Travel to Germany

Question

Hi a little complicated one, I have dual British and Portuguese citizenship, and live in England.

I am looking at working on rotation in Germany at 2 weeks a time, can I travel to Germany out of England on my Portuguese ID card as this also entitles me to work visa free, and then on my return use my British passport?

Entering Germany with your British passport doesn't prevent you from working in Germany. Your authorization to work in Germany is an automatic consequence of your Portuguese nationality, and your Portuguese ID card is proof of that nationality regardless of what document you may have shown to the passport inspector when you entered the Schengen area. That said, it generally makes sense to show the document that gives you the most rights, so the Portuguese document to any Schengen or other EU officer and the UK one to any British officer. In Ireland, either one should do. — phoog, Apr 14 '22 at 13:07

score 1 · Answer 1 · answered Apr 14 '22 at 12:58

You can travel in both directions using both passports. In most cases crossing a border involves two separate steps: you go through exit control in the departing country and through entry control in the arriving country.

So you use your UK passport when you go through exit control in England and use your EU passport when you enter Germany (or any other Schengen country).

As a general rule:

Always use the same passport to enter and leave a country
You can switch passports in between countries

score 0 · Answer 2 · answered Apr 14 '22 at 13:23

You can use different documents for different purposes. I have two passports/nationalities. How do I use them when I travel? has some info on how you might go about it in general. If there is any confusion, you can also simply present both and explain your situation.

The most important point is that it doesn't matter as much as many people seem to think. You have a right to work in Germany based on your citizenship, not the document you present at the border. There is no way you can be deemed to be working illegally in Germany, be forced to leave or lose your right to stay and work in the country because, say, you used the British passport to enter.

Travel to Germany

2 Answers2