SPANISH GOVERNMENT MAKES CONTINGENCY PLANS FOR A NO-DEAL BREXIT

Schengen Visa

According to an article in Expansión, the Spanish government is planning to pass a law (by decree) to give them special powers in the event of no deal between the EU and the UK. This follows similar moves in both Germany and in France where legislation is currently going through the senate.

The Spanish law would appear to allow UK citizens to enter Spain without a visa after 29 March and to avoid the situation of Britons in Spain becoming illegal immigrants overnight. The government would also be able to put in place measures to enable Britons to continue using Spanish healthcare, presumably through both the EHIC card (UK tourists) or the S1 system.

In our recent meetings in Madrid with the Spanish administration, EuroCitizens has repeatedly brought up the issue of contingency plans, so we welcome this news. Over the coming weeks, we will press for more information about the measures that might affect Britons in Spain.

30/10/18: REUNIÓN DE EUROCITIZENS EN EL MINISTERIO DE INTERIOR

El martes 30 de octubre tres representantes de EuroCitizens, una asociación que pertenece a la coalición British in Europe, se reunieron con Manuel Alhama, Subdirector General de Relaciones Internacionales, Inmigración y Extranjería en el Ministerio de Interior y un equipo de funcionarios de otros departamentos del mismo ministerio. Recibimos algunas noticias tranquilizadoras para los 300.000 británicos en España. El señor Alhama comentó el principio de la reciprocidad en el trato de los españoles en el Reino Unido y los británicos en este país, pero subrayó la voluntad del gobierno español de respetar los derechos de las personas y evitar demoras y complicaciones.

El primer tema tratado fue el nuevo procedimiento de registro y documentación, al amparo del Acuerdo de Retirada, de los ciudadanos británicos ya residentes en España, a partir del 29 de marzo 2019, fecha fijada para la salida del Reino Unido de la Unión Europea. Los ministerios del Interior y Trabajo, Migraciones y Seguridad Social , están elaborando un plan de acción para llevar a cabo el cambio de estatus de los británicos de ciudadanos europeos a nacionales de un tercer país. En este sentido, entre otras medidas, se tienen previsto los recursos necesarios, especialmente en las zonas con mayor población británica como Levante y Andalucía oriental, a fin de concluir la actualización administrativa a la mayor brevedad posible. Los británicos residentes y que ya se encuentren registrados deberán solicitar la nueva tarjeta identificativa de extranjero (TIE), sin necesidad de aportar más documentación. Este documento incluirá la información sobre el estatus especial del titular como protegido por el Acuerdo de Retirada. El gobierno español anunciará todos los detalles de esta operación cuando esté firmado el Acuerdo de Retirada.

Por lo que respecta a los derechos políticos, las negociaciones entre el RU y España han avanzado en el plano político, quedando pendiente la redacción y firma de un tratado internacional que, en términos de reciprocidad, permita el sufragio activo (el derecho a votar en los procesos electorales municipales) tanto de los españoles residentes en Gran Bretaña, como de los brºitánicos en España. Por eso, se espera que, si hay suficiente voluntad política, el sufragio activo (el derecho a votar) podría ser confirmado antes de las próximas elecciones municipales de mayo de 2019. Por lo que respecta al sufragio pasivo, se ve bastante más complicado conseguir el derecho de presentarse como candidato tan rápidamente. No obstante, aclarar que la Junta Electoral ha informado que los británicos que son residentes legalmente seguirán en el censo hasta el 30 de marzo del próximo año.

Por último comentamos el escenario de una salida del Reino Unido sin acuerdo que abriría una segunda fase de preparativos. En este caso, algunas competencias, como la necesidad o no de un visado Schengen, atañerán a la Unión Europea mientras que otras, como la sanidad y las pensiones, serán competencias nacionales.

Agradecemos al señor Alhama y a los demás asistentes por su comprensión por la ansiedad e incertidumbre que sufren los ciudadanos afectados (tanto españoles como británicos) en este momento. Nuestro próximo paso como asociación será buscar una reunión con el Ministerio de Trabajo, Migraciones y Seguridad Social.

