My first UK passport

Faithful followers of Just Frances will know that, after many trials and tribulations, I am now a dual citizen of the United States and the United Kingdom. And that means I need two passports – my long-held American passport and my first-ever British passport.

My UK citizenship was made official on 12 February 2025, and I made my passport application a week later (19 February). I could have done it earlier, but I needed my passport photos taken first, and I wanted professional photos, as I did for my most recent American passport. This “splurge” is only an extra £2, but the image quality is far better than what I can get from a photo booth.

The online application was straightforward. Questions were related to my name, place and date of birth, and nationalities, along with my parents’ names, places and dates of birth, date of marriage, and nationalities. I also included my address and the email address of someone to confirm my identity. It was as simple as that.

Timeline:

19 February: Application made online
20 February: Confirmation of identity
20 February: Documents sent to passport office (Royal Mail Special Delivery)
21 February: Documents received (as confirmed by the post office)
24 February: Documents received (as confirmed by the passport office)
**The two dates above are a Friday and a Monday, hence the delay between the two
25 February: Application approved
25 February: Passport printed
26 February: Passport dispatched
27 February: Passport received
28 February: Documents received

I sent my documents to the passport office the following day. This included (1) my UK naturalisation certificate, (2) my American passport, and (3) my PhD certificate to show proof of title*. I sent them in a hard-lined A4 envelope via Royal Mail Special Delivery. I also paid an extra £5 on my application fee for secure delivery and return.

From there, I just waited and continually checked the progress on the HM Passports website until I had my passport and original documents. I am pleased with the speed at which everything was processed and the updates I received. It’s not often I am overly pleased with a government office, but this is certainly one of those times.

And now that I have my new passport, it’s time to break it in! I have plans to travel to America for a little holiday excursion soon so I will experience the whole “two passport process” for myself. That’s because, as a dual citizen, I must use my American passport when entering or leaving America and my UK passport when entering or leaving the UK. But I can use either passport to enter or leave any other country. Easy peasy!

It is a little odd to have this new dual identity: American and British (although I prefer to think of myself as Scottish, not British). I also feel a little concerned that people may misunderstand my intentions, especially as a lefty-liberal progressive American at a time when there is so much political upheaval in my home nation. 

I imagine there will be some who think I took UK citizenship as an escape from my American identity, but that is not the case at all. I took UK citizenship (and will keep my American citizenship) because I have built my life here. I fell in love here during my study abroad year in 2001/2002. I completed my master’s and PhD degrees here. I work here. I bought a house here. I have forged friendships here. And so, it makes sense to make this commitment to the country I call home.

This is yet another milestone in my life as an immigrant. And really, I suppose this is the end of my immigration story. Yes, there will be some big milestones that need some extra effort because of my dual citizen status, such as dealing with both my American and British pensions and retirement accounts. But mostly, everything will just be “normal” from here on out. Well, at least as normal as it can be for someone living a non-standard life!

* I use the Doctor title when a title is required as that is a title I earned, rather than the title that indicates my marital status. What can I say? Whilst I am very proud to be Mrs Ryan, I am also a feminist and don’t feel that I should have to share an indicator of my marital status on official documents.