More of a
Concept Than an Actual Common Visa Zone
The Common
Travel Area (CTA) which exists between Ireland and the United Kingdom
(UK) could easily be assumed to be part of the greater European Union
(EU) common border system, however this is not the case. Ireland and
the UK, along with the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man, have a
unique common travel area separate from the Schengen zone, which
covers most other EU states.
This CTA is
unique in many ways and is far from being the multi state visa area
one might think, rather it is an age old arrangement which seems to
be understood somewhat differently by the two main actors, the Garda
National Immigration Bureau (GNIB) and the UK Border Agency (UKBA).
Interestingly,
there was no formal agreement signed between the two countries on the
topic, rather the status quo has continued more or less unchanged
since the emergence of the Irish state, allowing for citizens of
either state to travel and reside unhindered as they choose.
Furthermore, although the existence of the CTA was mentioned in the
Treaty of Amsterdam, the system is still not provided for in
legislation and remains therefore somewhat open to interpretation in
its meaning.
History
Maintaining
the free movement of people and goods was amongst a number of goals
taken to smooth the transition from the Irish Free State to full
independence. Along with the CTA and an automatic right of
residence, employment, access to social services etc., Ireland (the
republic) also allowed resident UK citizens to vote in national
elections and to take up public service appointments, all in an
effort to maintaining a flexible migration policy between the two
states.
Similarly,
the UK continued to allow free movement and residency rights for
Irish citizens, much in the same manner as existed prior to Irish
independence. The effect of these measures, and the maintenance of
the status quo, saw the peoples of the islands maintain the
flexibility and freedom in what became known as the Common Travel
Area.
Application
In theory,
the idea of the CTA is that there are no passport controls in
operation for Irish and UK citizens traveling between the two
countries. This then would likely be automatically extended to all
EU citizens, as EU law generally demands equal treatment of all EU
citizens. Irish and UK citizens can carry an acceptable form of
photo-identification (see below) whilst presumably other EU nationals
should carry either their national identity card or passport.
Acceptable
ID for Irish and UK Citizens
Rights
Which Must Be Forgone to be Enjoyed
The problem
with this situation is that neither Ireland nor the UK issue National
ID cards. Therefore, their citizens have no easy method to prove
their citizenship, and hence their entitlement to avail of the CTA
arrangements. This presents a conundrum where in effect the easiest
way for Irish or UK citizens to prove their citizenship is to carry
their passport, negating the benefits afforded under the CTA in the
first place. In this chicken and egg scenario, travelers often carry
their passport, in effect to prove that they are not legally required
to carry their passport.
Border
Control and Random Checks
Whilst the
position in the UK has generally not changed since Irish
independence, Ireland has implemented some controls on arrivals from
the UK since 1997, particularly for those arriving by air. In most
Irish airports, all arriving passengers are required to pass passport
control, whereas checks on road, rail and ferry crossings remain
random and infrequent. If stopped, GNIB officials have the power to
carry out checks and to refuse entry to the state on the same grounds
as apply to people arriving from outside the CTA.
On the UK
side, passengers arriving from Ireland (or elsewhere within the CTA)
are not inspected by UKBA staff. Instead, those arriving from Irish
airports are treated similarly to those arriving from domestic UK
airports.
No Visa
Cross Recognition
Unlike under
the Schengen agreement, possession of a visa for the UK does not
entitle a third country national to enter Ireland and vice versa.
Visa required nationals who intend to visit both Ireland and the UK
are required to apply for a visa for both countries. This results in
the additional cost and hassle of dealing with two embassies and the
need to make two separate applications in advance of traveling. On
the ground, applicants for an Irish visa who intend to also visit the
UK are normally asked by the relevant Irish embassy to first apply
for their UK visa. Thereafter, those refused a UK visa are unlikely
to be granted a visa for Ireland. This assuming that the Irish
authorities are aware of the refusal, normally signaled by a small
stamp in the passport.
