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BREXIT

Should British-Swedish dual citizens still apply for post-Brexit residence status?

December 31st is the last day to apply for post-Brexit residence status in Sweden, and in some cases it may be worth applying even if you hold Swedish citizenship.

Published: 9 September 2021 16:03 CEST
Updated: 17 December 2021 10:50 CET
Should British-Swedish dual citizens still apply for post-Brexit residence status?
The main difference between residence status and citizenship relates to which family members can join you. Photo: Simon Paulin/imagebank.sweden.se

British citizens are eligible for citizenship in Sweden if they have had legal residence in the country for at least five years (or three, in certain circumstances where they have lived with a Swedish partner) and meet the requirement of having “conducted themselves well”, in other words not committed serious crimes or racked up significant debt.

Since the UK voted to leave the EU, there has been a surge in the number of Brits applying for citizenship in Sweden.

The two statuses are different. Swedish citizenship grants you certain additional rights such as being able to vote in elections and work for the army or police, and it can never be revoked, meaning you retain the right to live and work in Sweden (and other EU countries) even if you leave Sweden.

The new post-Brexit permanent residence status, despite the name, can be revoked if you leave Sweden for more than five consecutive years, or if you are deported or expelled from Sweden (the latter usually only happens in the case of very serious crimes). Permanent residence is specific to Sweden, so Brits with this status will retain the rights they had as an EU citizen to live and work in Sweden, but if they want to move to another EU country, they must follow the procedures for third country nationals, usually involving a work permit.

But even if you are eligible for Swedish citizenship, it may be worth applying for the post-Brexit residence status as well.

Firstly, if you have applied for Swedish citizenship but not yet received a decision, it’s important to apply for the post-Brexit status too. Sweden has long processing times for citizenship applications, and it is difficult to predict how long any individual application will take. Having an in-progress citizenship application is not enough to secure your right to live and work in Sweden after December 31st, 2021.

Secondly, there is one area in which the post-Brexit residence status grants more generous rights than Swedish citizenship, and it’s an area that may affect a lot of foreigners.

“The advantage of residency status is that certain family members of British citizens with residency status have the right to join their British family member in Sweden afterwards (ie after the end of the application period) and can then apply for residency status. In such cases, they have three months to apply from the time they arrived in Sweden,” a press communicator for the Migration Agency confirmed to The Local.

“Family members of people with British-Swedish citizenship, on the other hand, need a residence permit, but British citizens with Swedish citizenship can also apply for residence status and thus make it easier for their family members.”

This right applies to spouses, long-term partners, unmarried children under 21, as well as other close family relations if they can prove financial dependence on their British relative in Sweden. People in this category will be able to move to Sweden even after the end of 2021 and apply for residency status granting them the same rights as their British family member, in other words the right to access Swedish healthcare, live and work in Sweden. More information is available on the agency’s website. This is significantly more lenient than the current process for family members of Swedish citizens, who are required to apply for a residence permit if they wish to join their partner or parent.

The Local asked the Migration Agency if there were any other rights conferred by the post-Brexit residence status that were not conferred by citizenship. We were told: “No, the simpler possibility for family members to join their British family member in Sweden is the advantage of residence status compared to a Swedish citizenship.”

Brits, including British-Swedish dual nationals, now have until the end of December 2021 to apply for the post-Brexit residence status after the agency extended the deadline. The application is free, and applicants simply need to prove they have had right of residence of Sweden before December 31st, 2020 (when the transition period ended).

Member comments

  1. I am confused by this because the migrationsverket e-service asks “For what reasons you have had residence for 5 consecutive years, with the following answers:
    Employee
    Self-employed
    Student
    Person with sufficient means of subsistence
    Family member or guardian of a British citizen in Sweden (I summarise the last 5 categories to this)
    But this excludes all us British citizens that were granted residency because we accompanied a Swedish citizen to Sweden (i.e like me who married a Swede and moved here).
    So I cannot proceed….it probably makes no difference but I was doing it anyway to get all the rights I can! I’ll just satisfy myself with meagre dual citizenship 😋

  2. Could you please write the same article but for Denmark? We need to convince as many dual nationals to apply as possible. I’m also concerned that people applying for citizenship think they don’t need to apply for the new card, leaving them at risk of losing their legal residency after the end of the year.

