Border police and airlines do not handle travelers with multiple passports.
They expect each traveler to have ONE passport. Showing two (or more) passports at border checks led to bad results for many people I met in my experience as an immigration lawyer: border officers may easily delay you and let you miss a connecting flight.
What should you know to avoid any problem at European border checks?
1. European countries have immigration checks on EXIT, too!
Most countries in the world have immigration checks only on their entrance. Not in Europe.
Most European States are tied to the Schengen Agreement. They share external borders and the area within, a common space uniting more European countries, is called the Schengen area. Each traveler is expected to show the passport to the immigration police upon arrival at any point of entry of the Schengen area and also at any point of exit.
Schengen states (26): Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Spain, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden.
2. You are supposed to show only ONE passport.
If you have more than one passport, which passport is it best to use?
International law requires a person to use the passport with the best connection with the country you want to access.
If you are traveling to Italy and have an Italian passport or ID card, Italian law requires you to use that to identify yourself. Most states in the world have a similar policy.
3. If you have an Italian passport
1. If you have an Italian passport, you MUST show that (and only that) upon entering or leaving Italy, at any airport or another border crossing.
2. If you arrive at any other point of entry in the Schengen area (and you do not have a passport of that particular country), again show your Italian passport. That is because Italy has privileged relations with all European Union countries.
Italian citizens can enter the EU countries freely, together with their family members. Follow the signs for European citizens and show your Italian passport.
4. If you do not have an Italian passport
If you are traveling to Italy and do not have an Italian passport, the most convenient choice is to use the passport of the state with which Italy has special border policy agreements, such as one of the countries of the Schengen area (see list above). That allows you to enjoy free access without the limitations for non-EU citizens.
Other convenient passports are those of states for which Italy has no visa requirement, at least for short stays. The list varies from year to year. You can check whether you need a visa according to your passport and country of usual residence: official visa website of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
5. How does the 90-days rule work with 2 passports?
Even if you are “visa-free”, a 90-days limit applies. The Schengen area policy is such that you can stay for a maximum of 90 days within a 180-days period.
If you have more than one passport and none is of a Schengen state (listed above), the same rule applies. Each person has a 90 days stay limit within the 180-days period.
6. Ticket data = passport data
Write your data carefully according to what is written on your passport when traveling to Italy and to Europe.
Border police checks start with matching your passport data (including the passport number) with your travel ticket, as well as an EU Passenger Locator Form and whatever other document they may request at any given time of the year.
If the border police notice any difference, a deeper and more time-consuming control will take place. The outcome depends on the law of the state in which you find yourself at the time of entry. Moreover, You can be denied boarding if your name on it differs in anything from that on the registered passport in your flight booking.
Not only the passport number on your travel ticket and forms can be an issue. In some cases, the same person’s name and last name may vary from your Italian passport to the passport of another country. For example, a married woman’s last name may be registered differently from country to country. Whilst many states apply the husbands’ name to a wife, in Italy the maiden name usually applies to all ID documents. Moreover, the spelling of the name spelling may vary, according to the law of each state. Italy applies the name(s) and spelling exactly as in the concerned person’s birth record. The name on the birth record must match exactly the name on the passport.
7. What if you already booked your trip with your other passport?
The risk is high that you will be denied boarding. So it is important to change your ID data on your travel ticket.
Most airlines allow you to change your data until checking in (for a fee). If you do not manage to obtain the change online or via the airline customer care before your departure date, you can obtain the changes at the check-in counter or at the airline office in the airport.
RECAP
Show your Italian passport BOTH at entry and exit points. Your hassle-free journey starts with your booking. Remember to write the data on your Italian passport.
Would you like to know more? Download my free SPECIAL 2 PASSPORT TRAVEL KEY
Content:
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Which checks are you meeting on your way IN and on your way OUT of Europe?
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Which passport are you supposed to show at border checks outside of Europe, as an Italian dual citizen?
