Summer in Australia Always Comes With a Soundtrack
Cicadas. Ice clinking in a glass. That familiar summer feeling of people coming and going, and everyone quietly plotting their next escape.
Summer makes us nostalgic. It makes us restless. It makes us think about “home”, wherever that happens to be.
And for one group of travellers in Australia, that feeling is hitting a little harder than most.
The UK-born Australians – or decedents thereof.
Because just when you thought dual citizenship was the ultimate travel flex, it turns out, two passports are not always better than one.
When Two Passports Aren’t Better Than One
For years now, many UK-born Australians have been living the dual-nationality dream. British by birth, Australian by choice, and smugly waving whichever passport suited the moment.
Europe? UK passport, and “I’ll stay here as long as I like, I might even live, work, or study here.”
French hotel reception? Australian passport, you wouldn’t want to be mistaken as English!
Brexit? Oh no, what have we done!
Post-Brexit, more than a few UK passports were quietly shoved into drawers, expired, unloved, and deemed ‘not worth the paper they’re written on’. The Australian passport, meanwhile, strutted confidently around the world opening doors, waving people through, and generally being far more popular at border control (if a tad expensive).
Except now . . . it’s not opening one very important door anymore.
The Motherland Says: Not So Fast
From 25 February 2026, the UK has decided to remind everyone who’s boss.
Under new rules, all UK citizens must enter the UK on a British passport. No exceptions. No cheeky Australian passport with an ETA (visa). No ‘but I was born here’ excuses.
If you are a dual UK-Australian citizen and you rock up to Heathrow with your perfectly valid Australian passport, you’ll be met with a polite but firm version of:
‘Lovely to see you. You can’t come in!’
And this is where the whingeing begins.
Because a lot of POMs living in Australia have let their UK passports expire. Some years ago. Some a long time ago. Probably during the reign of a different monarch.
Who Even Is a British Citizen?
And here’s where things get really spicy.
Because before you even start panicking about passports, it turns out a lot of people aren’t actually aware they’re British citizens in the first place.
You’d think this would be simple. Born in the UK = British, right?
Not necessarily.
British citizenship rules depend on when you were born, who your parents are, and whether they were married at the time (yes, really).
Here’s the simplified, still-slightly-mind-bending version:
If you were born before 1 January 1983
You may automatically be a British citizen if:
- Your father was born or adopted in the UK, and
- He was married to your mother when you were born.
(No pressure on Mum and Dad, but their wedding date now matters more than your own.)
If you were born between 1 January 1983 and 30 June 2006
You may be a British citizen if:
- Your mother OR father was a British citizen by birth or adoption when you were born, but
- If it’s your father who is British, your parents must have been married at the time.
If your mum is the British one, marriage doesn’t matter. If it’s your dad, suddenly it very much does.
If you were born after 1 July 2006
You may be a British citizen if:
- Either parent was a British citizen by birth or adoption when you were born.
However (and there’s always a however), if your father was the British citizen, and your mother was married to someone else at the time . . . you may not be considered British.
Yes. Read that again.
In other words:
Some people who’ve spent their entire lives thinking ‘I’m an Aussie born and bred’ are now discovering they may actually be British too.
But, it depends:
- On dates.
- On paperwork.
- On parental marital status.
- On laws that changed mid-generation.
And that’s when the real admin Olympics begin.
Cue the Panic (and Paperwork)
Suddenly, WhatsApp groups are lighting up.
“Do you still need a UK passport if you’re Australian?”
“How long does a renewal take?”
“Does anyone know where my birth certificate from 1968 might be?”
“What are my options?”
With the introduction of the UK ETA system, dual citizens can’t just apply for an ETA and sail through either. Nope. UK citizen? UK passport required. End of story.
Or is it?
Here are your options:
Apply for a UK passport
Lots of hours of personal admin, registered postage to the UK, plus £127.86 (approx A$260) passport fee and postage back.
But wait, there’s more.
If you were born before 1 January 1983 (which means you’re now in your 40s, 50s, 60s or beyond), you’ll need to track down:
- Your full birth certificate showing your parents’ details
- Your father’s birth certificate
- Your parents’ marriage certificate
- Your Australian passport
Good luck with that if your parents are very elderly, or worse, have passed away. Somewhere in a dusty filing cabinet, a shoebox, or a folder labelled ‘Important Stuff’ lies your fate.
If you were born after 1 January 1983, you’ll need:
- Your full birth certificate
- Your Australian passport
- Evidence that one of your parents is British (for example, their birth certificate)
And if those documents relate to your father, you must also include the marriage certificate showing when he married your mother.
Because apparently, love may be eternal – but British citizenship is conditional.
So you read all that and think, damn, that’s all too hard . . .
What other options do I have?
Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. But you’re not going to like them.
You can:
Apply for a Certificate of Entitlement
(I’m sure many POMs feel this should be handed out at birth), but it actually costs £589 (approx A$1,180).
And if you’re still with me, I know exactly what you’re thinking – because I went down this train of thought myself . . .
I’ll just renounce my UK citizenship.
And yes, that is an option too.
Buuuut
Renounce your UK citizenship status
And get this, there is an application fee of £450 (approx A$905), which is non-refundable if your application is refused. What the…
So now begins the great scramble.
Forms. Fees. More forms. Certified copies. Postage. Waiting. Waiting some more. And the creeping realisation that dealing with British paperwork from Australia is not quick, not cheap, and not particularly joyful.
A Gentle Reminder (Before You Book That Flight)
If you’re a dual UK-Australian citizen living here in the sun and sand, consider this your friendly nudge.
Before you book flights.
Before you plan that nostalgic trip “home”.
Before you assume your Australian passport will save the day.
Check your UK passport. Dust it off. See if it’s still breathing.
Because nothing puts a dampener on a reunion tour quite like being told you can’t come in the front door.
But wait, there is some good news. If you have a UK passport, you don’t need a visa to go on holiday to Brazil, Vietnam, Turkey or Mongolia. You do if you’re travelling on an Australian passport.
And there’s more good news. At London Heathrow, you no longer need to take your laptop out of your bag at security, and you can now carry up to two litres of liquid in your hand luggage.
A giant leap forward – back to pre-9/11 days.
Small victories. We’ll take them.
A Quick Disclaimer
I’m not an immigration lawyer (and I’m pretty sure you’d need a law degree to fully understand the finer points of this). I’m simply a travel consultant with dual nationality trying to figure all this out for myself and my clients.
For definitive info on your own situation, check the official UK government guidance:
https://www.gov.uk/dual-citizenship
