Foreign-born Brits could be 'turned away at the border' under new passport rules
The new entry requirements will apply to all British and Irish citizens living or travelling overseas.
Children born abroad to British parents could be denied entry to the UK from next week due to a change in passport rules.
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Starting February 25, dual citizens will be required to present a British passport when entering the country or produce a “certificate of entitlement” - which costs an eye-watering £589.
Expat families have raised concerns over the plan, highlighting that many of their children do not have British passports.
Currently, any child born abroad to a British parent automatically qualifies for dual citizenship.
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Dual citizens are unable to renounce their British citizenship until they are 18, meaning they will be forced to get a passport or pay the £589.
This differs from children born to foreign parents who want to enter the UK - who can simply apply for an electronic travel authorisation (ETA), which costs just £16.
The Home Office insists these changes will help distinguish between dual citizens and people overstaying their visas but expats have highlighted concerns over the new policy.
One Brit couple planning a trip from New Zealand were told their ten-month-old son could be “turned back at the border”, the Times reports.
“He can’t reject the option of claiming citizenship until he’s 18,” the baby’s grandmother said.
“We’ve sent off an application with all the documentation requested, but have received a reply saying ‘you need to send his NZ passport as well’. We’re not going to do that because then he certainly won’t be able to travel, with no passport at all.
“We’ve tried phoning the Home Office in the UK, but they don’t have lines that deal with this — only lost or stolen passports. We’ve been to the High Commission here in Wellington and were told to go away [because] they don’t deal with this. We don’t know what else to do.”
Another claimed the change will make British expat children “second-class citizens.”
In response, a Home Office spokesperson said: “Public information advising dual nationals to carry the correct documentation has been available since October 2024 and a substantive communications campaign about the introduction of ETA has been running since 2023.
“This requirement applies to all British citizens regardless of other nationality and is the same approach taken by other countries, including the United States, Canada and Australia.”