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Brexit: Brits in Germany warned to ‘prepare for no-deal under Boris Johnson’

British nationals living in Germany have been urged to seriously prepare for the possibility of a no-deal Brexit now that Boris Johnson has taken over as Prime Minister.

Published: 30 July 2019 12:31 CEST
Brexit: Brits in Germany warned to 'prepare for no-deal under Boris Johnson’
UK PM Boris Johnson in Manchester, the UK, at the weekend. Photo: DPA

Johnson, dubbed “Brexit-Boris”, by Germany's top selling daily Bild, replaced Theresa May as the UK PM last week following the Conservative leadership race.

“I am sure you will want to know what this means for you and your families in Germany,” said deputy UK Ambassador to Germany Robbie Bulloch in a statement posted on Facebook.

“Brexit was a central theme of Mr Johnson’s first speech as Prime Minister. He was clear that the UK will leave the European Union on 31 October and set out that he wants a new and better deal with the EU.

“However, he was also clear that leaving without a deal remains an option, if the UK is unable to secure an improved agreement. We therefore need to prepare for the possibility of a no-deal Brexit.”

READ ALSO: 'Cocky troublemaker': What the German media makes of 'Brexit Boris'

Bulloch stressed the German government’s stance that no British citizen will need to leave Germany as as result of Brexit. 

If no withdrawal agreement is in place by October 31st, Germany plans an initial transition period of three months, which will likely be extended by a further six months. This will give Brits more time to apply to their local Ausländerbehörde (foreigners/immigration office) for a residence permit to ensure they can stay in the future. 

The Embassy is planning a Facebook Q&A at 1pm on Tuesday, August 6th where anyone affected can put Brexit-related questions to their team. 

As The Local has reported, Brits across Germany are already trying to secure their futures by applying for residence permits.

READ ALSO: Brexit limbo: How Brits in Germany are trying to secure their futures

However, because Germany is a federal country, power is devolved to individual immigration authorities and each area carries out the process in a different way, making it difficult for Brits to know how to act.

We also exclusively revealed that 8,000 Brits in Berlin still hadn't applied for a residency permit ahead of Brexit, even though the registering process opened up in the capital in January.

For details on what kind of residence permits are being given out to British people in Germany, check out our story here.

How to prepare for a no-deal

Bulloch added that the German government is putting in place all “the necessary legal framework conditions to ensure that every UK national in Germany receives a residence permit”.

Germany has also formed laws to protect pension contributions and facilitate access to healthcare and benefits for British nationals, “although conditions will apply,” added Bulloch.

In the message from the Embassy, Bulloch highlighted some practical advice for Britons.

– He said British nationals should make sure they are registered in Germany (through the Anmeldung process that everyone living in Germany must complete).

– They should apply for a residence permit from their local Ausländerbehörde or at least find out the process by contacting the immigration office where they live.

– Finally he recommended that Brits change their driving licence for a German licence and get any professional qualifications recognized before the UK leaves the EU.

READ ALSO: How Brits in Germany should make the most of the Brexit delay

Boris Johnson invited to Germany

It came after new PM Johnson held talks over the phone on Friday with German Chancellor Angela Merkel regarding Brexit and bilateral relations.

Merkel invited Johnson to visit Berlin soon and wished him luck in his new job, the spokeswoman for the Chancellor said.

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BREXIT

OPINION: Pre-Brexit Brits in Europe should be given EU long-term residency

The EU has drawn up plans to make it easier for non-EU citizens to gain longterm EU residency so they can move more easily around the bloc, but Italy-based citizens' rights campaigner Clarissa Killwick says Brits who moved to the EU before Brexit are already losing out.

Published: 8 December 2023 14:34 CET
OPINION: Pre-Brexit Brits in Europe should be given EU long-term residency

With all the talk about the EU long-term residency permit and the proposed improvements there is no mention that UK citizens who are Withdrawal Agreement “beneficiaries” are currently being left out in the cold.

The European Commission has stated that we can hold multiple statuses including the EU long-term permit (Under a little-known EU law, third-country nationals can in theory acquire EU-wide long-term resident status if they have lived ‘legally’ in an EU country for at least five years) but in reality it is just not happening.

