international travel - Travelling to Spain on an Irish Passport (I am a UK and Irish Citizen - my wife is UK only) - Travel Stack Exchange

Question

this is both a question and a request for clarification - if anyone knows! I say this as the information is very difficult to obtain and interpret.

I have been investigating the benefits of having an Irish passport and was curious if there was a way that both my wife and I could travel to Spain avoiding the restrictions now in place following Brexit. This is not imperative as we are likely to take out residency but as I say I am curious and I know other are too.

Firstly, I have corresponded with Your Europe Advice who have been very helpful. However, they don't seem to be able to fully answer my question hence this post.

So essentially, I understand that my wife and I can travel to Spain for no more than 90 days using my Irish passport (we could stay longer if travelling in the Schengen area but this is a mute point to us). We are only interested in travelling to Spain. As Your Europe explain (and how I interpret their response) this 90 days spent together appears not to count for my wife should she decide to return by herself and therefore the 90 days is again reset to 0 and she could technically return to Spain for another 90 days.

Given this interpretation i am right in saying that could we, once having spent 90 days in Spain together, return to the UK for a day and return to Spain with myself now using my UK passport and my wife again on her UK passport but with a reset 90 days.

Your Europe's advice suggests that this is possible but again it is not totally clear. Indeed to be fair to them they do say that any 90/180 waver is not actually laid down in black and white but is alluded to in a specific directive.

Regardless, if this interpretation is correct then how is this practically enforced/managed on entry to Spain on both occasions. What passport queue would we go in and what would we say to the guard. Would we for example, enter in the EU lane with me indicating to the chap that my wife was joining me(a EU citizen)in Spain. Would he understand this, would he stamp her passport and would he want to see any proof e.g. marriage certificate. And more importantly, what would happen on the 2nd visit? would they say she had already been in Spain for 90 days and refuse entry.

I understand that the answer may be it is simply not allowed but given the information i've obtained it looks like it may be!

---

Added, was posted in an answers spot:

Firstly, you can only stay 90 days you cannot stay as long as you want. Over 90 days and you have to become a resident or take out an appropriate visa. As for using both passports, this is not illegal and there is no such intent. You are simply asserting your rights of both countries and the rights attached. The last para does not concern my question. I know how and when I would need to register, I am simply asking how, if entering as I've described (and if this scenario is allowed), would this be practically managed at entry.

Answer 1

As an EU citizen, you can travel to Spain, with your wife, for as long as you want. For longer stays, you'll need to fill out some paperwork to establish residency, but that's it. It’s not difficult to do, and there’s no fee.

As for trying to game the system by showing the entry officers different passports and suchlike: don't do it. The fact that you hold two passports does not make you two people, and the privileges of each one are not additive. You won't get away with it, and then you'll be in the position of defending your suspicious and evasive behavior, rather than the position of asserting your rights as a citizen.

Just fill out the paperwork.

As for how it's managed: You could come in "as tourists", not even mention being married or anything, and deal with registering afterwards... but I'd suggest explaining the situation to the entry officer in the first place, because they'll be able to tell you where/how to register.