Question

Asked by Peter from united kingdom | Nov. 19, 2019 11:12

About:China Visa Entries / Validity / Duration of Stay

Irish passport with UK citizenship

I am an Irish passport holder born in Northern Ireland so therefore have dual Irish and British nationality. I have lived in England all my adult life and applied for a visa in England, but have now been told that I need proof of residency in the UK.

Is this correct? I have lived in the UK all my life. My passport states my county of birth, and it is one of the six counties in the UK. But even people born in the 26 counties have the right to reside in the UK.

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Answers (6)

Answered by Peter | Nov. 19, 2019 13:27

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...also, given that I declared a nationality (UK) other than that of my passport (I have entered my UK address but have no UK passport number to enter in this section), how do I answer the subsequent question "Do you have permanent residence of any other country or region"?

Yes/UK? Or 'No'?

I don't have 'permanent residence' of the country that has issued my passport.

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Answered by Harry | Nov. 19, 2019 19:42

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Peter, if you are applying for China visa in UK, you should use a UK passport so that you don't need to submit the proof of residency in the UK.

As for the question regarding permanent residency of other country, you can answer "no".

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Answered by Peter | Nov. 20, 2019 02:05

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But I do not have a UK passport! My Irish passport clearly states the county of my birth, and (as I pointed out) it is one of the six counties of Ireland that are in the UK. I was born in the UK, and have lived in the UK continuously since birth. I can find a local authority bill to my name and address, but requiring proof of residence from a lifelong UK citizen because he is from Northern Ireland and holds an Irish passport, would seem to be contrary to internationally recognised fact that Northern Ireland is part of the UK.

Even if I didn't have dual nationality (I do) and were a citizen of the 26 counties of the Republic of Ireland, I would be automatically deemed to be settled in the UK under the Immigration Act 1971. Two years ago I got a visa and was not told to prove residence: my passport presumably was sufficient proof in law, as it states a place of birth within the UK. Irish passports were treated the same as British passports (except the fee was lower!).

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Answered by John Doe | Nov. 20, 2019 13:31

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Chinese consulates located in most countries will insist you to apply on the country's passport if you have dual citizenship with that country, so I'm afraid that you must either renounce your British citizenship under British Nationality Act 1981 or get a British citizen passport. Renouncing your British citizenship will not affect your right of abode in the UK as spelled out in Immigration Act 1971.

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Answered by John Doe | Nov. 20, 2019 13:34

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I forgot: a third way to prove your residency is to get a certificate of entitlement in your Irish passport but IIRC that's at least five times the cost of a British passport (yes, nearly 400 pounds for a visa sticker). The ultimate choice is yours.

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Answered by Peter McKenna | Dec. 12, 2019 08:45

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Just in case anyone else in the UK with an Irish passport fetches up here searching with a similar question, I should correct some of the info given in the responses.

The Visa Centre in the UK does NOT insist you either renounce your British citizenship or get a British passport, or a certificate of entitlement. Just bring a recent utility bill or other official document containing your UK address.

Even that is peculiar, where the passport holder's place of birth is clearly in the UK; however, it is what they want!

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