  3. I’ve read this article half-a-dozen times and still don’t understand how someone with Swedish citizenship that they acquired in addition to their original citizenship can apply for ‘residency status’ when their acquired citizenship automatically gives them the right to residency.

    I can understand the difference in rights regarding the residency of family members joining the British person in Sweden, but still can’t get my head round how a (new) Swedish citizen can also apply for residency status. Surely once you have obtained Swedish citizenship you can’t also apply for Swedish residency status because you already have it through your citizenship. Or am I misunderstanding something here?

    1. Hi Tony,
      I wrote an article answering your question here: https://www.thelocal.se/20211011/reader-question-can-british-swedish-dual-citizens-apply-for-post-brexit-status/
      In short, you can apply, if you also qualify for residency under EU rules, but you don’t have to. In this case you would just apply as usual and you can state in the “other information” section of your application that you’re a dual citizen. The only benefit is the right for other family members (such as parents or children over 21) to be able to move to you or visit visa-free.
      Let me know if you have any other questions,
      Becky

  4. I dont want to repeat the above questions, but..
    I have dual citizenship, UK and Swedish. I have been living and working in Sweden for 9 years. I recieved my Swedish citizenship 2 years ago.

    Should I apply for residency status? I dont want to loose any rights but do not want to repeat of the stress it took to get my citizenship.

    I have started the e application (Swedish Migration Agency) for residence status and got to a message “You are filling in an application for residence status as a Swedish citizen. In order to proceed with your case, we need to register your personal data in the aliens database”.

    This made me stop and think. If I dont need it do I need to continue?

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TRAVEL NEWS

EES: Could the launch of Europe’s new border system be delayed again?

After being postponed several times already Europe's new biometric Entry/Exit border system (EES) is set to be rolled out in October, but with fears of lengthy queues, problems with a new app and demands for more time, could it be postponed again?

Published: 26 April 2024 11:50 CEST
EES: Could the launch of Europe's new border system be delayed again?

Could the entry into operation of the EU entry/exit system (EES), the new biometric passport checks for non-EU citizens at the Schengen area’s external borders, be delayed yet again?

Originally planned for May 2022, EES has already been postponed many times.

The current launch date, set for October 2024, was chosen to avoid periods of peak traffic and France in particular had requested to avoid it being launched until after the Paris Olympics this summer.

When asked to confirm the October start date this week a spokesperson for the EU’s Commission told The Local that the “roadmap” for the EES IT system foresees it will be ready for Autumn 2024. But the actual start date, in other words, the day when passengers will have to register, would be confirmed nearer the time.

The spokesperson said: “The exact date will be determined by the European Commission and announced on the EES official website well in time for the start of operations.”

READ ALSO: Your key questions answered about Europe’s new EES passport checks

But the reasons are adding up to suggest an October start date is optimistic, perhaps even unlikely.

In the annual report on the ‘State of Schengen’ published last week, the European Commission spelt out that severe challenges remain if member states are to be ready on time.

“In 2023, efforts to ensure the entry into operation of the Entry-Exit System in the autumn of 2024 were accelerated… While important progress has been made across the Schengen area, some Member States are still falling behind, notably regarding the effective equipment of border crossing points. The Commission calls on all Member States to urgently accelerate preparations to ensure the timely implementation of the system…”

A map in the report shows that preparation is still “in progress” in 13 Schengen area countries, including Germany, Norway and Switzerland. “Outstanding issues” still impact Portugal, Malta and Bulgaria.

The state of play for the preparations for EES across EU and Schengen states. Image: European Commission.

There are also reports that EU heavyweight Germany is trying to persuade Brussels to delay.

