Renouncing citizenship as a dual national

Pez

Pez

Soldato
OP
Joined
20 Oct 2002
Posts
5,005
Location
Warwickshire
Obviously if you renounce the British passport then you can shed all that guilt for all the colonising. That should be a weight of your shoulders at least. /s

More seriously, one potential downside is giving up UK citizenship you could, if you ever decide to go for a job role in the UK that requires certain levels of security clearance, find that you may not be eligible for it without being a citizen.
That is a very good point, and not entirely off the cards - thanks!
 
Last edited:
Caporegime
Joined
18 Oct 2002
Posts
32,618
Currently the UK passport is less useful overall, but given Brexit your rights to work in the UK can be heavily restricted (OK for Irish now, but could easily change).

Given there is zero cost to having it then don't get rid of it.

There is no limit on how many passports you can have in most countries. Some pf my friend's kids have 5!
 
  • Like
Reactions: Pez
Man of Honour
Joined
5 Jun 2003
Posts
91,360
Location
Falling...
Hi folks.

Purely hypothetical - I am currently an Irish national with dual UK citizenship, I live in the UK. Are there any potential downfalls to renouncing my British citizenship? As I understand it I would still be able to live/work in the UK without a visa, as well as vote and access NHS services.

I don't really 'need' both, and as far as I can tell, my Irish passport offers more benefits (see Brexit)

Appreciate your thoughts/advice :)
just keep both. Why even think about giving one up?

I'm happy with having dual nationality ,it's a privilege don't waste it.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Pez
Caporegime
Joined
29 Aug 2007
Posts
28,598
Location
Auckland
Only renounce it if you have a good reason to, such as a job that doesn't allow it.
Although I agree Irish citizenship has a lot more benefits.

This guy knows what's up. Unless there is a benefit or you are required to actively renounce citizenship (see: South Africa, numerous other countries) then the effort alone is a waste of your time. If it's an ideological choice then that's up to you but from a practical point of view don't unless you must do so.
 
Soldato
Joined
23 Dec 2009
Posts
18,173
Location
RG8 9
No need to renounce. I am officially a dual-national, both British and recently Finnish and I did wonder whether there was any point but the reality is none. Can't be bothered with all the questions coming back into the UK with a foreign passport so may as well keep using the UK one. If I ever fly somewhere where it will be beneficial to fly with the Finnish one (VISA requirements etc) then will just weigh up the pros and cons.
 
Associate
Joined
13 Apr 2019
Posts
134
Location
The cold wet North East of England
Are there any potential downfalls to renouncing my British citizenship? As I understand it I would still be able to live/work in the UK without a visa, as well as vote and access NHS services.

I don't really 'need' both, and as far as I can tell, my Irish passport offers more benefits (see Brexit)

Not really. Due to the Common Travel Area agreement and subsequent agreements, a citizen of the Republic of Ireland can visit the UK from Ireland without a passport, live in the UK for the rest of their life (without needing to seek permanent residency), work in the UK (without a visa), receive *free* healthcare on the NHS, vote in the UK and even act as a witness to someone in the UK who is applying for their first British passport! There might be an issue if you are pursuing a high security clearance British government career though.

Interestingly, military conscription was never enforced in the Irish Free State during World War 2. The British government tried to enforce it in Ireland during World War I but there was strong resistance that contributed to the Easter Rising of 1916, which caused the policy to be scrapped there. So if World War 3 kicks off you should be safe from being conscripted for it!
 
Soldato
Joined
14 Jul 2004
Posts
4,543
Location
Melbourne , Oz.
I have both British and Australian passports. The UK one isn't as good as it was thanks to Brexit so there is no real advantage in using it anymore (quicker through PP control on trips back to the UK but my Mrs has an Aussie one so have to wait for her on the other end anyway) however I would never give either up. Other than the small cost of renewal every 10 years there is no downside. Their renewals are several years apart so if I accidentally let one lapse (like I noticed I had 3 weeks before last years holiday) then I can just use the other.
 
Last edited:
Associate
Joined
25 Jul 2004
Posts
793
Location
.
Hi folks.

Purely hypothetical - I am currently an Irish national with dual UK citizenship, I live in the UK. Are there any potential downfalls to renouncing my British citizenship? As I understand it I would still be able to live/work in the UK without a visa, as well as vote and access NHS services.

I don't really 'need' both, and as far as I can tell, my Irish passport offers more benefits (see Brexit)

Appreciate your thoughts/advice :)

You're potentially causing yourself a massive headache later down the line for absolutely no good reason. Unless you're applying for a government job which doesn't allow dual citizenship, I'd keep both.

I work for the passport office in the UK and the amount of people who try to renew their UK passport after they've renounced is unsurprisingly high. They realise they didn't have to renounce and trying to use a foreign ppt for day to day stuff in the UK causes issues because companies don't realise they can accept foreign ones.

Just keep both.
 
Soldato
Joined
3 May 2012
Posts
8,688
Location
Wetherspoons
Can't be bothered with all the questions coming back into the UK with a foreign passport so may as well keep using the UK one.

They realise they didn't have to renounce and trying to use a foreign ppt for day to day stuff in the UK causes issues because companies don't realise they can accept foreign ones.

Not trying to argue against keeping both.

But I use my Irish passport for everything, getting jobs, opening bank accounts and travelling abroad I've never had any issues.
 
Associate
Joined
24 Oct 2013
Posts
399
I have the same - dual Irish/British citizenship. I cannot see any point dropping either but I admit there is limited utility having both at the moment, possibly having a British one is better for your credit rating. Having two passports can also be useful if you have to travel to certain countries, where you don't want to hassle of them knowing where you've been (use different ones for each country). Israel and Saudi for example.

Just keep both.

Sound advice.
 
Soldato
Joined
28 Jan 2008
Posts
6,046
Location
Manchester
There is no up side in renouncing as far as I can tell?

Technically I think the UK Passport gets you into more countries without a VISA, so there is that downside. You might not go to them, but technically, in that regard, it is worse just to have the Irish one.

It's horses for courses. I'm kinda opposite as I only have EU passport and never bothered getting UK one. Few years ago when we went on holiday to India both my gf and I needed the same visa. Iirc mine was ~£40 and hers ~£120. After that I looked more into it and as you say there are a few countries that I wouldn't need a visa but none of them were of any interest to us and think there were few other countries with higher fees for british passport.
 
Back
Top Bottom