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Carte de séjour: France launches website for British citizens to apply for residency

The new French government website that allows British people to apply online for residency has launched. Here's what we know about it.

Published: 9 October 2019 18:10 CEST
Carte de séjour: France launches website for British citizens to apply for residency
You could apply online for residency in France. Photo: fbxx/Depositphotos

UPDATE: This was the site for use in a no-deal Brexit. There is now a different system in place, click here for the latest information.

 

The French government on Wednesday launched its new online portal that allows British citizens who are already living in France to begin the process of applying for their residency status.

The site allows British people to apply online for the residency papers they will need once Britain leaves the EU, and is only available to people are are already legally resident in France.

Launched with little fanfare, the site is now live on the French government portal here.

READ ALSO France's new carte de séjour site – how does it work and what do I need?

The website was launched as part of France's preparations for a no-deal Brexit. The Local understands the website is in a test phase and changes may be made if problems are reported.

The opening page of the platform, which is in both English and French, contains a message that explains what Britons need to do and presumes Britain's exit date from the EU will be October 31st and they it will be a no-deal Brexit. It makes no mention of what happens if there is a Brexit extension.

“Having a residence permit will be mandatory as of October 31st, 2020 for all people over the age of 18. Until October 31st, 2020, your rights in terms of residency, employment as well as all of your social rights will continue,” it reads.

“You will have a six-month period as of the United Kingdom’s withdrawal date (i.e. until 04/30/2020) in order to request a residence permit.”

Under a no-deal Brexit France will give British citizens a year to obtain a residency permit but they must apply within six months.

Applicants are instructed they need to scan and upload a copy of their passport as well as several documents and then they will receive a confirmation email.

They will then be sent an email to make an appointment at their local prefecture to arrange “fingerprinting, photo and proof of fee payment”. The residence permit will then be sent out to home addresses in France.

READ ALSO LATEST The ultimate no-deal checklist for Britons in France

The Local understands that the British Embassy, who have been working closely with the Interior Minister on issues around residency, were taken aback by Wednesday's launch.

 
A spokesperson for the embassy in Paris told The Local on Wednesday that officials were working with their French counterparts at the Interior Ministry to help prepare the best guidance for how Brits in France can use the online platform.
 
“We urge people not to panic because there will still be six months after Brexit to apply for a residency permit,” the spokesman told The Local.
 
In the case of a no-deal Brexit, British people will have a grace period of a year, but must get their applications in within six months. If there is a deal there will be a transition period that lasts until December 2020.
 
Citizens rights groups in France were also left confused by the sudden launch.
 
Justine Wallington from Remain in France Together (RIFT) said: “Frankly, I think it's premature. I'm not entirely sure what purpose it serves to release it already when we don't yet know if there will be a deal or not.
 
“There could also be an extension to the Brexit deadline. We have approached the embassy and requested clarification.”
 
The website was announced last month by French prime minister Edouard Philippe and is intended to take some of the pressure off the local préfectures who until earlier this year had been processing residency applications from British people.
 
Many had become completely swamped with applications as it is estimated that there are more than 150,000 British people living in France, the vast majority of whom do not have a settled residential status.
 
READ ALSO 
 
While the initial application will be made online under the new system, each application will still be passed on to local authorities where the applicant lives for it to be evaluated.

People who have been living here for more than five years and already have a carte de séjour permenant can simply swap it for the new card, everyone else – including people who have no card and people who have the short-term 5-year card – has to make a completely new application using this site.

“The residence permits obtained before the United Kingdom’s withdrawal date from the EU will remain valid for one year. They will need to be exchanged during this period, including permanent residence permits,” the website says.

Part of the confusion around the site is what exactly people will be applying for, as there are different residency deals depending on whether Britain leaves the EU with or without a deal.

There are also fears that the sheer number of people trying to access the site will lead to it crashing.

But the most important thing to remember is that there is no tearing hurry and no need to panic if all your documents are not to hand right this second.

If Britain leaves the EU with no deal then Brits get a one-year grace period to sort out their residency status – although applications must be made within six months of Brexit day. If the UK leaves with a deal there will be a transition period that will last until at least December 2020.

So although it's good to get things ready, there really is no need to panic.

If you have used the site, please share your experiences here.

 

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EES PASSPORT CHECKS

How will the new app for Europe’s EES border system work?

With Europe set to introduce its new Entry/Exit biometric border system (EES) in the autumn there has been much talk about the importance of a new app designed to help avoid delays. But how will it work and when will it be ready?

Published: 7 May 2024 10:29 CEST
How will the new app for Europe's EES border system work?

When it comes into force the EU’s new digital border system known as EES will register the millions of annual entries and exits of non-EU citizens travelling to the EU/Schengen area, which will cover 29 European countries.

