You will remember that while Spain, the UK and the EU all recommend swapping your Green registration certificate for the new TIE which identifies you as a beneficiary of the Withdrawal Agreement, this is not compulsory. The Green certificate remains in force for those who choose not to do so. Nevertheless, there have been some instances of British citizens not having their certificates recognised at the border of some EU states. We have approached the EU about this and have learned the following:
“…a specimen of the Spanish registration certificate of EU citizens is included in Annex 43 of the "Practical Handbook for Border Guards" (PHBG). This document being not published, we unfortunately cannot provide a link.
Spain has not notified the title of the document for its inclusion in Annex 22 of the PHBG, which lists all residence permits and documents with equivalent effect issued by the Member States. Inclusion in both Annexes 43 and 22 of the PHBG being necessary under Schengen rules, the Commission has pointed out to Spain that it should notify the title for inclusion in Annex 22 of the PHBG. However, this has not been done so far.
As a consequence, the Commission is aware that UK nationals who are Withdrawal Agreement beneficiaries in Spain and who travel inside the Schengen area based on a previously issued free movement registration certificate may experience difficulties in other Schengen States.”
What this means in practice is that if a border guard checks both Annexes (22 and 43) they will find the certificate included under Annex 43 although not under 22. However, if the guard checks Annex 22 only, they will not find it mentioned. Consequently, if you encounter problems, you should ask the border guard to check Annex 43 as well.
If you do have any problems when travelling with your green EU card, please write to us at eurocitizens2016@gmail.com and tell us all about it.