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| The Schengen Visa Area |
Ireland
and Schengen
On a number
of occasions Ireland has mooted the idea of joining the Schengen visa
system, however this remains both impracticable and politically
impossible where the UK remains outside. Under the regulations of
Schengen visa membership, members with a border with an non-Schengen
neighbor are required to implement strict controls at that external
border. The idea of this is that external borders are protected by
the local state immigration officials on behalf of the entire
Schengen zone, thereafter allowing onward travel across the zone with
no further checks.
In effect,
if Ireland were to become a member of the Schengen zone, and the UK
were to remain outside, it would be mandatory for Ireland to fence
and secure the border around the six counties of Northern Ireland and
to implement strict immigration controls on all border crossing
points.
Politically
this would be impossible for Ireland, as it would in effect divide
the island physically, costing untold negative implications on north
south relations, dividing families unnecessarily, hindering trade and
tourism, as well as having enormous cost in terms of the manpower
needed to regulate and control border crossings.
Similarly,
it would equally not be politically feasible for the island of
Ireland (including Northern Ireland) to join Schengen, as this would
require checks on ferries and flights arriving into Belfast from
Britain, something probably quite unacceptable to the Unionist
community in Northern Ireland.
Operational
Flaws
There are a
number of major weaknesses with the current system which need to be
addressed.
Firstly,
Ireland and the UK have different requirements on third country
nationals, when it comes to who requires a visa. For example,
nationals of Malawi and Bolivia do not require a visa to visit
Ireland for tourism purposes, whilst they do
require a visa for a similar visit to the UK. In such a
scenario, a well informed Malawian or Bolivian passenger who intends
to travel to the UK illegally can avoid applying for a UK visa by
simply traveling via Ireland. This is made all the more easy by
virtue of the lack of control on passengers arriving into the UK from
Ireland.
Furthermore,
the UKBA have no method to learn of the passengers arrival as no
information in this regard is passed between Irish and UK
authorities. On the other hand however, if the passenger did inform
GNIB officers of their intention to travel onward to the UK, then
they may be refused permission to enter Ireland under the Aliens
(Amendment) Order 1975.
Second,
the system presents complications and red tape for non-EU
nationals residing (legally) in either state. Unlike the Schengen
visa area, non-EU nationals living and working legally in Dublin are
not automatically entitled to visit Northern Ireland or Britain.
This problem
is avoided in the Schengen zone where visa and residence permit
holders are entitled to visit all states in the zone, despite their
visa being issued by one particular Schengen member country. For
example a Russian student in a university in France can travel as far
Portugal, Finland or Greece without requiring a visa, however can not
visit Ireland or the UK.
This impacts
on business too. Whilst non-EU workers legally resident in any
member state can apply for a 'Van der Elst' visa if their work
requires travel to other EU states on official business, in effect
this requirement to apply for additional visas effects those resident
in Ireland and the UK disproportionately when compared to those
resident in the Schengen zone states. Those with Schengen state
issued resident permits may travel across the entire Schengen area
unhindered, whilst those resident in Ireland and the UK would need to
apply for a 'Van der Elst' for even a simple visit between Dublin and
Belfast.
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| M1 Dublin - Belfast Motorway |
Third,
the current application of the CTA on the island of Ireland can
cause accidental breaches of immigration law, particularly with
the lack of demarcation of the border. Those familiar with driving
between Northern Ireland and the Republic will be aware that it is
very difficult for someone unfamiliar with the area to be confident
where the actual border is. There are no checkpoints, nor lines.
Signposts which are most commonly seen warn drivers that speed limits
are measured in kilometers rather than miles per hour, without
pointing out the reason for the change from imperial to metric.
Whilst this
is important in terms of economic normalization in the region as well
as the understandable desire of nationalists and others to avoid any
obvious demarcation, the current system of political division
existing simultaneously with an invisible border is highly unusual in
immigration terms.
The point at
which the northern six counties meet the twenty six counties of the
Irish Republic does have important consequences in immigration,
especially for non-EU visa required nationals. For those
individuals, this is the point after which the validity of their visa
ends, and if they hold a single entry visa, the point after which
return may also be illegal or impossible.
