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Heathrow Immigration Control - Mixed Passports

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Nitch
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Heathrow Immigration Control - Mixed Passports

Post by Nitch » Mon Aug 19, 2019 3:51 pm

Hello,

My wife and I will be travelling with our children (5yo and 1yo) to the US and back in a couple months. Both of us have an ILR, one is an American citizen and the other has another citizenship that doesn't allow passing through the passport gates. The children are both UK citizens. We're trying to avoid paying for another year of Registered Traveler as we will get our UK citizenship soon after our return from the US. Will it be possible for us to be in the UK passports line given that the children are UK citizens?

Thanks!

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seagul
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Re: Heathrow Immigration Control - Mixed Passports

Post by seagul » Mon Aug 19, 2019 7:08 pm

Nitch wrote:
Mon Aug 19, 2019 3:51 pm
Will it be possible for us to be in the UK passports line given that the children are UK citizens?
No harm in trying so which more likely will work.
The opinion expressed as above is neither a professional advice nor contesting/competing to other member's opinion/advice.

secret.simon
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Re: Heathrow Immigration Control - Mixed Passports

Post by secret.simon » Tue Aug 20, 2019 1:52 am

Also see this very similar thread.

At airports, you can get into any queue. The queues are mainly for the convenience of the Border Force staff, which is why different airports will have different protocols for who can enter into the British/EEA citizens queue in a scenario like yours.

The worse that can happen, and it can happen, is after getting to the front of the EEA citizens queue, you will be sent back to the non-EEA citizens queue and start the journey back there.

Understand the difference between the two queues. In the British/EEA citizens queue, the Border Force officials only need to carry out verification of identity and cross-checking the validity of the passports/identity cards. That is to say, the right of the people in that queue to enter the UK is generally straightforward to ascertain.

In the non-EEA citizens queue, the right of people to enter the UK is not so unqualified (even after ILR. You still only have a revocable Leave to Remain). There are further checks, including those conversations that they have with you at the desk.

Therefore, if you are at the wrong desk, the Border Force official may either send you back to the non-EEA citizens queue or may conduct the checks themselves. It will depend upon them, not upon you.

Given that you would waste more time if you went through the EEA citizens queue and then were sent back to the non-EEA queue, and given that you will soon apply for British citizenship anyway, I would counsel you to go to the Non-EEA citizens queue this last time.
I am not a lawyer or immigration advisor. My statements/comments do not constitute legal advice. E&OE. Please do not PM me for advice.

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Zerubbabel
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Re: Heathrow Immigration Control - Mixed Passports

Post by Zerubbabel » Tue Aug 20, 2019 9:19 am

When I travel with my wife (I am UK/EEA, she is non-EEA), I always go to EEA lanes in the UK or elsewhere. We go together to the checkpoint and we have never been asked to go back or something.

But still, as both of you are non-EEA citizens, I tend to concur with secret.simon. Go to non-EEA.

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ariskar
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Re: Heathrow Immigration Control - Mixed Passports

Post by ariskar » Tue Aug 20, 2019 1:37 pm

I always went to non-EU line with my non-EEA spouse, even though I held EU/British passport, our child BC too.

However, I found that the non-EU line is faster than EU queues in certain airports (Luton, Liverpool) that receive mainly flights within EU. Nobody ever minded me or my child with a EU/British passport in the non-EU line when accompanying my non-EU spouse.

The story at Heathrow is the reverse. Before visa free countries were allowed at E-gates, it would take about 45 mins to 1:30 hour to clear immigration through the other nationalities queue!

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