The UK Home Office will begin strict enforcement of its Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) regime on 25 February 2026, and the biggest losers look set to be British dual citizens living in Ireland. Detailed guidance published on 17 February warns that anyone who holds UK citizenship alongside another nationality will be denied boarding unless they present either a valid British passport or a foreign passport carrying a pricey £589 ‘certificate of entitlement’. Because ETAs are not available to British citizens, dual nationals cannot rely on their second passport alone.
Crucially, the Common Travel Area protections remain intact: Irish citizens—whether single or dual nationals—are exempt from the ETA requirement and may continue to enter the UK on an Irish passport. Even so, thousands of Irish-based professionals with UK roots could face disruption if they have let their British passports lapse. Airlines, ferries and Eurostar services will be required to perform hard stops at check-in, raising the prospect of missed meetings and added costs for corporates that rota staff between Dublin, Belfast and London.
![UK to bar dual nationals without a British passport from 25 February; Irish passports still open doors]()
For anyone unsure about the paperwork—or racing against the clock to renew a passport—VisaHQ’s Ireland team can step in. The agency offers streamlined support with British passport renewals, certificates of entitlement and other cross-border documentation, all bookable online at https://www.visahq.com/ireland/
Mobility advisers are urging dual citizens to renew UK passports immediately or budget for the certificate of entitlement, which can take several weeks to issue and must be re-affixed every time the associated foreign passport is renewed. HR teams should also update travel-policy FAQs so that employees understand the ‘one passport per journey’ rule—whichever document is used to enter a country must also be used to leave it.
The clampdown forms part of the UK’s broader digitisation of its border, which will eventually require most visa-free visitors to secure advance permission. For Irish companies, the headline message is simple: check the passport drawer now or risk last-minute no-shows on the other side of the Irish Sea.
Crucially, the Common Travel Area protections remain intact: Irish citizens—whether single or dual nationals—are exempt from the ETA requirement and may continue to enter the UK on an Irish passport. Even so, thousands of Irish-based professionals with UK roots could face disruption if they have let their British passports lapse. Airlines, ferries and Eurostar services will be required to perform hard stops at check-in, raising the prospect of missed meetings and added costs for corporates that rota staff between Dublin, Belfast and London.
For anyone unsure about the paperwork—or racing against the clock to renew a passport—VisaHQ’s Ireland team can step in. The agency offers streamlined support with British passport renewals, certificates of entitlement and other cross-border documentation, all bookable online at https://www.visahq.com/ireland/
Mobility advisers are urging dual citizens to renew UK passports immediately or budget for the certificate of entitlement, which can take several weeks to issue and must be re-affixed every time the associated foreign passport is renewed. HR teams should also update travel-policy FAQs so that employees understand the ‘one passport per journey’ rule—whichever document is used to enter a country must also be used to leave it.
The clampdown forms part of the UK’s broader digitisation of its border, which will eventually require most visa-free visitors to secure advance permission. For Irish companies, the headline message is simple: check the passport drawer now or risk last-minute no-shows on the other side of the Irish Sea.
