Irish Passport versus British Passport - Page 3

I thought it was correct 

We are here for a week as just completed then returning to the UK for 4 to 5 weeks then having a week at our house in France before we come back.

 my wife  Will be eligible for a form S1 on the 1st of October but we’ve been told you can apply for it slightly earlier which is what we intend to do and I can piggyback off that

 good luck to you let me know how you get on Alan

If you receive a state pension from the UK government, you can still claim an S1 form. The confusion around pre-Jan 21 seems to be that you could also claim an S1 form if you were receiving some "exportable benefits" from the UK (disability/PIP/attendance allowance). This has now ceased.

If you receive 2 state pensions, from 2 states, then there are also qualifications to be met. 

But the important point is that UK state pensioners continue to be entitled to an S1 form for free healthcare in the EU and Switzerland.

And just to clarify  can a younger spouse can piggy back of the applicant ?

Oh what it is to be a toy boy 😜

Yes, you can. Your wife needs to phone DWP with your NI number, DOB & full name to request a Spouse o pensioners S1. 

Fantastic news thank you 

So are we saying then that having an Irish passport is beneficial as we do not need to provide proof of income in order to live in Spain permanently, whereas with a UK passport you would?

I know you have to provide proof of saving etc for year 1 and then apply for your visa and then do the same for year 2 and 3 which means you need to show quite a bit of savings for the total three year process.

For me it would mean I could move to Spain a lot quicker on an Irish passport if I didn't need to show proof of savings as I would probably manage to get by on modest savings until my pensions kick in (2024)

Thanks 

Yes, please see the links that I included in a previous post on this thread.

However, I have seen another thread on this forum which set out the requirements & timescales to get an Irish passport, which will help inform your decision - timescales, costs, proof of entitlement, etc.

My wife was born in the U.K. to Irish parents it took about 8 weeks to get a passport 

I think it will take longer if you are relying on grandparents 

Hope this helps 

Hi Alan - thanks for this.  Good to know.

Enjoy your time in France - 

we're off to Spain at the end of March just for another recce as we have no idea where we want to live.  We'll rent first though I think.  Chris 

I've already got my Irish passport (Irish dad) and it was pretty painless, but yes, I understand that the procedure for claiming grandparent links is a bit more time-consuming.

As I understand it - and please feel free to contradict this - as an EU national, you only have to show that you can support yourself once, when you register on the padron for residency. The actual income/savings required seem vague, but aren't anywhere near as high as for UK emigrants. You only register once, no renewals necessary, unlike new UK emigrants. I think you then get a NIE number, rather than the TIE number that UK emigrants now get (don't think there's any difference in its use though).

It all sounds daunting - or it does to me, as I'm coming over alone - but there are many lawyers/gestors that can hold our hands through it! Then we can get on with enjoying our new lives.