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Briton denied entry to Spain over missing passport stamp

A UK national whose passport was not stamped by Spanish border officials has been denied entry when attempting to return to the country, highlighting the new issue of passport stamps for Brits travelling to the Schengen Area post-Brexit.  

people cross border between gibraltar and spain
A UK national was denied entry to Spain at the border with Gibraltar due to a missing passport stamp from her previous visit to the Spanish territory. File Photo: Cristina Quicler/AFP

Linda, a British citizen looking to visit her son in Spain, reached out to The Local to explain how she had recently been prevented from entering Spain from Gibraltar by border officials who suspected she had exhausted her 90 out of 180 days in Spain and the Schengen Area.

The reason for refusal? Her passport didn’t have a stamp showing that she had indeed left Spain and abided by the new rules for non-resident British visitors in Spain since Brexit came into force in 2021.  

“I was denied entry to Spain on September 26th due to my passport not being stamped on exit on a previous one-week visit to Spain which started on June 4th,” Linda, who is 72, told The Local.

“The guards initially stamped my passport to enter, then they noticed I had no exit stamp from that one-week visit in June, thereby classing me as an overstayer and subsequently marked the entry stamp with the letter F and two lines.

“Even though I have proof of returning to the UK via banking activity as well as the test and trace COVID app, the border guards would not accept or look at any proof nor let me speak to anyone that could help.

“My son, who speaks Spanish, tried to explain that I had other proof of returning to the UK but the guards would not accept or even consider looking at it; they just kept insisting that I had no stamp, that I had overstayed and would be arrested as illegal.”

Linda was attempting to travel over to Spain with her daughter, who was allowed into Spain as she hadn’t been on the previous June visit. Her mother on the other hand had to return to Gibraltar and spend two nights there before flying back to the UK.

As non-EU nationals, Britons who aren’t residents in Spain or another EU/EEA nation can spend a maximum of 90 out of 180 days in the Schengen Area. 

A Spanish civil guard (C) checks passengers as they pass the security control at Barcelona's El Prat airport on August 11, 2017. - Spain today called in police to help with security checks at Barcelona's busy airport as a strike continues at the peak of the holiday season, causing long queues and safety concerns. (Photo by Josep LAGO / AFP)
Not all border officials and airport staff fully understand the rules that now apply to Britons regarding passport stamps. Photo: Josep Lago/AFP

Passport stamps reflecting the date of entry and exit are a way for border officials to calculate that Brits and other non-EU nationals who aren’t Spanish residents haven’t overstayed, but the changing status of UK nationals means not all border officials and airport staff fully understand the new rules yet.

This is of particular concern for non-resident Britons who visit Spain regularly to spend time in their second homes or for an extended holiday, as they have to pay special attention that border officials DO stamp their passports when they fly between Spain and the UK, inbound and outbound.

READ ALSO: Passport stamps or scan? What foreigners at Spain’s borders should expect

UK residents in Spain are also getting their passports stamped by Spanish officials even though they should not be, as Spain’s Ministry of Interior confirmed via the UK Embassy back in July, but even if they do get only one stamp this should have no impact on their stays in Spain if they have the correct residency documentation.

Almost a month since the incident, the situation is still not resolved for Linda.

“It would seem there is no solution, the Spanish consulate in the UK will only accept my original boarding cards as proof of exit, and as flights were booked online I obviously don’t have them,” she told The Local.

“They will not accept screenshots or copies of any other proof I have. 

“I have contacted my MP but was just directed back to the consulate thereby going round in circles.”

As the EU states, the 180-day reference period is not fixed, it is a moving window, based on the approach of looking backwards.

But if you exhaust the 90 days in 180 day-period all in one go, you will have to spend 90 days outside of the Schengen Area. These rules have been in place long before Brexit.

READ ALSO:

As for the penalties or punishments for overstaying, Spain’s immigration bill has different fines ranging from €500 to €100,000 depending on the severity of the violation, although whether these are imposed in practice – along with temporary bans from visiting Spain as suggested by some sources – isn’t clear.  

A spokesman for Spain’s Interior Ministry told The Local in March that British nationals who overstay and do not apply for residency in Spain will be “advised of the situation”. 

“We will act with proportionality,” he said.

READ ALSO: Can non-resident Brits in Spain get an extension on the 90-day rule and what happens if they overstay?

Linda’s concerns are that she still doesn’t have a stamp in her passport that proves when she actually left Spain in the first place. 

“It’s frustrating as I feel I’m being held responsible for something I had no jurisdiction over, in other words the guard’s failure to stamp my passport,” she told The Local Spain. 

“As I still have no exit stamp, I’m worried I will be denied entry again on further visits.

“My main concern is that as I cannot prove exit, I will be prevented from visiting my son indefinitely which is why I need to find any way I can resolve this”.

Spain’s Interior Ministry has since told The Local that their department cannot comment on individual cases but stressed that Spanish border officials were aware of the current legislation relating to British nationals, resident and non-resident.

