Application Approved but Pre-booked Travel

[seekingadvice87]

Hi there,

British citizenship has been approved, but international travel had already been pre-booked since last year. The process took almost nine months, and at the time of booking, it wasn’t expected to extend this long.

The ceremonies team was informed that travel is scheduled for the end of October. They initially allocated a group ceremony date in December, but the traveller will be abroad until the end of January, beyond the 3 month attendance window. Fortunately, the last available private ceremony date offered, is the day before the flight.

The plan is to attend the private ceremony the day before travelling and depart with the naturalisation certificate. However, attending the ceremony automatically cancels any UK eVisa attached to a foreign passport.

The first leg of the journey is from the UK to Ireland. While the Common Travel Area should ordinarily make this straightforward, there is concern that Irish authorities could cancel an Irish visa contained in a foreign passport once British citizenship is granted and if asked about the traveller's UK status now British as they could also see on their systems (eVisa cancelled?).

The second flight is from Ireland to the US. The main concern is the return leg, from the US back to Ireland, where airline staff may rely on the Irish visa in the foreign passport. There is some uncertainty about whether that visa will remain valid once the traveller’s UK eVisa is cancelled/Irish visa too becoming invalid?

For the final leg, from Ireland back to the UK, it is understood that under the CTA, a UK passport is not required for entry, provided proof of British or Irish nationality can be shown.

Postponing the ceremony isn’t an option, as attendance is required by the second week of January, and the traveller will not return until the end of January. There is also insufficient time to apply for a British passport, since travel takes place the following day. Although the Home Office advised against travel during this period, the citizenship process was significantly long and there's also the Windrush application but that's for another time.

Any guidance on how to navigate this situation would be appreciated, as cancelling the trip is not financially viable.

Would there likely be any issues entering Ireland on a foreign passport with an Irish visa after naturalisation, given that the UK eVisa will be cancelled?
What difficulties, if any, could arise when returning from the US to Ireland in this circumstance?

Finally, is it possible to apply for a UK Emergency Travel Document or first UK passport while in the United States? There is concern that this process could take several weeks and require submission of original documents, which may be risky if travel home is imminent.

Any advice or insights would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you.