The British Foreign Office has warned all UK/Iranian dual nationals not to travel to Iran unless they have an urgent reason to do so.

The advice reflects the frustration of the foreign secretary, Jeremy Hunt, at the way in which the Iranians are treating dual-national consular cases, including the imprisonment of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe.

It is unprecedented for the Foreign Office to provide specific travel advice for a particular group of British people, but Tehran refuses to deal with the UK over such cases, saying it does not recognise the concept of dual nationals and regards the individuals solely as Iranian.

Hunt has tried to make the Zaghari-Ratcliffe case a priority in his short time as foreign secretary and was encouraged when she was allowed out last month for three days on a temporary reprieve. However, she was soon sent back to prison by the Iranian judiciary.

Hunt has been pressing for her case to be reviewed, but clearly feels he is not making progress.

The Foreign Office insisted there had been no specific recent development in the Zaghari-Ratcliffe case that had prompted Hunt to revise the guidance, but the advice underlined his personal concern at the lack of protection the UK was able to provide to dual nationals in Iran, and the arbitrary nature of the Iranian judicial system.

In its revised travel advice, the department states: “There is a risk that British nationals, and a higher risk that British/Iranian dual nationals, could be arbitrarily detained in Iran. All British nationals should consider carefully the risks of travelling to Iran.”

A Foreign Office spokesperson said: “British citizens who also hold Iranian nationality face risks if they travel to Iran, as we have seen all too sadly in a number of cases. The Iranian government does not recognise dual nationality so if a dual national is detained our ability to provide support is extremely limited.”



