Flying with two passports

[northSaver]

I have a quick question about flying with two passports. My adult son wants to fly to the UK on a Chinese airline and they are asking for his passport information (number and expiry date) on the booking page. He has a valid British passport but not a Japanese one because it has expired and he hasn't made a new one yet. He'll need to exit and enter Japan with his Japanese passport but in the meantime, just to make the booking, will it be OK to use his British passport information on the booking? This means using his British name on the ticket, which is slightly different to the name on his Japanese passport.

In other words, is there a connection between immigration and the airlines? (sorry if that's a stupid question). And if he checks in with his British passport but goes through immigration with his Japanese one there'll be a mismatch that will cause some trouble?

Or should he just enter his expired Japanese passport information in the booking (and lie about the expiry date because it must be in the future) then deal with it later somehow, e.g. phone the airline to change the passport (easier said than done apparently), or wing it at the airport with both expired and new Japanese passports?

[Deep Blue]

Book the ticket in the name of the passport he will be using, which is obviously the non-expired one. Don't even think about trying to enter false information on the booking.

[northSaver]

Book the ticket in the name of the passport he will be using, which is obviously the non-expired one. Don't even think about trying to enter false information on the booking.

Thanks. So, just to confirm. He'll have to use a Japanese passport to exit and enter Japan, so he'll have to make the booking with that one? So he can't make the booking until he has received his new Japanese passport? That's a bummer if so. The cheap seats will be sold out by then

And a follow up question... if you leave Japan on a Japanese passport, do you have to enter the UK with it too (to get a stamp I guess)? Or can you enter and leave the UK on your British passport in this situation?

[Deep Blue]

It’s fine to book now using the British passport name. As long as you present it at check in that’s fine.

[adamu]

Disclaimer: just my understanding, I might be wrong and don't have direct experience.

Usually you need to enter Advance Passenger Information (API) for the country you're visiting, so this should be the UK passport and you should book the ticket with that ID.

I don't think Japanese immigration even care about your ticket. So you can use the UK passport to check in, Japanese passport at Japanese immigration, and UK passport at UK immigration.

Or... Another option could be use the Japanese passport for everything, as the treatment for UK and Japanese citizens at the UK border is the same. I'm not sure where the UK stands on citizens entering via another country's passport, though. And you're posting because you don't have the JP passport, so...yeah skip this option

I think the important point is the ticket should be booked with the same details you will use for the UK border.

[Tkydon]

I have a quick question about flying with two passports. My adult son wants to fly to the UK on a Chinese airline and they are asking for his passport information (number and expiry date) on the booking page. He has a valid British passport but not a Japanese one because it has expired and he hasn't made a new one yet. He'll need to exit and enter Japan with his Japanese passport but in the meantime, just to make the booking, will it be OK to use his British passport information on the booking? This means using his British name on the ticket, which is slightly different to the name on his Japanese passport.

In other words, is there a connection between immigration and the airlines? (sorry if that's a stupid question). And if he checks in with his British passport but goes through immigration with his Japanese one there'll be a mismatch that will cause some trouble?

Or should he just enter his expired Japanese passport information in the booking (and lie about the expiry date because it must be in the future) then deal with it later somehow, e.g. phone the airline to change the passport (easier said than done apparently), or wing it at the airport with both expired and new Japanese passports?

Yeah, fine.

Check in with the UK Passport.
Go through Japan Immigration with the Japanese Passport.
Go through UK Immigration with the UK Passport.

Then on the return journey.
Check in with the UK Passport and show the Japanese Passport as Right of Entry to Japan. (They may not ask for it as UK Citizens can use the Visa Waiver)
Go through UK Immigration with the UK Passport.
Go through Japan Immigration with the Japanese Passport.

[northSaver]

Thanks everyone. These answers are very reassuring. Just two things I'm concerned about:

1. He'll probably have to show his Japanese passport at check-in in the UK (as Tkydon mentioned) because it's a one-way at that point and not a return. But the family name on his Japanese is different to the family name on his British one. I can imagine some airline staff getting a bit flustered about that. Do you think it will matter even though his name is almost the same and the pictures and signatures match?

2. On entering Japan, will the immigration officer not wonder why there's an exit stamp from Japan but not an entry stamp to another country? Will he be asked to show his British passport and, if so, will that cause a problem because dual nationality is not allowed?

Maybe I'm worrying too much. Just trying to think it through and prepare for problems.

[Tkydon]

Thanks everyone. These answers are very reassuring. Just two things I'm concerned about:

1. He'll probably have to show his Japanese passport at check-in in the UK (as Tkydon mentioned) because it's a one-way at that point and not a return. But the family name on his Japanese is different to the family name on his British one. I can imagine some airline staff getting a bit flustered about that. Do you think it will matter even though his name is almost the same and the pictures and signatures match?

2. On entering Japan, will the immigration officer not wonder why there's an exit stamp from Japan but not an entry stamp to another country? Will he be asked to show his British passport and, if so, will that cause a problem because dual nationality is not allowed?

Maybe I'm worrying too much. Just trying to think it through and prepare for problems.

Airlines are used to dealing with Dual Nationals.

On Check-In in the UK, the airline only has to confirm that he will be able to enter Japan on arrival, so that the airline does not have to repatriate him back to the UK at their expense if entry was denied.

UK Passport Holders can use the Visa Waiver Program for 90 day Visa Free entry to Japan as a Tourist, so with his UK Passport there is a good probability that he won't even be asked. However, if asked he can simply show his Japanese Passport as proof of Right of Entry.
No issue.

Japanese Nationals do not even talk to an Immigration Official on arrival in Japan now. It's all done automatically by machine. They don't care about entry stamps, or where you've come from.
No issue.

If he was born Dual, then there is no issue at all until he reaches 20, but then there is no issue even past 20, so long as he does not take any other nationality by his own volition. Duals by Birth are constantly renewing their Passports and declaring that they have other nationalities by birth with absolutely no issue well into adulthood.

He might check out the Facebook Group 'Japanese Dual Citizenship' for people in the same situation.

[Nancy]

You can get a new Japanese passport in about one week, although it might take a little longer since it expired...

[northSaver]

Airlines are used to dealing with Dual Nationals.
...

Thanks for the fast response Tkydon. I think most tourists will have a return ticket out of Japan so he'll probably have to show his passport. I always have to show my resident card to check-in staff when I fly back to Japan, they never assume I'm just a tourist. I suppose the worse case scenario in the case of the Japanese passport name not matching the ticket name is that he'll be forced to buy a new ticket (one-way) on the spot, but hopefully it won't come to that.

That's interesting about the automatic immigration procedure for Japanese nationals. I suppose it would be. In the UK it's automatic for British citizens too. I guess in the unlikely event of an immigration officer pulling him out and discovering he has two passports, they would turn a blind eye? I'd be surprised if they had the power to confiscate his British passport.

Thank you to everyone else for your replies too. I'll try to book it today. Another worry not related to this thread is that you have to show the credit card you booked with to the check-in staff, and my credit card (I'll be travelling with him) doesn't always work online due to authentication issues. And I can't take my wife's because she'll need it back home. So fingers crossed!