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More details on how does the 90-days rule work with 2 passports
PASSPORTS TRAVEL KEY
Hi Lara
Thank you for your great website, blogs and ebooks. I have a slightly complex question.
My daughter is currently travelling in the Schengen Zone using her Australian passport. She entered at Berlin. After 2.5 months of travelling, she will go to Slovenia to obtain her Slovenian passport – this will give her dual citizenship (Australia and Slovenia).
She plans to continue travelling through the Schengen zone using her Slovenian passport but as she entered the zone with her Australian passport, how can she initiate the Slovenian passport?
What Should she do when she collects her Slovenian passport?
Should she leave Slovenia (and the Schengen zone) using her Australian passport and go to Croatia. Then re-enter Slovenia (and the Schengen zone) using her Slovenian passport.
Would this present any problems? Is there a better option? What would you suggest?
Thank you so much for your advice.
Carmen
Hello, Carmen. Once your daughter obtains the Slovenian passport, she will be entitled to travel and stay outside of Slovenia, in the Schengen area, and in the European Union. She will continue traveling with her Slovenian passport.
When she will leave the Schengen area – which will be after 90 days have expired from her initial entry into the Schengen area on her Australian passport – she will show the Australian passport to the airline (they check whether she is entitled to enter Australia as the final destination of her journey) and the Slovenian passport at the Schengen exit border checks. Showing them the Australian passport will expose her to the penalities for overstaying the 90-days limit. Those penalties vary among EU member states, from high fines to re-entry bans.
Hi Lara,
I’ve obtained your 2 Passports Travel Key but would like to run a couple things by you just to be on the safe side.
Travelling from Japan to Poland, and then back again.
I hold a Polish passport, and a Canadian one, which is linked to my permanent residence in Japan.
I’ll be entering Poland on my Polish passport and this is the one I’ll give the airline when I check in. I’ll be showing my Canadian passport to Japanese border control. But wait…
Would it not be better to use my Canadian passport with BOTH the airline and the Japanese border officials?
Upon arrival in Poland I will of course use my Polish passport.
When I leave Poland to return to Japan, I’ll use the same Canadian passport for my airline and of course for re-entry into Japan.
So I’ll have to leave through border controls on my Polish passport, the same way I came in, right? Isn’t there some issue with the airline having one passport on record and another being shown to border officials? My name is shown exactly the same.
The airline considers only the passport which you mentioned at any stage of the booking/purchase/check-in process. So you should show only that passport to them. If that is the Canadian, then yes: you shall use your Canadian passport with both the airline and the Japanese border police.
You may consider that the two checks have different aims and rules. So it is not necessary nor advisable to always show the same passport to both the airline and the border police. Moreover, you should distinguish between border police checks. You will show the Polish passport to the Polish police (upon entering the Schengen area and at exit checks) and the Canadian to the Japanese police because they registered your residence with that one. How does this work for you?
Thank you for your help, Lara, I really appreciate it.
So I can’t go to Greece for 90days on a NZ passport and then come out and go back in on a UK passport for another 90days? Where are these rules written and what is the penalty?
You can’t. The rules are in the Schengen Borders Code. You may find all the details on this page of the Commission of the European Union. Since the language of the law refer to persons and not to their passports, the rules apply to individuals, independently on their passports. That is, as long as those passports are from non-EU/Schengen states.
Hi Lara,
Thanks for this post. I just came across it. However it has also got me really worried.
Some background on my situation.
I am an Australian Citizen by birth and have lived here all my life. I have an Australian Passport.
I also acquired Greek citizenship by decent and recently obtained a Greek passport. I mainly did this so that my children could in the future claim Greek citizenship through decent.
The name on my Greek passport and Australian Passport differ (as my name in Greek is spelt differently, and they also do not have a middle name). Surname is the same on both.
Australian Passport first name (plus middle name): George Steven SURNAME
Greek Passport first name (no middle name): Georgios SURNAME
To date the difference in names has not concerned me as I always planned to travel to Greece using only my Australian Passport.
