Originally Posted by Tegwyn

I would strongly recommend you use your U.S passport to enter and leave the U.K. You do want that little stamp in your passport. The U.S. grudgingly accepts dual with the U.K. and those delightful immigration officers can get quite testy and make things difficult. My experience, heading back to the U.S. after entering the U.K. with my British one, was asked by U.S. immigration officers why I travelled with two passports and which nationality do I consider myself to be. Had I said British, they would have confiscated my U.S. one. It it legal for them to do so, so please be warned.

Originally Posted by JAJ

The golden rule is to ALWAYS identify yourself as an American to U.S. officials. What passport you use overseas is none of their business.

Incidentally, Customs & Border Protection officials are part of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). U.S. citizenship law is the responsibility of the State Department, not the Department of Homeland Security and they are the only ones who can say who is or is not a U.S. citizen.

Originally Posted by Jerseygirl

Just a little off topic. Recently when checking in for departure on a cruise, I was told the cruise company would keep my UK PP and GC until we returned to the US. I didn't know the legalities of keeping the GC but refused to hand over my UK PP...I told them it was the property of the UK Government and they had absolutely no right to keep it. They kept the GC only and it was returned when we docked in NJ.

Originally Posted by Jerseygirl

Just a little off topic. Recently when checking in for departure on a cruise, I was told the cruise company would keep my UK PP and GC until we returned to the US. I didn't know the legalities of keeping the GC but refused to hand over my UK PP...I told them it was the property of the UK Government and they had absolutely no right to keep it. They kept the GC only and it was returned when we docked in NJ.

Originally Posted by TouristTrap

I wouldn't even hand over my GC. If they started to get stroppy, I'd demand a full refund.

Originally Posted by Jerseygirl

I wouldn't want to point that out to the officer at the POE. Best to be polite and if they say jump you ask how high.

Originally Posted by Jerseygirl

I didn't know if they legally could keep the GC but knew they couldn't keep the PP. It threw them when I said my PP was the property of the crown...I half expected them to ask if I'd met the Queen.

Originally Posted by JAJ

Of course you should be polite! I wasn't suggesting otherwise.

But if you're a US citizen and the officer begins to question that, he has no basis on which to do so. If he starts trying to confiscate your passport or something like that, then it's time to speak to his supervisor.

Originally Posted by JAJ

Most passports are the property of the issuing government. If a foreign government tried to "confiscate" a British or American passport, that's the kind of thing that could cause a diplomatic incident.

That said, it's fairly normal for cruise lines to hold the passports of passengers in order to speed immigration clearance at the various ports en route.

Originally Posted by Tegwyn

Here's the thing. I travelled countless time using both passports and last year I was stopped by U.S. immigration and asked why I do not have an entry stamp to the U.K.? I then had to declare my British passport.

Originally Posted by Jerseygirl

What about the GC...can they legally keep hold of it? BTW it was the cruise line's check in staff not a government official.

Originally Posted by Giantaxe

Why didn't you just say "they didn't stamp it"?

Originally Posted by Tegwyn

What can I tell you, when put on the spot, I just didn't think to lie. In fact I was not aware that it would have been an issue as I had been in and out of the U.S. on both passports for a few years. I recall during the citizenship thing, they had most folk surrender their foreign passports except the British ones.

Originally Posted by mozoo

Do you mean at the Oath ceremony, the new citizens had to give up their old passports?