Matthias Monroy, editor of the German civil rights journal Bürgerrechte & Polizei/CILIP claimed on his website that “the German government is lobbying in Brussels to postpone the date once again, as otherwise the German tests of the EES cannot be completed in full. Other EU countries are also behind schedule, with only eight of them having reported successful integration.”

Even on a French government website it talks of EES being rolled out some time “between the end of 2024 and 2025” rather than stating October 2024.

And according to recent media reports, French airports have been advised to be ready for November 6th, rather than October. 

READ ALSO: EES and Etias – what are the big upcoming travel changes in Europe?

A planned EU app, believed to be essential to the smooth operation of EES because it would allow non-EU visitors to register in advance of travel will not be ready, Gwendoline Cazenave, Managing Director of Eurostar International, the company operating train services via the Channel Tunnel, has told the BBC. The EU however insists the app does not need to be up and running before EES is introduced.

In the UK, which will be heavily impacted by EES due to the fact it is no longer in the EU and so British travellers are no longer EU citizens, the House of Commons European scrutiny committee is conducting an inquiry on the potential disruption the introduction of the EES will cause at the border.

Several respondents have recently raised the alarm about the possible delays the system could cause, especially at the UK-France border, which is used by millions of passengers each year who head to France and other countries across Europe.

Ashford Borough Council in Kent has warned of the possibility of more than 14 hours queues to reach the Port of Dover, which has already been struggling increased checked after Brexit.

The BBC reported that back in March, a P&O Ferries director said the IT system should be delayed again.

Airlines have also complained about the fact pre-travel EES requirements would make last minute bookings impossible.

The Union des Aéroports Français (UAF), which represents airports in France, has simply said more time is needed.

In other words, it would be little surprise if the roll out was delayed again beyond October 2024.

But the Commission spokesperson told The Local that “the timeline for the entry into operation of the EES took into account all the necessary activities to be performed by all relevant stakeholders to ensure a timely entry into operation. 

“The Commission is working very closely with eu-Lisa [the EU agency in charge of the IT system], the Member States and carriers to ensure that everything is ready for the timely and successful launch of the Entry Exit System.

“The roadmap for the delivery of the new IT architecture foresees that the Entry/Exit system will be ready to enter into operation in Autumn 2024.”

New digital border

The EES is a digital system to register travellers from non-EU countries when they cross a border in or out of the Schengen area, the travel-free area. It will be deployed in 29 countries across Europe including 25 EU states plus Norway, Switzerland, Iceland and Liechtenstein. Ireland and Cyprus are the only EU members who won’t apply the EES system.

It doesn’t apply to non-EU nationals who are legally resident in an EU/Schengen area country or those with dual nationality of an EU /Schengen county. The system was designed to increase security and to ensure that non-EU nationals visiting the Schengen area short-term do not stay more than 90 days in any 180-day period.

Instead of having the passport stamped, travellers will have to scan it at self-service kiosks before crossing the border. However, fingerprints and a photo will have to be registered in front of a guard at the first crossing and there are huge concerns the extra time needed could generate long queues in the UK, where there are juxtaposed border checks with the EU.

Preparations are ongoing throughout Europe and some countries have made good progress.

In France, Getlink, the operator of the Channel Tunnel, has recently reported that new EES infrastructure is finished at its French terminal of Coquelles, which will allow travellers to register their biometric data while travelling.

Eurostar is also installing 49 kiosks in stations for the registration of passengers. But the Union des Aéroports Français (UAF), which represents airports in France, said more time is needed.

Exempted

Meanwhile, the Polish government has urged UK citizens who are beneficiaries of the EU-UK Withdrawal Agreement to get a residence permit “in the context of EES/ETIAS”, even though there was not such an obligation to stay legally in Poland post-Brexit.

“Having such a document is beneficial as it will exempt from future Entry/Exit System (EES) registration when crossing external borders and from the need to obtain an ETIAS travel permit in relation to short-term travel to EU/Schengen countries,” the government page says.

This article as published in collaboration with Europe Street news.

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