This effectively leaves Brits locked into their host countries while other third country nationals can enjoy some mobility rights. As yet, in Italy, it is literally a question of the computer saying no if someone tries to apply.

The lack of access to the EU long-term permit to pre-Brexit Brits is an EU-wide issue and has been flagged up to the European Commission but progress is very slow.

READ ALSO: EU government settle on rules for how non-EU citizens could move around Europe

My guess is that few UK nationals who already have permanent residency status under the Withdrawal Agreement are even aware of the extra mobility rights they could have with the EU long-term residency permit – or do not even realise they are two different things.

Perhaps there won’t be very large numbers clamouring for it but it is nothing short of discrimination not to make it accessible to British people who’ve built their lives in the EU.

They may have lost their status as EU citizens but nothing has changed concerning the contributions they make, both economically and socially.

An example of how Withdrawal Agreement Brits in Italy are losing out

My son, who has lived almost his whole life here, wanted to study in the Netherlands to improve his employment prospects.

Dutch universities grant home fees rather than international fees to holders of an EU long-term permit. The difference in fees for a Master’s, for example, is an eye-watering €18,000. He went through the application process, collecting the requisite documents, making the payments and waited many months for an appointment at the “questura”, (local immigration office).

On the day, it took some persuading before they agreed he should be able to apply but then the whole thing was stymied because the national computer system would not accept a UK national. I am in no doubt, incidentally, that had he been successful he would have had to hand in his WA  “carta di soggiorno”.

This was back in February 2022 and nothing has budged since then. In the meantime, it is a question of pay up or give up for any students in the same boat as my son. There is, in fact, a very high take up of the EU long-term permit in Italy so my son’s non-EU contemporaries do not face this barrier.

Long-term permit: The EU’s plan to make freedom of movement easier for non- EU nationals 

Completing his studies was stalled by a year until finally his Italian citizenship came through after waiting over 5 years.  I also meet working adults in Italy with the EU long-term permit who use it for work purposes, such as in Belgium and Germany, and for family reunification.  

Withdrawal agreement card should double up as EU long-term residency permit

A statement that Withdrawal Agreement beneficiaries should be able to hold multiple statuses is not that easy to find. You have to scroll quite far down the page on the European Commission’s website to find a link to an explanatory document. It has been languishing there since March 2022 but so far not proved very useful.

It has been pointed out to the Commission that the document needs to be multilingual not just in English and “branded” as an official communication from the Commission so it can be used as a stand-alone. But having an official document you can wave at the immigration authorities is going to get you nowhere if Member State governments haven’t acknowledged that WA beneficiaries can hold multiple statuses and issue clear guidance and make sure systems are modified accordingly.

I can appreciate this is no mean feat in countries where they do not usually allow multiple statuses or, even if they do, issue more than one residency card. Of course, other statuses we should be able to hold are not confined to EU long-term residency, they should include the EU Blue Card, dual nationality, family member of an EU citizen…

Personally, I do think people should be up in arms about this. The UK and EU negotiated an agreement which not only removed our freedom of movement as EU citizens, it also failed to automatically give us equal mobility rights to other third country nationals. We are now neither one thing nor the other.

It would seem the only favour the Withdrawal Agreement did us was we didn’t have to go out and come back in again! Brits who follow us, fortunate enough to get a visa, may well pip us at the post being able to apply for EU long-term residency as clearly defined non-EU citizens.

I have been bringing this issue to the attention of the embassy in Rome, FCDO and the European Commission for three years now. I hope we will see some movement soon.

Finally, there should be no dragging of heels assuming we will all take citizenship of our host countries. Actually, we shouldn’t have to, my son was fortunate, even though it took a long time. Others may not meet the requirements or wish to give up their UK citizenship in countries which do not permit dual nationality.  

Bureaucratic challenges may seem almost insurmountable but why not simply allow our Withdrawal Agreement permanent card to double up as the EU long-term residency permit.

Clarissa Killwick,

Since 2016, Clarissa has been a citizens’ rights campaigner and advocate with the pan-European group, Brexpats – Hear Our Voice.
She is co-founder and co-admin of the FB group in Italy, Beyond Brexit – UK citizens in Italy.

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