MEETING WITH INTERIOR MINISTRY: REGISTRATION AND POLITICAL RIGHTS FOR BRITONS IN SPAIN AFTER BREXIT

When the UK leaves the EU on 29 March, Britons living in Spain will cease to be European Citizens. If there is a deal, we will become Third Country Nationals with protection under the Withdrawal Agreement. This gives us the right to live and work only in our host country and covers areas like aggregated pensions and healthcare for UK pensioners. We will lose the right to free movement in the EU-27, to provide cross-border services and the right to vote in European elections. See below a report on our meeting with the Interior Ministry last week which deals in particular with the issues of registration and political rights.

30/10/18: Meeting of EuroCitizens at the Interior Ministry

On Tuesday 30 October three members of EuroCitizens, an association belonging to the coalition British in Europe, met Manuel Alhama, Subdirector General of International Relations, Immigration and Foreigners, plus a team of other civil servants at the Interior Ministry. We received news which will help to reassure the 300,000 Britons in Spain. Señor Alhama explained the principle of reciprocity in the treatment of Spaniards in the UK and Britons here, but stressed that the Spanish government will respect the rights of the people affected and avoid unnecessary delays and complications.

The first topic covered was the new process for registration and documentation, under the stipulations of the Withdrawal Treaty, of British Citizens in Spain after 29 March 2019, the date set for the UK to leave the EU. The ministries of the Interior and of Labour, Migration and Social Security are working on an action plan to carry out the change of status of Britons from European Citizens to third-country nationals. Along these lines, amonst other measures, the necessary resources have been calculated, especially in those areas with large British populations such as Levante and Eastern Andalusia, so that the administration can be prepared as soon as possible. Britons who are already resident will have to apply for an identity card for foreigners (TIE) without having to provide any more documentation. This ID card will include information about the special status of the holder as a protected person under the Withdrawal Agreement. The Spanish government will announce full details of these administrative changes after the Withdrawal Agreement has been signed.

Regarding political rights, negotiations between the UK and Spain have advanced at a political level, but the drafting and signing of an international treaty remain to be done. This reciprocal agreement would give the right to vote in local elections to both Spaniards in the UK and Britons in Spain. Given sufficient political will, this could be confirmed before the next local elections in Spain in May 2019. It seems unlikely for the right to stand as a candidate to be included by that date, but the Electoral Commission has announced that legally resident Britons will remain on electoral lists until 30 March next year.

Finally, a no-deal scenario was briefly discussed. This would open a new phase in preparations for the Spanish government and some powers, such as the issuing or not of Schengen visas, would belong to the EU whereas others like the coordination of healthcare and social security would be national competencies.

EuroCitizens would like to thank Señor Alhama and the other officials present for their awareness of the anxiety and uncertainty affecting citizens, both Spanish and British. Our next step as a group will be to request a meeting with the Ministry of Labour, Migration and Social Security.

E-LOBBY OF MPS TO DEMAND RING-FENCING OF CITIZENS' RIGHTS

EuroCitizens is encouraging members, together with their friends, family and sympathisers, to join in The Last Mile Westminster Lobby on November 5^th. This is being jointly organised by British in Europe, the 3million and other organisations. We are campaigning for the UK government and the EU to commit to ring-fencing and implementing the citizens’ rights part of the Withdrawal Agreement under Article 50 – no matter what the outcome on Brexit – as well as strengthening the accord to maintain our freedom of movement in the EU.

If you can attend the lobby with us in Westminster, you will need to register here  https://britishineurope.org/westminsterlobby/ Most of us will be taking part in the e-lobby of MPs – see the full details below.

Remember, we are only five months away from Brexit and nothing has been agreed. There is an increasing risk of a no-deal scenario - which means that we all may become illegal immigrants overnight and have to apply for third-country national status just to stay in Spain. The situation is getting very serious and we need your help to make this e-lobby HUGE. After the enormous success of the March for a People's Vote last Saturday we need to put all the pressure we can on MPs to support our demands.

