06
Jul 2020
2

New Spanish Residency Procedure for British Nationals

At the end of last week, I had an appointment at the National Police Station to obtain the

New Spanish Residency Procedure for British Nationals

General Spanish Regulations , , , Sabrina L. Williams

At the end of last week, I had an appointment at the National Police Station to obtain the residencia card for a client, but this did not go to plan because the system had blocked all procedures for British nationals so we walked away empty handed. This was obviously Brexit related although July had not been specifically highlighted as relevant in the transition period, so after doing some digging, it came to light that some changes are coming down the pipeline. I also noted during my investigation over the weekend, that in Part Four of the Withdrawal Agreement, the EU and the UK must make a joint decision before 1st July 2020 as to whether the transition period should be extended beyond 31st December 2020 up to two years.

On Saturday 4th July, the Interior Ministry published a law that details the procedure to follow in line with the UK’s Withdrawal Agreement from the EU regarding residencia applications. Spain is currently the EU country with the most British residents on record, with 359.471 registered on 31st December 2019.

As we all know, the UK left the EU on 31st January 2020 and a transition period began in which all necessary agreements must be confirmed by 31st December 2020, but until that date, EU regulations regarding freedom of movement and other rights would stay in place as if the UK were still a full EU Member State. Those British nationals in Spain who exercise their right to reside and/ or work in Spain during this period will be awarded the same rights as per the Agreement as those who were registered residents before Brexit.

Those who arrive after the transition period (31st December 2020) will be considered nationals from external countries and would have to abide by any new agreements in place between the EU and the UK regarding freedom of movement, Social Security etc.

In any case, the system was down at the end of last week whilst the new procedure was being integrated, and new applications can be made from today, Monday 6th July 2020 until the end of the year. For those whose rights to reside in Spain fall after the transition period, they must submit their applications within three months of arrival or from the moment in which the right begins.

There are different procedures in place depending on the applicants’ circumstances:

  1. Holders of temporary certificates who have not reached five years of legal residency in Spain. A new residency card can be applied for with a five-year validity and it would be classed as “Temporary”
  2. Holders of temporary certificates who have reached five years of legal residency in Spain, but who have not updated their certificate type can apply for a new card valid for ten years that would be classed as “Permanent”
  3. Holders of permanent certificates can apply for the new card which would be valid for a ten-year period and classed as “Permanent”
  4. Applicants who are not yet holders of any type of residencia certificate must go through a two-step process, but it is not 100% clear how it will be managed in the Province of Las Palmas, but the likely scenario is via both the Delegación del Gobierno and the National Police

If you have the green residencia card, you can check your status on the card itself by means of the text, “Residente comunitario permanente en España desde 01/01/1990″ or just “Residente comunitario en España desde 01/01/2019” for example. These cards do not show photo ID, but this will be required for the new cards to be issued.

The law also contemplates current holders of residencia cards obtained via a UK family member, for example, a US national who is married to a UK national who obtained the right to residency in Spain in that way. Although these cards already contain photo ID, they must be updated in line with this new law.

The law does not demand physical presence in Spain after the transition period as temporary absence does not affect the right to reside in Spain.

Government fees will of course be charged for the new residencia cards, but for those of us that remember the old cards with photo ID that were issued prior to the current green card, this will be a welcome change as we weren’t required to carry our passports. At present, exchanging your existing residencia card for the new version is voluntary not obligatory.

Remember, this procedure is only required for BRITISH NATIONALS who reside in Spain due to Brexit. I plan to test the new procedure out on myself and obtain a card (hopefully!) to verify how simple or complex it turns out to be in practice. New information is bound to be released when it becomes available so watch this space for further updates.

11
Oct 2019
2

URGENT! Deadline to Exchange UK Driving Licences in the Final Run up to Brexit

UPDATE!: Since BREXIT has been postponed yet again, the Spanish DGT has extended its deadline to 31st January

URGENT! Deadline to Exchange UK Driving Licences in the Final Run up to Brexit

Trafico , , , , , , , , , , , , , Sabrina L. Williams

UPDATE!: Since BREXIT has been postponed yet again, the Spanish DGT has extended its deadline to 31st January 2020…

With the 31st of October approaching fast, BREXIT is on most people’s minds. The latest change to affect UK residents in Spain is that the DGT (UK equivalent of DVLA) has posted information on their website advising of new regulations for holders of UK licences to continue driving on Spanish roads in the event of a no-deal Brexit. Up until now, the rules have been that the driver must have two years on their residencia card in order to exchange another EU member state’s driving licence for a Spanish document, and many in the final run to the Brexit deadline have been exchanging their licences to avoid posible problems.