Passengers
traveling by taxi, bus or train are not informed of the approaching
immigration frontier, probably because it has little significance to
the driver, who is most likely an EU citizen. For any non-EU
passenger however, crossing the frontier may be illegal and have
serious consequences.
Take for
example a Chinese national legally resident in Dublin who wishes to
visit Donegal, say with work colleagues for a weekend. On making
their trip north west, their route may take them across the border
north of Monaghan and again back into the Republic at Castlefin in
Donegal. It is likely that the Chinese national would remain
blissfully unaware of his illegal entry into Fermannagh (i.e.
Northern Ireland) and subsequent return to the Republic, as no signs
nor police nor barriers announced his crossing of the frontier.
The law does
not exist if it is not applied perhaps one might say? But if however
he chose to travel on a bank holiday weekend, or was otherwise
unlucky enough to be stopped by a random Garda checkpoint, he then
risks the potential of deportation, if deemed to have breached UK
immigration regulations or where he had a single entry visa for
Ireland. Is this lack of transparency for unwitting non-EU
citizens a good policy approach? I don't think it is.
Fourth,
the CTA can be a hindrance for tourists to the UK, who may
wish to add on a short trip to Ireland as part of their plans. Visa
required tourists visiting the UK are unlikely to go to the effort of
applying for a second visa for a short trip to Ireland. This in
effect creates a barrier of entry to genuine tourists (who have
already been checked and approved by the UKBA) from visiting Ireland.
This barrier
has been identified by the Irish government and a pilot arrangement
has been put in place for the Olympics summer season for citizens of
some countries to address this problem. The issue here is that by
restricting those who have already been issued a UK visa, genuine
tourists are discouraged. At the same time, those with more sinister
intent can simply come by ferry or bus and meet no inspections on
arrival into Ireland. It seems unusual to guard one entry point so
strictly whilst almost ignoring others.
Fifth,
the CTA as it is currently applied, fails to utilize the potential
of pooled resources between the UK Home Office and the Irish
Departments of Justice. Along with duplication of visa determination
procedures, the current system also fails to provide warnings on
previous immigration history, visa rejections or criminal convictions
etc. of arriving passengers. UK and Irish embassies are left unaware
of each others work and decisions made, whilst at the very same time, they rely upon each other to secure the gate which provides access to
the CTA from the respective sides.
What does
Common Travel Area mean?
The CTA is a
relic of Ireland's independence where for various political reasons,
it was in the interest of Dublin and London to maintain the status
quo. The delicate nature of affairs between the two states,
particularly during the troubles in Northern Ireland, resulted in
what is little more than a mutually beneficial understanding between
the states, albeit perhaps with some difference of opinion on what
exactly is understood.
In effect,
as the UK don't check those arriving from Ireland at all, they
entrust the Irish authorities to inspect and decide on the legitimacy
of those arriving into the CTA on the Irish side without much
question. The reasons for may emanate from a blurring between what constitutes domestic/international since Irish
independence, or perhaps the Home Office have simply determined that the overall risk, in terms of numbers arriving via
Ireland, is minimal when compared to their major international
airports and ferry crossings with continental Europe.
In this
regard, Home Office, and other official reports regarding the UKBA
Scotland and Northern Ireland administrative district, seem to focus
very little on the Irish border. For passengers traveling the
opposite direction however, the UKBA do take it upon themselves to
pre-screen transit passengers who are traveling onward to
Ireland. This action seems to suggest that they believe that
passengers will not be re-screened on arrival in Dublin, which is not
true. In effect, they seem to be operating as if the CTA were a
joint visa zone, which is certainly a very different understanding
than presented by the Irish.
Taking the
opposite approach, Ireland inspects all arrivals by air, and performs
random and sporadic checks on road, rail and sea passengers. Why
there is a distinction between the treatment of air passengers as
compared to others remains unclear, however it is most likely a
product of manpower shortages coupled with a lack of political will
for controls between the Republic and the six northern counties.
