As of 1st January 2021 the United Kingdom was no longer a member of the European Union.  The transition period to negotiate future arrangements between EU and the UK ended on 31st December 2020, with a deal of sorts finally agreed at the last minute.

As of the end of the transition period, privileges enjoyed under EU freedom of movement came to an end.  British UK Nationals and their non-EU family members will be subject to all Spanish immigration rules for third-country (non-EU) nationals.

However, UK nationals and their family members who took up residency in Spain and other EU Member State before the end of the transition period in accordance with EU free movement law, will maintain their free movements rights after 31st December 2020.

Christmas Eve marked the moment the UK finally reached a Brexit agreement with the EU, full details of which have now been published.  The so called ‘Free Trade Agreement: a new economic and social partnership with the United Kingdom’, is of most interest to UK nationals living in Spain and other EU countries, those planning to and those with other interests such as business or a holiday home.

The agreement covers not just trade in goods and services, but also a broad range of other areas such as, tax transparency, air and road transport, energy and sustainability, fisheries, data protection, and social security coordination.

Notable points for UK nationals in Spain or other EU countries in the agreement are that:

We wrote an article recently detailing that many British nationals living in Spain and other EU countries, have received letters from their UK banks telling them that their accounts will be closed at the end of 2020.  This due to no Brexit trade deal having been agreed.  

That article explained the impact of no Brexit trade deal on financial services providers in the UK.  After 31st December 2020, these service providers will not legally be able to carry on providing services to their expat clients who reside in Spain or other EU countries.

The Brexit transition period ends at the end of the year, and with it the financial services licence EU ‘passporting’ rights which allow UK firms to provide financial services in EU countries. 

As a result many providers, including Financial Advisers, are withdrawing their services as advisers where their client is a UK national living in the EU.  It is only a small minority of financial service providers that have taken the necessary steps to establish themselves in the EU so they can continue providing their services. 

It is therefore quite likely that from 2021, most expats living in Spain or other EU countries will not be able to receive advice or services from their UK Financial Adviser.  Clients and advisers alike who are affected by this, should be acting now to make alternative financial arrangements. 

The UK press and expat papers in Spain have all carried articles warning that thousands of Brits living in the EU will have their UK bank accounts closed by the end of the year.

In the UK the The Daily Mail, The Guardian, The Times and The Daily Telegraph to name a few, have all detailed how banks including Lloyds, Barclays and even the Queen’s bankers Coutts, will be closing expat accounts and withdrawing services.  The reason for this is the UK’s failure to agree a post-Brexit trade deal to allow cross border Financial Services to continue.

Banks are having to make decisions as to which EU countries to pull out of and which to continue operating in.

The bank, which is Britain’s biggest banking group, started writing to its customers living in these countries since August, telling them that their UK bank accounts would be shut on December 31.

Barclays also confirmed that its banking and credit-card customers living in the EU had started receiving letters.

Why Are UK Banks Closing Accounts & Withdrawing Services for Brits Living in the EU?

Spain does not have a system to issue personalised licence plates.  It does however have a system to identify and recognise Classic Cars.  Cars that qualify can achieve the status of being certified as a ‘historical vehicle’.  Classic Cars with this status can be registered with historical licence plates, so the owner can enjoy the kudos of having their beloved motor officially recognised and marked as a Classic Car.

Getting ‘historical vehicle’ status for a Classic Car, also brings with the added perks of cheaper insurance, longer gaps between ITV´s and road tax exemption.

The starting qualifying criteria is the age of the car, the qualifying age being 30 years.  The age for a Classic Car in Spain used to be 25 years, however was changed to 30 years in May 2018.  This change was not retrospective.  Classic Cars that already had historical number plates kept them.

Update – Spanish Residency for British UK Nationals During the Transition Period

The article below was written the UK left the EU under the withdrawal agreement in January 2020.

