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BREXIT

Pet travel after Brexit: Brits living in EU urged to visit vets

British citizens in the EU hoping to travel to the UK with their pets after Brexit on March 29th are being urged to visit their vets to ensure they comply with EU regulations or they risk having to leave their animals behind in the event of a no-deal divorce.

Published: 6 November 2018 11:25 CET
Pet travel after Brexit: Brits living in EU urged to visit vets
Photo: AFP

The UK government issued more advice for British pet owners on Tuesday to make sure they take the necessary steps in case Britain crashes out of the EU without a deal – an event still described as “unlikely” by London.

Owners of cats, dogs and ferrets in Britain are being urged to visit the vet before the end of November to make sure their pet is micro-chipped and vaccinated against rabies before it can travel.

Pet owners will have to have a blood sample taken from their dog or cat 30 days after the rabies vaccination in order to show the process was successful. They must wait three months before travelling, the government advice states.

The rules will come into place because a no-deal Brexit would mean the pet passports issued in the UK would no longer be valid for travel.

The advice is slightly different for British pet owners living in the EU.

The government's Brexit advice paper says: “If you’re living in Europe and are planning to travel with your pet using a UK-issued pet passport, you should speak to your local vet.

“They’ll be able to help you understand the impact of Brexit and ensure you’re compliant with EU Pet Travel Regulations.“

However life will be a little simpler if dog and cat owners have a pet passport issued by the EU country where they live because Britain will accept it as a means of entry.

“If you have a pet passport issued by an EU member state, you can use it to bring your pet to the UK,” says the government.

“To return your pet to an EU country from the UK, you’ll need to ensure it has a successful rabies antibody blood test.

“If your pet has a successful blood test before leaving the EU you will not need to wait the 3 months before travelling.”

In 2017, 287,016 dogs and 26,480 cats entered the UK from the EU, according to the UK’s Animal & Plant Health Agency (ALPHA), following a request by The Local under the Freedom of Information Act (FoIA) 2000. The agency does not store data on the number of pets travelling from the UK to the EU, nor was it able to provide information about how future guidelines might change. 

In the event of a no-deal the British government is hoping to enter into discussions with Brussels to persuade the EU to treat it as a “listed” country from March 29th, meaning the pet passport scheme could still apply and the above advice may not be relevant.

However with everything up in the air and time running out pet owners would be wise to do their animal paperwork.

Member comments

  1. Could you think about using less emotive language – perhaps “leaves” the EU, rather than “crashes” out? Some people, even here in France, are pro-Brexit, believe it or not.

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BREXIT

IN STATS: Why did Sweden reject Brits’ applications for post-Brexit residency?

A document obtained from the Migration Agency via a freedom of information request gives new insight into the UK citizens who have had applications for post-Brexit residency rejected.

Published: 17 June 2024 09:18 CEST
IN STATS: Why did Sweden reject Brits' applications for post-Brexit residency?

The document, which was ordered by the Migration Agency’s Legal Affairs chief Carl Bexelius, is intended to counter accusations that the agency has been unreasonably strict in its interpretation of Swedish and EU law to post-Brexit residency applications.

It was obtained through a Freedom of Information request by David Milstead, who told The Local that the agency’s justifications for the disproportionately high number of UK citizens in Sweden denied residency “doesn’t survive even the slightest bit of scrutiny”.

The statistics, drawn from the agency’s databases on February 24th 2024, show just how many of those whose applications were rejected in fact met the applications deadline of December 31st 2021. 

Fully 1,607 of the 2,096 people whose applications for post-Brexit residency were rejected applied on time, with only 489 applying after the deadline had passed. 

Of the people who applied on time and were rejected, the main stated reason for rejection was that they were not judged to have fulfilled the requirements for a right of residency, or uppehållsrätt, under EU law. Some 623 were recorded as not meeting the requirements, although the real number may be significantly larger due to the large number of cases tagged “unknown” or “other” in the agency’s system.  

Several lawyers specialising in EU law have told The Local that in cases they have seen, the Migration Agency has tended to apply much tougher requirements for employment or savings for EU residency than they consider justified under EU rules.  

When applications from family members of British citizens who are not themselves British are included, the number of rejections is slightly higher, with a total of 2,286 applications for post-Brexit residency rejected, of which 537 applied after the deadline of December 31st 2021.

Of those who applied on time, 663 were rejected because they didn’t meet the requirements for EU uppehållsrätt.

The study does not assess in detail any of the applications which were rejected despite having been submitted on time, instead only focusing of the late applications, selecting 92 to analyse in detail. 

What were the justification for late applications?

Of the 92 cases analysed, the most common justification for applying late was ignorance, followed by poor health and being misinformed by the Migration Agency, Swedish Tax Agency or Swedish Social Insurance Agency. 

The “other reason” category includes people who said they missed deadline “by mistake”, those who said they didn’t know the rules, and those who said that they believed that they had residency. 

The document does not explain why these cases were not included in the “ignorance” category. 

What happened to those who were rejected? 

A total of 49 people, 44 of which were British citizens and five their family members, were issued with deportation orders when their applications for post-Brexit residency were refused. 

As part of the analysis, the agency looked at the current outcome in 88 cases and found that 28 had applied for residency and/or a work permit as a third-country national (and hadn’t yet received a decision), 16 had been granted such residency, and 12 already had such permanent residency before Brexit.

In five cases, the person had been granted a right of residency under EU law because they are married to a citizen of another EU country. 

In 19 cases, the person has not yet applied for residency on any other grounds. 

In an analysis of 90 cases, the agency found that 26 had appealed the rejection of their application for post-Brexit residency. Of those, 14 had already been heard by the Migration Court, with courts supporting the Migration Agency’s decision in 13 cases. 

In just one case, the Migration Court had referred the case onward for further examination of the relevant EU law. 

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