Please join with us and stand up as one of the five million. 

See below instructions for the e-lobby and the template of a letter to send to your MP.

‘No more glib assurances’ says DExEU minister Robin Walker after meeting Citizens’ Rights campaigners in Madrid

Robin Walker in Madrid yesterday with Ambassador Manley

On Thursday 4 October, representatives from Spanish citizens’ rights groups (Bremain in Spain, Brexpats Spain, ECREU and EuroCitizens) met British embassy officials and DExEU minister Robin Walker. During the morning session we were given an update on healthcare, registration and consular back-up by different members of the FCO team. This was followed by an hour-long meeting with the minister. The exchange of views took place in a cordial atmosphere, with the minister giving a positive hearing to the points raised.

Mr Walker recognised that the current Withdrawal Agreement, whilst covering important areas such as healthcare and host country residence, did not include key rights such as the freedom of movement for Britons within the EU-27 and related issues like cross-border service provision. The minister said that this matter had been left for the negotiations about the future EU/UK relationship; we strongly criticised this position, stressing that the 1.2 million Britons in Europe are a finite group of people who have already exercised our freedom of movement rights within the EU-27. We drew Mr Walker’s attention to the European Parliament’s red lines and their suggestion that the EU might accept the keeping of our current freedom of movement in exchange for a lifetime right of return for EUinUK citizens. We also mooted that the UK should seek a standstill position to cover freedom of movement and associated economic rights throughout the negotiations, should this exceed the transition period.

Whilst the Withdrawal Agreement does not cover political rights, which are the competence of member states, Robin Walker gave some very positive news regarding Spain. He said that discussions between the two governments about future bilateral arrangements on political rights, enabling Spaniards in the UK and Britons in Spain to stand and vote in local elections, are at an advanced stage and should be concluded soon.

The minister remained confident that a deal was still possible at the October European Council summit, but citizens’ groups underlined the huge risks for British migrants in Spain of a no-deal scenario as it would entail massive future uncertainty and the immediate loss of many of our EU citizenship rights as we would immediately fall under Third Country National and national legislation. The minister gave an assurance that HMG had embarked on no-deal contingency planning and mentioned the UK’s unilateral assurances to EUinUK citizens. We pointed out that no technical note regarding UKinEU had been published and that any unilateral guarantees by the UK government were insufficient without reciprocal agreement. The representatives of all four groups were united in their demand for the urgent ring-fencing of Citizens’ Rights from other aspects of the Withdrawal Agreement.

We then brought up issues falling within the sole grant of the British government, such as automatic uprating of UK pensions for Britons in the EU, which we were told had already been agreed on. We pointed out that family reunification rights for UK returnees with EU spouses and family were vital and highlighted the issue of home university fees for UKinEU citizens, guaranteed until 2020 but no further. Mr Walker took note of both issues.

Representatives of the groups stressed that the current situation was one of negotiating degrees of loss, given that the EU status quo was far superior to anything that could be obtained in the context of Brexit, let alone in a no-deal scenario. When we raised the issue of votes for life for UKinEU, the minister was personally sympathetic but could give no specific guarantees.

Whilst thanking the minister for meeting us, we roundly criticised HMG’s failure to engage with us more fully at an earlier stage and for ignoring British in Europe's repeated requests for meetings with the DExEU Secretary of State and with Theresa May. We also commented on the PM’s failure to even mention us in recent key prime ministerial speeches. On the topic of UK government messaging, after hearing our criticisms of government spin, Mr Walker admitted that it was not enough to produce glib and general statements in an attempt to reassure Britons in the EU-27 and that citizens needed specific information about how changes might affect their lives.

REUNIÓN DE EUROCITIZENS EN EL MINISTERIO DE ASUNTOS EXTERIORES

El jueves 20 de septiembre tres integrantes de EuroCitizens /British in Europe se reunieron con varios altos cargos del Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores, Unión Europea y Cooperación, entre ellos los directores generales D. José Pascual Marco y D. Pascual Navarro y el Subdirector de Asuntos Institucionales, D. Raúl Fuentes. El encuentro, el quinto que hemos mantenido con Exteriores a lo largo de los últimos dieciocho meses, fue como siempre muy cordial e informativo.