However I recently came across the proposed new ETIAS Visa Waiver authorisation (due by start of 2023). This will complicate the situation for dual citizens (who hold an EU passport and say an Australian Passport as I do). Technically I may not be able to apply for a Visa Waiver as I am an EU citizen with a valid passport (even though I would be happy to apply for an ETIAS Visa Waiver so that I could just travel on my Australian Passport).
In Australia I am required to leave and arrive on my Australian passport. So based on this I would :
A. Purchase a return airline ticket from Australia to Greece in Australian Passport Name : George Steven Surname
Leaving Australian airport
B. At Australian airline check in show them Australian Passport (as it will match ticket name) – however no valid ETIAS Visa Waiver would be linked
C. At Australian Immigration departure go through with Australian Passport
D. In Greece use EU passport on arrival
Leaving Greek Airport :
RETURN FLIGHT GREECE TO AUSTRALIA
E. At Greek airport i would present my Australian Passport at flight check in. The flight ticket would be the same as my Australian Passport (GEORGE STEVEN SURNAME)
F. At Greek immigration I would present my GREEK PASSPORT
G. At Australian immigration I would present my Australian Passport
A and B above concern me because my Australian Passport will flag on the system that I do not have an ETIAS Visa Waiver.
I will then show them my EU passport, but the names GIORGOS and GEORGE STEVEN are different (but the surname, face, DOB and other details will be the same). If they accept this then I assume there must be some system override which they would have to notify Australian Immigration via the Advance Passenger Processing system (APS) and BOC and somehow link the passports ?
I have been reading on adf.gov.au about airline obligations. It states that airlines must:
a. Provide advance passenger reports on all passengers and crew
B. Not carry undocumented or inadequately documented passengers
Changing names is not a pragmatic option . I have been advised by the Greek consulate that a change of name is virtually impossible for Greeks without going to court in Greece. Changing my name in Australia would be crazy because this is where I live , work , study and everything I have is in my Australian name.
Hello, George! The roadmap that you describe appears the best possible. However, it does not avoid all possible issues, namely those that may arise next year with the ETIAS visa waiver. In this case of substantial name discrepancy, you cannot avoid some inconveniences. You may limit them by contacting the airline in good advance before your flight. However, they may not have solved the issue as yet in the first months of the ETIAS system. In any case, you will have to show your other passport whenever the airline or the border police question your data. That might result in some delays, but I do not see how you can avoid that.
Hi Lara,
When booking return flights from the Uk to Spain does it matter which passport details i give to the airline? I understand people usualy use their british passport to leave and re enter the Uk and switch to their Spanish passport to enter and leave Spain but when it comes to booking a return trip the airline usualy only accepts one passport.I have gone through the hassel of asking if they would split the booking so that i can travel to Spain with my british passport details and then leave Spain with my Spanish passport details but does it really matter which passport details are given to the airline.My son has so far just used his british details for his return trips but shows the relevant passport at immigration, i dont know if one day he will encounter problems.
It matters, especially when the details are different between passports. That is because states issue passports with details according to the national laws (e.g. married women lose their maiden surname in some countries). If the biodata is the same, in your case, you may use the same passport.
Hi Lara.
I have both Italian and British passport. My wife has only the British one.
When traveling from UK to Italy I intend to use the Italian passport to register with the airline and to check-in + passport control/security.
On Exit from Italy I would still use the Italian passport, but on entry back in UK (where we live), could I use the British passport?
Also, could would my wife join my EU passenger queues or vice-versa at Passport controls in either countries?
Thanks.
The answer to your question #1 is yes. British citizens have to show their UK passports to the UK border police upon entry to the UK.
About Q #2: Yes. Most Schengen border check areas are organized to receive the family members of EU, EEA and CH citizen at the same time, at the dedicated checkpoint for EU, EEA and CH citizen. The travel documents of British citizens who are family members of EU, EEA and CH citizens must be stamped, unless they present a residence card as residents in an EU member state.