READ ALSO: Brits rejected for residency in Spain given 15 days to leave country

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TRAVEL NEWS

Which flights will be affected by Spain’s airport strikes over Easter?

If you've got a flight booked to or from Valencia or Madrid-Barajas airport over Easter, industrial action by staff could delay your journey or even lead to it being cancelled.

Which flights will be affected by Spain's airport strikes over Easter?

Airport staff in Valencia and Madrid are going on strike over key Easter dates, meaning that as many as a thousand flights could be delayed or cancelled during one of the busiest travel periods of the year.

Semana Santa celebrations have already been disrupted by rain this year, causing the cancellation of processions across the country, but travel during the busy Easter period is also set to be affected by strike action at two of Spain’s major airports.

At Valencia Manises airport, one of the busiest airports in Spain which welcomed almost 10 million passengers in 2023, flights could be affected over the entire Easter weekend (Thursday March 28th-Monday April 1st inclusive) because workers will walk out between 11am-13am on each day.

At Madrid-Barajas airport, the UGT union has called a strike for Wednesday 27th and Friday 29th March between 7am-12pm.

READ ALSO: Spain’s Valencia set for airport strike over Easter holidays

The walkout at Valencia begins today, March 28th. According to the live departures board provided by Aena, Spain’s national airport operator, which you can follow here, as of 9.30am flights are leaving the airport with minor delays of up to 40 minutes, though this is before the strike officially begins at 11am.

Aena live departures for Madrid-Barajas show that some flights have left with delays of up to 45 minutes this morning, though it is worth noting that staff are not officially on strike there today (walkouts in Madrid are Wednesday 27th and Friday 29th March between 7am-12pm) which could suggest a knock-on effect from yesterday’s strike action.

The industrial action comes during not only during Easter celebrations but operación salida, an intensely busy travel period during which millions of Spaniards travel home or go on holiday for Semana Santa.

READ ALSO: Strike action at Spanish airports set to disrupt Easter travel

Staff at Madrid-Barajas are striking for better pay and a new collective bargaining agreement, arguing their salaries have declined in real terms due to inflation, and employees at Valencia Manises are protesting against long working hours and a lack of staff, plus a dispute with regards to overtime pay.

Spanish media reports suggest that up to 1000 flights could be cancelled as a result of the walkouts. On Wednesday 27th, there was also ‘chaos’ at Palma de Mallorca airport, according to Spanish media, with long queues at security controls meaning it took many passengers an hour to get to their departure gate.

Which flights will be affected by Spain’s airport strikes over Easter?

Knowing exactly which flights could be affected, however, isn’t entirely clear. There seems to be certain airlines and routes more likely to be affected than others.

Madrid-Barajas

It is still unclear exactly which flights could be affected at Madrid-Barajas, so it is advisable to check with your airline. You can check the airport schedule on the Aena website here.

On Wednesday 27th March, the day the strike began in Madrid, both short and long-haul flights were delayed or cancelled.

Departure records from Flight Stats show that long-haul flights to the United States were cancelled throughout the day, and short-haul flights around Europe and to other Spanish cities were running with delays of up to 2 hours. Many also arrived on schedule, however.

Valencia Manises

As the strike action begins in Valencia on Thursday morning, reports suggest that several dozen flights could be cancelled, delayed or rescheduled. If you are uncertain about your flight, check with your airline.

On Thursday 28th, flights that could be affected by the stoppage include:

  • Ryanair flights connecting Valencia with Rome, Milan Bologna, Breslavia and Sofia 
  • United and Lufthansa flights connecting Valencia with Frankfurt and Munich
  • Easyjet and British Airways flights between Valencia and London
  • Turkish Airlines flights between Valencia and Istanbul
  • Air Europa flights between Valencia and Palma de Mallorca
  • Swiss flights connecting Valencia to Zurich
  • Volotea flights between Valencia and A Coruña
  • Eurowings’ Valencia-Stuttgart flights

On Friday 29th, flights that could be cancelled are:

  • Ryanair to Milan, Treviso, Trieste, Dublin, Marrakech and Palma de Mallorca
  • SAP and Tap Portugal flights between Valencia and Lisbon
  • United to Frankfurt
  • Lufthansa to Frankfurt, Munich
  • Austrian to Vienna
  • Air Nostrum to Ibiza
  • Delta to París Charles de Gaulle
  • Air France to París Charles de Gaulle
  • Air Europa to Palma de Mallorca
  • Easyjet to London
  • British Airways to London
  • Brussels Airlines to Brussels
  • Iberia to Tenerife North
  • Tap Portugal to Lisbon
  • Turkish Airlines to Istanbul
  • Swiss to Zúrich
  • Volotea to A Coruña, San Sebastián
  • Vueling to Tenerife North
  • Eurowings to Stuttgart

There is no further information yet about which flights could be affected on Saturday 30th, Sunday 31st and Monday April 1st.

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