Stamp 4 EUFam holders: does your passport get stamped?

[Ben]

Article 5(3) of Directive 2004/38/EC states:

The host Member State shall not place an entry or exit stamp in the passport of family members
who are not nationals of a Member State provided that they present the residence card provided for
in Article 10.

This is transposed into Irish law, quite correctly, in the European Communities (Free Movement of Persons) (No. 2) Regulations 2006, Regulation 4(4):

An immigration officer shall not, at the point of entry, place a stamp in the passport of a
qualifying family member who presents to the officer a valid residence card.

However, GNIB staff at some Irish ports of entry, including Dublin airport, seem to be unaware of the law.

What are your experiences?

[El shaddai]

Yes they do stamp passports but it depends on the officers, some of them do and some dont stamp passports. Even i told one last time that i am not suppose to be stamp?he s not listening and still stamp my passport.Not all of them are competent or know what they are doing.

[Obie]

I will certainly not allow them to stamp mine, they will have to physically take it off me, to be able to do that.

Once i know the officer has established the authenticity of my Resident stamp and about to stamp it, i will remove it from him.

They will have to provide me a valid explanation as to way they are trying to do something which is forbidden in their own Law.

[agniukas]

sorry for my ignorance, but what is the difference if your passport get stamped or not... so you get those few extra entry stamps in your passport... what would be the change from that? what's a big deal?

[acme4242]

sorry for my ignorance, but what is the difference if your passport get stamped or not... so you get those few extra entry stamps in your passport... what would be the change from that? what's a big deal?

Its a question of rights.
First and foremost, the family of an EU citizen who are resident in the EU
have the same rights as the EU citizen. And the reason why EU citizens
don't have their passports stamped is because such controls don't exist
under the concept of freedom of movement.

A passport entry stamp is used for the control of aliens.

[pahadia]

I used to get stamped even coming back from Cork(depends upon officer)...this time I travelled internationally on Stamp 5 and officer didn't bother to stamp my passport...

Personally I think more stamps helped me at Dublin airport...More green stuff officer looked at my passport he asked less question( or no) thinking I am regular bugger

[ca.funke]

From my experience it´s a 50/50 chance.

To answer the question as to "what´s the big deal":

The big deal is, that many countries (I personally know of Canada, US, Australia, India and Iran) ask for valid passports with fully free double-pages to issue visas. (One page for the sticker, the opposite page for entry/exit stamps)

If some incompetent officers at Dublin airport stamp randomly across the passport, you will run out of empty double-pages quickly.

And it´s not very cheap and/or fun asking for a new passport in Lebanese embassies...

...that´s the reason for me to ask for not having the passport stamped.