Penalty for not clearing out

[Frogmogman]

I remember one time leaving St. Lucia with Bajansailor, the immigration official asked why we were leaving, as we still had three days left on our Visa. Did we not like his island ?

We assured him that we loved the island, but we wanted to go to Martinique.

He replied, in disgust “what do you want to go there for ? them heathen, they not even play cricket”.

 

[AntarcticPilot]

I think i've had physical stamps on every trip since I got my new navy blue passport (at the far end - nothing at this end).

I suspect that might be a function of mode of entry. I fly, and it seems to be quite usual for airport immigration desks to put a slip of paper in your passport that is surrendered on exit, and even that isn't important; it's the electronic record that they check; the slip is merely for information. Also, where visa requirements and length of stay depend on your citizenship (as they do in Hong Kong I can see that having to fiddle with the date on a stamp frequently would be both time-consuming and error-prone, I understand that you can ask for a stamp, but few do., but of course it would be wise to ask for a stamp when you plan to leave from a port that is less connected with the digital age!

I can't be bothered to get it out to look, but I'm pretty certain that my 2020 issued passport has no stamps, and that's not for want of travelling (Covid years excepted)

Thanks for the information about biometric data - as they take your fingerprints for biometric passports these days, I thought they would be on the passport.

 

[ylop]

suspect that might be a function of mode of entry. I fly, and it seems to be quite usual for airport immigration desks to put a slip of paper in your passport

I fly too - I can’t recall anywhere adding a slip of paper except the USA in pre-esta days. I may be going less exotic places than you - the Finland, Switzerland, Germany, Netherlands, Norway, have all stamped me post Brexit. Possibly others too.

Thanks for the information about biometric data - as they take your fingerprints for biometric passports these days, I thought they would be on the passport.

Other countries use fingerprints but not the U.K. I assume they take fingerprints to create the passport then? We don’t.

 

[st599]

In the last year I've had stamps from the USA, Switzerland, France, Germany, Netherlands, Greece. I can't remember ever getting a slip of paper.

Just got a new passport, definitely no fingerprints involved. (Although under EES it looks like you need to register your prints on first EES entry to the EU)

 

[RupertW]

In the last year I've had stamps from the USA, Switzerland, France, Germany, Netherlands, Greece. I can't remember ever getting a slip of paper.

Just got a new passport, definitely no fingerprints involved. (Although under EES it looks like you need to register your prints on first EES entry to the EU)

Barbados, China (mainland and Hong Kong) all still used slips of paper in last few months.

 

[AntarcticPilot]

Barbados, China (mainland and Hong Kong) all still used slips of paper in last few months.

That's how I know!

 

[Rappey]

After a quick look on gov.uk it would seem many in/out offences carry a £1000 fine.

 

[rogerthebodger]

After a quick look on gov.uk it would seem many in/out offences carry a £1000 fine. On conviction

The question is what evidence will be needed to prove that anyone has not cleared out.

Also if you have a British Passport with right of abode do immigration alway stamp you into the country

 

[awol]

What I love about these passport shenanigans is that immigrants to the UK, yea, even unto the third generation, may be able to collect a passport from their "home" country to use with a UK one to travel around without these restrictions, whereas those who descended from earlier immigrants, e.g. Angles, Huns, Picts, Norse, Romans, etc., etc. are stuck.

 

[dunedin]

What I love about these passport shenanigans is that immigrants to the UK, yea, even unto the third generation, may be able to collect a passport from their "home" country to use with a UK one to travel around without these restrictions, whereas those who descended from earlier immigrants, e.g. Angles, Huns, Picts, Norse, Romans, etc., etc. are stuck.

Which set of invaders do you claim descent from ? And isn't the solution for some to marry somebody from an overseas civilisation ?

 

[awol]

Which set of invaders do you claim descent from ? And isn't the solution for some to marry somebody from an overseas civilisation ?

I am Irish via a grandmother and my children and grandchildren have French nationality via my wife who could also have Italian if there was a reason. With a Welsh father my ABE t-shirt seems totally appropriate!
None were "invaders", just economic/emotional migrants at a time before populist rhetoric was a thing.

