Nayef

Hello,

I'm tinkering with an itinerary involving IAD-DUB-EDI, and I'm not a US citizen, but my nationality qualifies for the UK-Ireland visa waiver programme (meaning with a UK visa, I can enter the Rep. of Ireland after going through immigration in the UK and entering UK soil first).

The cheapest and most feasible flights, however, connect in Dublin first. I don't plan on entering Dublin during the connection (I wouldn't be allowed to anyway), but I was wondering how passport control and immigration is set-up. I've read that there's a Common Travel Area and I've read it only applies to citizens of the UK and Ireland, but I'm wondering how passport control would be in my situation if I'm trying to connect to Edinburgh from Dublin given the CTA.

Palal

TIMATIC is your friend. Enter your info and see what it comes up with.

NWIFlyer

Unfortunately in this case Timatic will only confirm what the OP already knows - I think what’s being asked for is the practical logistics of transiting Dublin and clearing immigration in Edinburgh.

There’s a connection guide on the Dublin Airport website:
https://www.dublinairport.com/flight...ns/information

The key here is to only follow the flight connections route, which avoids any immigration.

I suspect the trickier issue is when arriving at Edinburgh. As the OP identifies, effectively this will be a domestic arrival with no entitlement under the CTA due to nationality - plus proof of entry is needed to trigger the visa waiver requirements. It will therefore be necessary for the OP to find someone in Border Force to process them rather than simply walk into the country.

Given I’m a British Citizen passport holder this isn’t something I’ve ever had to think about, but clearly there must be arrangements in place because many people every day will be trying to do something similar. I’m therefore hoping someone here will have more detailed knowledge of the Edinburgh arrangements to be able to provide an accurate answer for the OP.

Gagravarr

At Heathrow T5, when you come off a Dublin flight, you can either follow arrivals which takes you to baggage reclaim + customs whilst avoiding immigration, or flight connections. If you follow flight connections into the main arrivals area, you can then follow arrivals to head to the UK border and present yourself to get stamped in at immigration.

I've not flown into Edinburgh from Ireland before, normally I'm going to/from London there, but I've not spotted any possible routes to do anything similar there. With all the building work going on in the terminal right now, it might make it even harder...

KARFA

stut

IIRC, there are now measures in place in DUB to deal with this loophole - they can 'enter' you into the UK. Let me have a look and see what I can find.

[edit]

OK, my understanding is this. You are subject to immigration controls on arrival at Dublin if you're going for a UK flight. Your right to enter the UK will be examined. If you then choose to enter the UK under CTA rules, you have a 90 day maximum, and need to retain your boarding pass in case proof is required. If you wish to have a longer stay, you need to seek out an immigration officer on arrival in the UK.

However, I'm far from an expert in this, so would double check.

Nayef

I asked a friend of mine in the hope that he had remembered this from his most recent trip a couple of years ago, and he claims there's immigration and officers basically doing passport control on behalf of the UK in Dublin Airport for flights headed to the UK (which I guess is sort of part of CTA). So according to him, there should be an immigration process prior to flying to EDI. (As @stut said.) Thanks for the info, still!

When I was scouring the internet for answers on this, some have mentioned that even though only UK and RoI citizens are free to fly between the UK and Ireland without passports, by practice, officers seldom actually enforce passport control for non-UK/RoI citizens. This isn't in the event of a connection, of course, but for flights originating from the UK or Ireland that fly to each other. Has anyone gone through any of this before?

stut

I haven't been through the transit scenario. However, the UK and the RoI do vary in how they deal with immigration checks on CTA flights. If you arrive in the UK from Ireland (or the Channel Islands, or Isle of Man) then you'll go through domestic arrivals. If there's a specific intelligence tip-off about illegal immigration through this route, then you might see UKBF at the arrivals gate. Otherwise, you wouldn't know the difference.

When you arrive in Ireland, well, in Dublin at least, you go through immigration. Thing is, because the CTA is only open to Irish and British citizens, they can ask you to prove your eligibility. In practice, any official photo ID is accepted, but some agents will give you a little lecture on the history of Irish-British relations if you don't have your passport (and some airlines will insist on a passport).

If you were to fly to Belfast or Derry/Londonderry and get a bus/bike/walk/pogo over the border, you'd not have to show anything. For now, any road. Who knows what this Brexit thing is going to bring on that front?

KARFA

Nayef

Thanks stut and KARFA. I wondered because my general plan is IAD-DUB-EDI, then EDI-Belfast or EDI-DUB (still undecided), finishing with DUB-IAD.

Funny thing is because of my situation, I wouldn't be able to enter be able to enter Dublin immediately even though I'm transiting there. I have to connect in Dublin to enter the UK and then come back to Dublin again, which feels like running in circles. That's why I'm starting the trip in Scotland before Ireland.

Often1

What exactly does TIMATIC show for OP's specific nationality (not disclosed)? That is what OP's air carrier will see at check-in at IAD. I would be concerned that if the TIMATIC entry is different than the "practicalities" that OP will simply be denied boarding at IAD.

OP - What is your nationality? Or more precisely, what passport will you be using?

Nayef

I have a Saudi passport and a UK short-stay visa, though TIMATIC won't help me figure out transiting in Dublin I don't think.

NWIFlyer

I also don't know for sure, I'm afraid, but the Dublin Airport website trumpets what a great experience it is for transit passengers and the flowchart off that link only indicates a security check for connecting passengers. Quite how that would work if you had a T1-T2 or vv transfer I've no idea.

It sounds like subsequent advice here might suggest the website is rather more marketing guff than substance though, which is something of a problem given it seems to be about the only thing written down we have to rely on.

Often1

You misunderstand. If your carrier denies you boarding at IAD because TIMATIC suggests that what you hold is insufficient, then you will not face transit at DUB. While it is not the end of the road, you do need to see what the check-in agent at IAD will see in front of him on his screen. Even if it is incorrect, it is not going to get fixed at the airport. Thus, do check TIMATIC.

Gagravarr

I've just had a play with the SkyTeam interface to TIMATIC, telling it you're going from the USA to Edinburgh via Dublin, with a Saudi passport and a UK visa. TIMATIC says you're only eligible to transit through Dublin with your UK visa if it has already been used in the UK. Based on that, and your situation, I can't see the staff in the USA letting you board a flight to Dublin. They'll look it up the same way, see the orange warning, see the visa hasn't previously been used, and deny boarding