handslikesecrets

Hi, I know that there have been a lot of threads already on this, but I couldn't find a specific answer. I was born in the UK and moved to the US in 2002. I was naturalized about three years ago.
From my understanding, this doesn't mean I actually have to revoke my British citizenship. I was under the impression that I could continue to fly with my British passport. However, this last Christmas when I flew to England, on the way back I was detained by a U.S. official and told that I wasn't allowed to fly with my British passport anymore (this happened in British Columbia on my way back to the U.S.) He gave me a 'warning' (literally a piece of paper he tore off of a notepad that said 'Warning.') Is he wrong?
Additionally, my father's side of the family is French, and as a child I was on his passport. I'm looking at going to Paris for an extended period of time, and thinking about applying for my French passport. Then I would have a British, French, and U.S. passport... is this legal??
I know that's a lot, thanks for any input!!

rpjs

You have to enter or leave the US on your US passport - they can fine you upto $1000 for not doing so although I don't think that actually happens very often. Which passport you enter or leave another country on is up to you.

ian-mstm

Under US law, if you're a USC you must use a US passport to enter the US. The law says that you must also use your US passport to exit the US, but since there's no US immigration exit control, that part of the law doesn't have any teeth to it. That said, you must enter the US with a US passport.


It is perfectly legal... many of us, including me, have 3 citizenships and 3 valid passports. However, there's no advantage in a French passport unless there's someplace in the world that you can get to on a French passport easier than if you used a UK passport!

Ian

Bob

You can have all three passports if you can get them.

As a US citizen, you have to enter/leave the US using a US passport as they won't see you as a citizen of another country.

The UK does not have this requirement, so you can use whatever passport is valid for the purpose of the trip to visit the UK. I don't know about France, but a UK passport would still be fine.

Oh and welcome to BE!

GeoffM

I read something not so long ago that said UK passport holders are 1st in the world for the number of countries one can enter visa-free, or "visa" on arrival. Maybe there are some French territories that are "easier" with a French PP.

Not surprisingly, my wife has only beaten me once - Cambodia - where her Filipino PP got instant entry; I had to pay for a "visa" upon arrival. But then most Filipinos are specifically banned from Iraq (stamped in the PP) which is... well, not much of a loss I guess!

Bob

They can enter Brazil without a visa, but then again, I think so can Brits. US passport needs a visa in advance though. French passport probably isn't much use over a UK one..hmmmm :/

GeoffM

Correct - I didn't need one in advance and I don't think I had anything more than an entrance stamp. That was 2005. A good year <reminisces>.

Anian

Yeah, Brits get into Brazil visa-free, whereas my American chums had to fork out for one, which cost a few hundred dollars after all the fees involved.

md95065

One of the few remaining benefits of the British Empire ...

robin1234

It looks as if a British passport holder would need a visa in order to visit a French Overseas Territory for over 90 days, so in those circumstances there is an advantage to having a French passport.

Quote from the French Embassy in Washington;

Citizen from the european Union and the European Economic Space (Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Danemark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxemburg, Malta, Norway, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom), from Andorra, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Saint Marin, the Holly See and Switzerland can stay in any of these territories up to 90 days without a visa. They only need a passport valid for 3 months after the last day of their stay.

(Incidentally, it's a pity the French Embassy couldn't get someone who was familiar with English language & spelling to give a quick proofread of this page...)