Under the EU Entry/Exit System (EES), non-EU residents who do not require a visa will have to register their biometric data in a database that will also capture each time they cross an external Schengen border.

Passports will no longer be manually stamped, but will be scanned. However, biometric data such as fingerprints and facial images will have to be registered in front of a guard when the non-EU traveller first crosses in to the EU/Schengen area.

Naturally there are concerns the extra time needed for this initial registration will cause long queues and tailbacks at the border.

To help alleviate those likely queues and prevent the subsequent frustration felt by travellers the EU is developing a new smartphone app.

READ ALSO: What will the EES passport system mean for foreigners living in Europe?

The importance of having a working app was summed up by Uku Särekanno, Deputy Executive Director of the EU border agency Frontex in a recent interview.

“Initially, the challenge with the EES will come down to the fact that travellers arriving in Europe will have to have their biographic and biometric data registered in the system – border guards will have to register four of their fingerprints and their facial image. This process will take time, and every second really matters at border crossing points – nobody wants to be stuck in a lengthy queue after a long trip.”

But there is confusion around what the app will actually be able to do, if it will help avoid delays and importantly when will it be available?

So here’s what we know so far.

Who is developing the app?

The EU border agency Frontex is currently developing the app. More precisely, Frontex is developing the back-end part of the app, which will be made available to Schengen countries.

“Frontex is currently developing a prototype of an app that will help speed up this process and allow travellers to share some of the information in advance. This is something we are working on to support the member states, although there is no legal requirement for us to do so,” Uku Särekanno said in the interview.

Will the 29 EES countries be forced to use the app?

No, it is understood that Frontex will make the app available on a voluntary basis. Each government will then decide if, when and where to use it, and develop the front-end part based on its own needs.

This point emerged at a meeting of the House of Commons European scrutiny committee, which is carrying out an inquiry on how EES will impact the UK.

What data will be registered via the app?

The Local asked the European Commission about this. A spokesperson however, said the Commission was not “in a position to disclose further information at this stage” but that travellers’ personal data “will be processed in compliance with the high data security and data protection standards set by EU legislation.”

According to the blog by Matthias Monroy, editor of the German civil rights journal Bürgerrechte & Polizei/CILIP the Frontex app will collect passengers’ name, date of birth, passport number, planned destination and length of stay, reason for travelling, the amount of cash they carry, the availability of a credit card and of a travel health insurance. The app could also allow to take facial images. It will then generate a QR code that travellers can present at border control.

This, however, does not change the fact that fingerprints and facial images will have to be registered in front of a guard at the first crossing into the Schengen area.

So given the need to register finger prints and facial images with a border guard, the question is how and if the app will help avoid those border queues?

When is the app going to be available?

The answer to perhaps the most important question is still unclear.

The Commissions spokesperson told The Local that the app “will be made available for Schengen countries as from the Entry/Exit System start of operations.” The planned launch date is currently October 6th, but there have been several delays in the past and may be another one.

The UK parliamentary committee heard that the prototype of the app should have been ready for EU member states in spring. Guy Opperman, Under-Secretary of State at the UK Department for Transport, said the app will not be available for testing until August “at best” and that the app will not be ready in time for October. The committee previously stated that the app might even be delayed until summer 2025.

Frontex’s Särekanno said in his interview: “Our aim is to have it ready by the end of the summer, so it can then be gradually integrated into national systems starting from early autumn”.

READ ALSO: How do the EES passport checks affect the 90-day rule?

Can the system be launched if the app is not ready?

Yes. The European Commission told The Local that “the availability of the mobile application is not a condition for the Entry/Exit System entry into operation or functioning of the system. The app is only a tool for pre-registration of certain types of data and the system can operate without this pre-registration.”

In addition, “the integration of this app at national level is to be decided by each Schengen country on a voluntary basis – as there is no legal obligation to make use of the app.”

And the UK’s transport under secretary Guy Opperman sounded a note of caution saying the app “is not going to be a panacea to fix all problems”.

When the app will be in use, will it be mandatory for travellers?

There is no indication that the app will become mandatory for those non-EU travellers who need to register for EES. But there will probably be advantages in using it, such as getting access to faster lanes.

As a reminder, non-EU citizens who are resident in the EU are excluded from the EES, as are those with dual nationality for a country using EES. Irish nationals are also exempt even though Ireland will not be using EES because it is not in the Schengen area.

Has the app been tested anywhere yet?

Frontex says the prototype of the app will be tested at Stockholm’s Arlanda Airport, in Sweden. Matthias Monroy’s website said it was tested last year at Munich Airport in Germany, as well as in Bulgaria and Gibraltar.

According to the German Federal Police, the blog reports, passengers were satisfied and felt “prepared for border control”.

This article is published in cooperation with Europe Street News.

 
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