Under the withdrawal agreement, British Nationals who hold a residency certificate have their rights as an EU citizen secured.  On July 6th 2020, the residency application procedure for British UK nationals, switched for the EU residency certificate to the withdrawal agreement TIE ‘tarjeta de indentidad de extranjeros’. Both the certificate and the new TIE give the holder equal status in terms of protected EU rights under the withdrawal agreement.

Read more about Spanish Residency for British UK Nationals and the Transition Period

Article written 13th April 2019

Earlier this year, the Spanish Government published its ‘No Deal Brexit’ Contingency Plan. The Contingency Plan was approved by Royal Decree 1st March, and affirms that the Spanish residency certificate will be needed to confirm legal residence in Spain. The plan makes provision for those residing in Spain who’ve not obtained their Spanish residency EU registration certificate before Brexit, to obtain residency documentation. However, it makes clear that British nationals in this situation will be treated differently to to those who have obtained their certificate BEFORE the UK leaves the EU.

The TIE, Tarjeta de Indentidad de Extranjero, is the Spanish identification card for citizens from third countries (non-EU) who reside in Spain.  Since July 2020 British UK nationals moving to Spain have also had to apply for this card, as the UK is no longer in the EU.

If you already have a Spanish residency certificate, you do not have to apply for the TIE, but you can voluntarily exchange your certificate for the card.

Both the Spanish and UK Government websites and their Consulate pages confirm that the green residency certificate, A4 and credit card sized, remain valid for UK nationals and prove the holders residency and retained rights under the withdrawal agreement, having settled in Spain before the UK left the EU.  However considering the issues some have encountered during the recent Covid19 travel restrictions, e.g. multiple incidences of authorities and airlines not understanding the rules and denying certificate holders entry to Spain, it is advisable to get the TIE.

Aside from this the card is a full bio-metric national ID card, therefore so much more useful than the paper certificate.  The card also has the words ARTICULO 50 TUE, a reference to note that the holder was resident in Spain before the end of the transition period and has retained rights.

‘Semana Blanca’ and ‘dia de Andalucia’ (white week and Andalusia day), are a school holiday week in Málaga and a regional holiday in Andalucia.

Semana Blanca

During ‘Semana Blanca’ the majority of the schools are closed for a week to ‘catch up’ with the number of  the number of school days off for public holidays, compared to the rest of Spain.

Every province or region in Spain has their own traditions and festivities for which schools are closed.  Some places have a few less public holidays than others, so to be fair to students in Málaga, they give extra time off in ‘la Semana Blanca’ to balance things out.

Why is it called Semana Blanca?

Advice on the Gov.UK points out that ‘rules for driving, passports, EHIC cards, pet travel and more may change from 1 January 2021’.  This is because on that date, as it stands the transition period ends and the UK will be out of the EU without a deal have been agreed.  Even if a deal is a agreed things may well be different for British Nationals driving in Spain post brexit.

This is a summary of some key points for British UK nationals relating to driving in Spain, after the transition period ends.

Driving Licences

An international driving permit (IDP) to drive with a UK licence.  If you’re moving to Spain, you won’t need an IDP, but you will need to exchange your licence for a Spanish one.  At the moment, this is a straight forward swap.  When the transition period ends, British Nationals living in Spain who haven’t already swapped their UK licence, may have to take a full driving test to get a Spanish driving licence.

Read more about exchanging a UK driving licence

Insurance

UK motor insurance currently provides as a minimum, third party cover to drive your vehicle as a tourist in EU countries.  If you are moving to Spain and taking a vehicle, you should check the cover they are able to provide, and whether a UK policy will still be valid after the end of the transition period.  In the even of there being no deal, UK financial service providers including inserance companies, will not be allowed to provide service to people residing in Spain, unless they have set up in the EU.

Find insurance in Spain

Registering a UK Vehicle

UK vehicles are currently treated the same as vehicles from other EU countries when it comes to registering them in Spain.

If no deal is agreed stating otherwise, when the transition period ends, UK cars brought to Spain will be treated as non-EU imports.  This means they will need to go through customs.

