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| British in Europe and the3million at a demonstration in London last year |
The recent headline in El País - Spain will remove rights of British residents if the UK does not reciprocate - highlights the worrying situation of the 350,000 Britons in Spain and the 150,000 Spaniards in the United Kingdom and the fact that we are still being used as bargaining chips. The huge uncertainty for the five million people affected is ratcheting up once more, with only forty days before a probable No Deal Brexit. Both national governments and the European Commission have repeated ad nauseam that they will protect our rights. The reality is different.
The rights of Spanish residents in the United Kingdom are far from being guaranteed. The 'Settlement Scheme' means that all EU residents in the United Kingdom pre-Brexit must submit an application to obtain a new immigration status, thus making those who do not get it before the end of 2020 illegal. The campaigning group the3million has been demanding that the recognition of our rights be based on a simple declaratory system that merely confirms our rights instead of having to request, and thus put ourselves at risk of losing, the new status.
The current UK system distinguishes between citizens with the right to temporary residence (for those resident up to five years) and permanent residence (more than five years). Temporary residence is an inferior status which, for example, only permits absences of six months from the country and which gives fewer rights. Home Office figures show that the percentage of residents to whom temporary residence is being granted is disproportionately high - thus many long-term residents may be obtaining the wrong status, something which would result in a serious reduction of their rights.
In addition, the Home Office operates what is officially called a ‘hostile environment’, whereby foreigners who cannot prove their rights can lose access to work or housing, see their bank accounts frozen etc. Spanish and other European citizens residing in post-Brexit UK run the risk of suffering discrimination under this system and having problems in their daily lives. This will be exacerbated by the government's refusal to issue a physical document as proof of residence. Finally, the regulations governing the ‘Settlement Scheme’ have not been approved through primary legislation, and thus could be changed in the future without any parliamentary scrutiny.
The Spanish government has devised a much simpler process to change the status of British citizens in Spain from European citizens to third-country nationals. According to the Royal Decree 5/2019 the procedure will be declaratory, although there could be problems in provinces with many UK residents and for the most vulnerable groups. This will only be seen after a No Deal Brexit and the beginning of the twenty-one month grace period stipulated in the Royal Decree. However, the most worrying aspect of the Spanish contingency plans for British residents is that everything in the Decree Law depends on reciprocity in various areas of cooperation (not just citizenship). After the recent meeting of Borrell and Barclay, it seems that the two governments are not at all clear about what "reciprocity" means.
Also, after moving to the general immigration regime (régimen general de extranjería) the British will lose key 'European' rights such as non-discrimination and free movement within the EU. Family reunification will also become much more difficult for people who want to bring their elderly parents to Spain and long-term residents may only be absent from Spain for twelve months (instead of two years for EU citizens and five years for permanent residents in the UK). Another potential issue is that those Britons who will be family members of EU citizens after Brexit may be forced to apply for temporary residence despite having lived in Spain for many years. Finally, for UK nationals in Spain, there is no dual nationality, something that makes this route for guaranteeing rights more difficult.
The3million and the British in Europe group, EuroCitizens, are calling, once again, for our rights to be guaranteed according to the citizens' right chapter of the Withdrawal Agreement which the United Kingdom and the European Union agreed in 2018. That is the only way to preserve most of our rights even if a deal is not reached in other matters related to Brexit such as the Irish backstop.
The current UK system distinguishes between citizens with the right to temporary residence (for those resident up to five years) and permanent residence (more than five years). Temporary residence is an inferior status which, for example, only permits absences of six months from the country and which gives fewer rights. Home Office figures show that the percentage of residents to whom temporary residence is being granted is disproportionately high - thus many long-term residents may be obtaining the wrong status, something which would result in a serious reduction of their rights.
In addition, the Home Office operates what is officially called a ‘hostile environment’, whereby foreigners who cannot prove their rights can lose access to work or housing, see their bank accounts frozen etc. Spanish and other European citizens residing in post-Brexit UK run the risk of suffering discrimination under this system and having problems in their daily lives. This will be exacerbated by the government's refusal to issue a physical document as proof of residence. Finally, the regulations governing the ‘Settlement Scheme’ have not been approved through primary legislation, and thus could be changed in the future without any parliamentary scrutiny.
The Spanish government has devised a much simpler process to change the status of British citizens in Spain from European citizens to third-country nationals. According to the Royal Decree 5/2019 the procedure will be declaratory, although there could be problems in provinces with many UK residents and for the most vulnerable groups. This will only be seen after a No Deal Brexit and the beginning of the twenty-one month grace period stipulated in the Royal Decree. However, the most worrying aspect of the Spanish contingency plans for British residents is that everything in the Decree Law depends on reciprocity in various areas of cooperation (not just citizenship). After the recent meeting of Borrell and Barclay, it seems that the two governments are not at all clear about what "reciprocity" means.
Also, after moving to the general immigration regime (régimen general de extranjería) the British will lose key 'European' rights such as non-discrimination and free movement within the EU. Family reunification will also become much more difficult for people who want to bring their elderly parents to Spain and long-term residents may only be absent from Spain for twelve months (instead of two years for EU citizens and five years for permanent residents in the UK). Another potential issue is that those Britons who will be family members of EU citizens after Brexit may be forced to apply for temporary residence despite having lived in Spain for many years. Finally, for UK nationals in Spain, there is no dual nationality, something that makes this route for guaranteeing rights more difficult.
The3million and the British in Europe group, EuroCitizens, are calling, once again, for our rights to be guaranteed according to the citizens' right chapter of the Withdrawal Agreement which the United Kingdom and the European Union agreed in 2018. That is the only way to preserve most of our rights even if a deal is not reached in other matters related to Brexit such as the Irish backstop.
