Brits in Europe - deal or no deal?

[EthelThePiratesDaughter]

This is a thread for British Mumsnetters living in another EU country to talk about what happens after next March if there is a deal or if there isn't.

I know that many things are unknown at this stage but I thought it could be a useful place for us to share whatever information we have and offer advice or support.

It would be nice if people could share a little bit of (non outy) information about themselves.

I'm in my early 30s, living in France since 2017, married to a French man and working locally. I plan to apply for French citizenship but won't be eligible until 2022.

My understanding at the moment is that if a deal is done it will include something on citizens' rights attempting to preserve the rights of people who have exercised their treaty rights before the withdrawal date. I guess this would include the right to stay living where we are at the moment but possibly not the right to move to another EU country. (I'm not worried about that part as my husband is French, so if we wanted to move to another EU country I could ironically find myself having more rights than I do in France, as per the Surinder Singh case.) What about short term travelling? Is it possible to have the right to live in one member state due to grandfathered treaty rights, but need a Schengen visa to go on holiday in another? Anyone know?

In the event of no deal I have literally no clue what happens. Do we just become illegal immigrants overnight?

Looking at the list of things they didn't know that they didn't know, getting any sort of 'plan' together looks very unlikely let alone anything like details.

Looks like you have to apply in person from 1Feb

I imagine that's to cater for people with disabilities.

Motheroffourdragons

Bit of a whoosh there ... of course it wasn't intended to make life easy for anyone less able. Since when has that been any part of any government policy, ever ?

It's just another example where no one thought (or those that did were ignored) to consider the less able. Pretty much a paradigm of 21st century Britain. I guess that's part of the "golden age" of Britain Brexiteers are keen to recreate. When the disabled, the less able, the infirm, and the people we'd rather didn't exist (for whatever reason) are kept safe out of sight. That way we can pretend we live in a decent society without having to do any of that actual work of being decent.

*Looks like you have to apply in person from 1Feb

I imagine that's to cater for people with disabilities.*

I have no objection to people being able to apply in person if that is easier for them. But for me that involves taking annual leave, arranging childcare (awkward with no family) or kids out of school, paying for flights and making an otherwise unnecessary trip to the UK in February when we've just been back at Christmas!

I can renew my passport from anywhere in the world but (potentially) can't get the piece of paper that will allow me to maintain my current right to use my (currently EU since the 90s) licence in my resident EU country.

But surely you can just change your driving licence now for one from the country you live in now. Much easier that way, and if you are in the eu it is easy to do.

How easy is it to change the licence back to UK again? Not an obvious decision if you are on a short term contract.

Frenchfancy trust me nothing administration is easy in the (not so western but still EU) country we are in. And I would only need it from April to June then have to change again. So if it came to a no deal situation getting an IDP to cover those months would make more sense for me. Except if we all have to fly back again between 1/2 and 29/3 just to visit the post office.

In Cyprus, 14.5 years.
Both work and rent a house.
We are both legally registered with immigration, and for tax, NI equivalent and have local driving licenses.

Husband applied for and received his Irish passport not long after the referendum.
I applied for citizenship in August this year. It took 7 months to get all the paperwork needed and to save up for the payment. Anyone can apply after 7 years legal residence.

I'm told it can take about a year but have read horror stories online about it taking 7 or more but there is no language test thank god.

No reason to think I would be declined so just a matter of waiting.

I am not prepared to be a 3rd country national or lose my right to freedom of movement.

Looking at the expat Facebook groups I am on, there are many, many Brits here with no residency papers at all.

They bang on about the Commonwealth and the the good relationship between Cyprus and UK - using that as an excuse for not registering or having a single though about Brexit apart from 'it will be alright, Cyprus won't throw us out'.

Yeah they probably won't but the bureaucracy of applying for residency as a 3rd country national is worlds away from applying as an EU citizen.