 

[Seven Spades]

My wife left the Uk on her British passport but they would not let her enter New Zealand on her New Zealand passport (She was born in New Zealand). They were insistent that she had to enter NZ on the passport she booked her flight with.

 

[Sandy]

I have dual nationality one being British.

If I enter the UK I would use my british Passport but could leave on my other passport. Perfectly legal but the UK immigration would not be able to connect my entry and exit.

You might be surprised, especially if you are on a watch list.

 

[Sandy]

My wife left the Uk on her British passport but they would not let her enter New Zealand on her New Zealand passport (She was born in New Zealand). They were insistent that she had to enter NZ on the passport she booked her flight with.

That is normal. If you duel nationality and are entering/leaving one of the countries that you are a national of you use that nations passport.

Sounds polite to me. Why upset the people who can put a refused entry marker on your passport, that causes interest every time you cross a border.

 

[Mark-1]

You might be surprised, especially if you are on a watch list.

...and the UK is a place (like Canada and America, but unlike France) that *does* store travel history when the passports are scanned and I'd assume they would also reconcile different passports from the same person.

 

[AntarcticPilot]

My wife left the Uk on her British passport but they would not let her enter New Zealand on her New Zealand passport (She was born in New Zealand). They were insistent that she had to enter NZ on the passport she booked her flight with.

Must vary between countries. My late wife always left and returned to the UK on her BN(O) or British passport, but always used her Hong Kong ID at Hong Kong. Never had a problem - and as I booked the tickets usually, the booking used her passport number.

 

[LittleSister]

And isn't the solution for some to marry somebody from an overseas civilisation ?

They have civilisations overseas?

 

[AntarcticPilot]

They have civilisations overseas?

Well, it always impressed me when my wife could read a document written in Chinese that was over 1000 years old. You can't do that anywhere in the West unless you're proficient in Latin! Greece comes closest - modern Greeks can often read ancient texts, but that's partly because the Greek Orthodox church hung on to the ancient form of Greek long after the spoken language diverged from it. As I learned Classical Greek; I struggle with modern pronunciation!

China has had a more or less continuous civilization for 2000 years; perhaps longer, but it has been politically unified (barring short interludes) for all of that. Ancient Egypt might beat that for duration, but sadly that ended in around 200 AD!

 

[Baggywrinkle]

I have dual nationality one being British.

If I enter the UK I would use my british Passport but could leave on my other passport. Perfectly legal but the UK immigration would not be able to connect my entry and exit.

When I renewed my British passport, there is a question on the form asking if you have nationality of another country ... obviously it is an offence to lie on the application, but when you answer yes, they ask for a colour photocopy of every page of your foreign passport. This is then in the database of their passport checking system, so they do know.

 

[st599]

The biometrics on your phone are not accessible to the apps - they confirm (or otherwise) that the person is an authorised user of the device but they don't have any way to share the substance behind that authentication with anyone else even if using the same system.
UK passports do not contain fingerprints, they have facial measurements which it *might* be possible to replicate with some phones but given how hard it is to get egates to recognise your with a fixed camera set up and controlled lighting I would doubt its practical.

It always amuses me that the Venn diagram of people who would be outraged about having to check in and out (and the government know who was in/out the country) has a big overlap with the group of people who think we should have tougher controls on who is allowed into the country!

Could be a way to get a free trip to Rwanda ;-)

Unless its improved a lot recently UK immigration aren't that sophisticated anyway! There is of course free movement from UK to ROI and nothing to stop you coming back from Dublin to London via Belgium - with no knowledge for the UK that you had ever left.

Last time I was on the continent they seemed to be looking for the corresponding stamp to put the "out" beside the "in".

I think i've had physical stamps on every trip since I got my new navy blue passport (at the far end - nothing at this end).

Just seen my first EES scanner in Düsseldorf, definitely not portable. About 2.5m tall, big light bar for the camera and 2 hand scanners.