They will attract a 10% customs duty plus customs and handling fees ranging from €200 – €300 on top of the usual registration costs.

Have a look at our services for registering a UK car onto Spanish number plates

If you have questions about driving in Spain post brexit, the Gov.UK website has a section dedicated to this and many other Brexit related topics.

Read the full UK Government guidance relating to driving in Spain

[iframely]https://www.gov.uk/driving-abroad[/iframely]

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Countdown to Brexit

The extension of article 50 has put the clock back on Brexit.  This is good news for Brits in Spain, especially those who haven’t yet managed to get their Spanish residency paperwork sorted out.  In addition to time being bought, the chance of a no deal Brexit has also reduced considerably.  MP’s voted in March, (albeit narrowly), to reject a no deal Brexit under any circumstances.

Deal or no deal Brexit what difference does it make?

Whilst a no deal Brexit seems to be off the cards at least for now, it could still happen.  So if you are a UK national living in Spain,it’s still important to understand how you may be affected in this Brexit scenario.

If the UK eventually departs under the agreed Brexit deal, even though it may no be the best deal, at least we can expect that the future outside of the EU, will include some continuation of current rights afforded to UK citizens in the EU, and vice versa.  There will also be the ‘transitional period’, during which time the agreement will be worked into place. For the UK and it’s citizens, nothing will change during this time.  The UK will remain ‘in the EU’ during this transitional period, before finally leaving.

When it comes to a no deal, or hard Brexit, the United Kingdom will cease to be part of the EU and become a 3rd country.  Unless the member state they reside in has legislated otherwise, UK citizens will overnight lose their EU rights.  This could have profound implications for many living in the EU.

EU Freedoms

The founding principles of the EU are the free movement of goods, services, labour and capital.  These principles allow residents in member states freedom to live, work, and travel anywhere in the EU, and provide other entitlements as EU citizens.

In a no deal Brexit scenario, UK nationals will be restricted to visits of 90 days to EU countries.  There will be no automatic right to work and reside.  EU states will be able to impose 3rd country tariffs on goods being imported, and set special tax rates.

How will a no deal Brexit impact on UK citizens in Spain?

In the event that the UK becomes a 3rd country at Brexit, numerous, freedoms, rights and entitlements currently taken for granted, will disappear.

There was more good news for Brits in Spain earlier this year.   The Spanish Government published it’s ‘No Deal Brexit’ Contingency Plan.  The Contingency Plan confirms that the the Spanish EU registration document, (residency certificate), can be used by Brits to confirm legal residence in Spain, and thus entitlement to preservation of existing EU citizen rights.  The plan also makes provision for those residing in Spain who’ve not obtained their residency certificate before Brexit, to obtain residency documentation.

Read more about Brexit and Spanish Residency for British Nationals.

Is there anything I need to do?

Deal or no deal, things will change either way, just more so in the event of a no deal Brexit.  British nationals who plan to move to Spain, or that already live here and want to continue doing so, should do everything possible to show that they are settled in Spain before Brexit.

The UK Government brought in a process for EU citizens in the UK to get certification of their ‘settled status’. They also indicated that some EU citizens who are unable to prove their settled status, may face deportation.

Spain has defined it’s process for UK nationals to prove their ‘settled status.  Those without a residency certificate, will not be ‘authorised to reside in Spain’.  This will not be an immediate issue, as the no deal Brexit legislation passed by the Spanish Government, provides a grace period for Brits who haven’t have got their ‘settled status’ to do so.  This legislation however, also makes clear, that British nationals ‘unsettled’ before Brexit, i.e. without a residency certificate, will be treated differently to to those who obtained their certificate BEFORE the UK leaves the EU.

For Brits living in Spain or planning to do so, the answer to this question is simple.  If you haven’t already done so, get your residency certificate as soon as possible.

Need help getting your residency certificate?

Spanish Residency – Made Easy!

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