13
Feb 2019
0

BREXIT: What Will Happen to my UK Driving Licence?

The obligation to exchange an EU driving licence once becoming a resident in Spain has been a source

BREXIT: What Will Happen to my UK Driving Licence?

Trafico , , , , , , Sabrina L. Williams

The obligation to exchange an EU driving licence once becoming a resident in Spain has been a source of much debate over recent years but with the possibility of a No Deal Brexit, queries have been pouring in about how this will affect drivers. The British Government began to issue warnings on the 14th January 2019 about possible scenarios in the event of failure to reach an agreement.

At present, chatter indicates the most likely outcome is that those who hold a British driving licence would have to obtain an International Driving Permit (IDP) in addition to their existing licence to enable them to drive or rent a car in EU member states. Driving without an IDP may invalidate car insurance and/or travel insurance policies in the event of a claim whilst driving abroad. An IDP cannot be obtained on a provisional licence if for example the holder is in the middle of processing a renewal or an exchange, so if you intend to travel close to the date set for Brexit, you must either ensure you receive your new licence beforehand, wait until the original document is available before travelling or refrain from driving.

This issue will unfortunately also affect many Brits who have holiday homes and cars in Spain because it is not feasible for them to exchange their driving licences when they do not live here permanently.

If no deal is confirmed, it could mean that Brits abroad may have to take a driving test in their country of residence unless their existing British licence is exchanged to a local one before the UK’s impending crash out of Europe at midnight on the 29th March 2019. However, it would appear the same would not apply for those European drivers who travel TO the UK post-Brexit.

What is interesting is whilst the UK Government website now provides a written warning on the matter, Tráfico is yet to provide any insight into this unnerving situation. In fact, after consulting with both central and local offices, its representatives are completely unaware of the warning on the British Government’s website and there is no information at all on Tráfico’s official website at all, however, they have observed a sudden increase in licence exchanges in recent weeks.

A worrying observation was made though, and they state that the possibility to exchange a British driving licence for a Spanish one may be blocked at any time if the order is passed down from above.  I can only assume that Tráfico will release confirmation of the situation once definitive information regarding the expected outcome of Brexit is revealed and if a deal can be made, so I cannot rule out possible updates to the information detailed in this article closer to the exit date, but it was correct at the time of print.

The Brexit situation is still very much up in the air whilst the UK Government squabbles amongst itself and fails to secure a viable deal with the remaining EU countries. This has caused a general feeling of unrest, especially for those who have left the UK to take up residence in other countries. The validity of driving licences post-Brexit is yet another area that will cause major disruption for citizens and businesses within the EU, not to mention the expected last-minute rush to exchange British licences for local ones which will no doubt collapse Tráfico and equivalent Administrations as they try to keep up with the demand.

 

Summary

Important Note: If you carry a UK driving licence, you will not be able to renew it if it is lost, stolen or has expired.

Recommendation: Apply to exchange your driving licence without delay and definitely before the 29th March 2019.

PS: Driving Licence Flashback – Holders of an older version of an EU member state driving licence that does not have an expiry date or shows an expiry date superior to ten years, must exchange it for a Spanish licence once they have resided in Spain for two years.

Transport of Goods: Make sure you stay well informed, otherwise your business may seriously be affected.

 

UPDATE!!

Since no definitive legislation has been passed in anticipation of Brexit, Tráfico is following current procedures regarding exchanging of EU licences, which means that if the date on the applicant’s residencia card does not reflect two years of residency in Spain, they are unfortunately not eligible to exchange their existing licence for a Spanish one. Until the UK either strikes a deal or crashes out without any type of deal, no additional information on this subject is expected but I will keep you posted.

As seen in The Voice Fuerteventura