The
continued screening of air passengers arriving from the UK is
puzzling, especially at a time of severe pressures on Garda
resources. Some point to Irish state attempting to demonstrate it's
independence from its former colonial master as the reason for this,
however it is much more likely that it happens simply as a matter of
course due to the design of Irish airports, where arriving domestic
and international passengers are intermingled.
Options
for the Future
At the very
least there is a need for enhanced cooperation in immigration
matters, particularly in the area of visa determination. The current
system which allows deportees from the UK to later go on to apply for
an Irish visa and return to the UK via Dublin is a major failure and
serves nobodies interests.
The lack of
inspection of through passengers in the 200s area of Dublin
airport is another major failure which needs to be addressed. In
effect, the only person applying immigration inspections on behalf of
the UK in this scenario is the boarding gate staff representing the
airline. No government officials meet transiting passengers using
the 200s at all, either transiting Ireland or arriving in the UK.
Ireland
should request read-only access to the UKBA computer system.
In this way, GNIB officers could be better informed when meeting
arriving passengers with visas for the UK. Under current
arrangements GNIB officers must either inspect the visas visually or
otherwise must revert to phoning UKBA staff for advice, if they have
any suspicions. Similarly, the Irish Department of Justice and Irish
Embassies abroad could benefit greatly in their visa decision making
process were they given access to additional information held by the
UK Home Office. Arrangements could also be put in place to allow
UKBA staff access GNIB files for the same purpose.
Realistically,
Ireland and the UK should move toward a system where they either
issue joint visas, or, at the very least, should allow transit
/ short term entry to holders of each others' visas. The actions of
the UKBA seem to model this approach already, as those arriving from
Ireland are all but ignored. Rather than ignoring those doing this
however, it should be put on a statutory legal basis. Similarly,
Ireland should trust decisions made by UKBA staff and summarily admit
those who have already been issued a UK visa, and have already
'landed' in the UK.
In the same
manner, those with residents permits for Ireland should be
permitted an automatic short term visit visa exemptions to the UK and
vice versa. This would not change the status quo, rather would
legalize and regularize what is already happening on the ground.
Such a step would allow GNIB efforts to be focused on more important
matters, in particular to focus on flights from outside the CTA or
outside the EU.
I personally
would recommend ending checks on those arriving from the UK by air
due to the potential cost savings involved. I also feel that these
checks provide little benefit to the state, as any potential illegal
entrants can simply opt to come by bus from Belfast. Further more,
they seem to present a lack of joined up thinking on the issue, which
needs to be discussed.
Time for
a Plan
The 'Common
Travel Area' which exists between Ireland and the UK appears to be
interpreted differently by the Irish and UK governments. Rather than
ignoring the issue and maintaining the flawed status quo there is an
opportunity for the two states to improve cooperation in the area of
immigration for their mutual benefit.
This is an
excellent opportunity to regularize what is already happening on the
ground and to extend the principles of free movement to all legal
residents and visitors; either by issuing joint Ireland & UK
valid visas or by implementing a blanket waiver for those holding a
visa for one state to enter the other.
In December 2011 the British and Irish Governments signed a Memorandum of Understanding to improve the CTA. It will be interesting to watch what happens next.
Joe O
Murchadha 05 June 2012
Additional
Resources
Citizens
Information – Common Travel Area - Click Here
Varadkar
calls for ‘mini-Schengen’ of UK and Ireland - Click Here
Memorandum of Understanding to Improve Common Travel Area - Click Here
CEPS Policy Brief - Click Here
Slugger O'Toole - General Discussion - Click Here
British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly - Click Here
UK Border Agency in Scotland and Northern Ireland: border
operations - Click Here
Queens
University Belfast – Center for International Borders Research - Click Here
Disclaimer
- Policies, regulations and procedures on the ground change from time
to time, however a diligent effort has been made to ensure the
accuracy of this information.