 

Cuando preguntamos por la libertad de movimiento de los británicos en la UE (restringida a nuestro país de residencia según el actual Acuerdo de Retirada), nos informaron que, desde enero, no se ha hablado de este tema en las negociaciones, pero aún así, el gobierno español preguntaría por ello al Grupo de Trabajo del Artículo 50 de la Comisión Europea. Acto seguido comentamos los procedimientos para registrar a los británicos en España después del Brexit. Los ministerios de Trabajo, Migración y Servicios Sociales e Interior llevan varios meses trabajando en este asunto y se está estudiando la posibilidad de implantar una nueva tarjeta biométrica para los británicos cubiertos por el Acuerdo de Retirada (las personas que están registradas correctamente antes del fin del periodo de transición). En principio, se utilizará el registro existente, quizás con algunos datos complementarios pero no determinantes. 

Sobre nuestros derechos políticos, de poder votar y presentarnos como candidatos en las elecciones municipales, nos informaron que, conforme con la Constitución Española, existe la posibilidad de alcanzar acuerdos bilaterales y que el gobierno español ya ha mostrado su voluntad de negociar un convenio con el Reino Unido. Los altos cargos expresaron la intención de España de buscar una solución humanitaria para la ciudadanía afectada en el caso (improbable en su opinión) de una salida de Gran Bretaña sin acuerdo ninguno. 

Finalmente, comentamos de forma breve la posibilidad de la doble nacionalidad para los británicos en España y las demoras en la tramitación de la nacionalidad española. Según nuestros interlocutores, ambos asuntos tienen que ver con el Ministerio de Justicia y tienen un marcado carácter político.

Agradecemos al gobierno español su postura positiva y comprensiva hacia el colectivo de los británicos en España, cada vez más preocupados por el cariz que están tomando las negociaciones y por el poco tiempo que queda antes del Brexit.

WHERE DO BRITONS IN SPAIN STAND NOW? - MEETING OF EUROCITIZENS AT THE SPANISH FOREIGN MINISTRY

On Thursday 20 September three members of EuroCitizens /British in Europe met a team of senior civil servants at the Spanish Ministry for Foreign Affairs, including the director generals José Pascual Marco and Pascual Navarro and the Subdirector of Institutional Affairs, Raúl Fuentes. The meeting, the fifth that we have had over the last eighteen months, was as always extremely amicable and informative.
 

When we asked about the freedom of movement for Britons in the EU (restricted in the current Withdrawal Agreement to our host country), we were told that the subject had not been mentioned in negotiations since last January, but that the Spanish foreign ministry would bring it up again with the European Commission Article 50 Task Force. We went on to discuss the proceedures to be used to register the Britons in Spain after Brexit. The Interior and Labour ministries have been working on this issue for the last few months and the Spanish government is studying the possibility of putting into place a biometric identity card (with photo and fingerprints) for UK citizens covered by the Withdrawal Agreement - those correctly registered before the end of the transition period. The existing register would be used, but with some complementary data.

When we raised the issue of our political rights, to be candidates and to vote in municipal elections, we were informed that, according to the Spanish constitution, bilateral agreements can be reached in this matter and that the Spanish government has already shown its willingness to negotiate a treaty along these lines with the United Kingdom. The senior civil servants said that Spain would actively look for a humanitarian solution for citizens affected by a no-deal scenario, though they thought it highly unlikely. Finally, we dealt briefly with the possibility of dual nationality for Britons in Spain and the delays in processing citizenship applications. Both issues are covered by the Justice Ministry and are highly political.

We thank the Spanish government for its positive and supportive stance towards the Britons living in Spain, who are increasingly concerned by the way in which negotiations are going and the ever-dwindling time that remains before Brexit.