeks. We used frequent flier miles to book them, on BA so we were charged hundreds of dollars in fees (but still a lot less than buying the actual tickets). Our tickets are not the cancellable kind. Direct flights to Dublin are not available from our city or anywhere near it, sorry, but we did check.

I don't have copies of the "law". I only have the immigration website's directions that I linked above.

I do appreciate your advice, but I would really love to hear from someone who can be more on-point. I am not looking for "what I want to hear". I am looking for useful advice from people who have SUCCESSFULLY navigated this hurdle or who know what needs to be done. Thanks.

Problem is that even if someone has done this in the past, you are still at the mercy of the check in staff in the US to allow you to board the plane. Make sure you allow loads of time at check in, and if necessary insist on speakig to a supervisor, and explain it to them.
BA's problem is that if you are not accepted in Dublin at the end of the trip they are fined as well as having to pay to fly you back to the US. Its Dublin which is your destination, its their procedures you need to focus on, you are only transiting the UK (at Heathrow).


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