Settling down in Spain as British, a “mission impossible” post-Brexit

British citizens do not find it easy to settle in Spain as a result of Britain’s exit from the European Union. Output The United Kingdom of the European Union carry The disappearance of most of their privileges as citizens of societySuch as receiving public health care, coming without a job offer, or moving without demonstrating financial resources to support themselves. Therefore, now reaching our country to live becomes Tedious and complicated task.

This is a question that immigration experts and British societies like Brixbats in Spain, Which includes more than 20,000 UK citizens who live on Spanish soil and who have been “fighting” to avoid the materialization of Brexit over the past four years.

Although it is really true Some people have not yet understood the situationMarbella lawyer and immigration specialist Ricardo Bocanegra tells Efe, and many are upset about the procedures they are now forced to take. They are accustomed to being citizens of the European Union, and they are starting to feel “Foreigners in our country”, Says Marbella’s lawyer, who considers that the real problem is not for those who are actually here, but for those who want to come from now on.

From January 1, Britons contemplating settling in Spain must adhere to provisions General immigration system, its requirements are “very strict”Bocanegra points out, and they will be called upon like any other non-EU citizen. This means that they will have to prove, among other things, that they have a place to stay, Financial resources to support themselves if they don’t work And medical insurance that provides them with health coverage equivalent to that provided by Social Security itself.

Your newly acquired status also affects Everyday issues like drivingSince there is no mutual recognition agreement between the two countries, British people who want to drive a car must have a valid driver’s license in Spain through which they will have to take the necessary tests and pass the exam.

This issue generates great discomfort, especially among those who have lived here since then Before any administration was necessaryRicardo Bocanegra adds that from the announcement of Brexit until the end of the year, a British driver’s license could be exchanged for a Spanish one, but for those who move from now on there would be no choice but to examine themselves.

Change for “worse”

For the youngest “It ended up coming to Spain to find a life like me.”“Brexpats in Spain” treasurer, Sharon Hitchcock, who has lived on the Malaga Costa del Sol for more than thirty years, confirmed with regret for Efe.

When she moved, it was not necessary for her to reach for work or to adopt resources that were “greater than the amount specified annually under the state budget law to generate the right to a non-contributory advantage” in order to do so. “Not to become a burden on Spain’s social assistance”Refer to the website of the Ministry of the Interior; If not, then it is complicated, according to experts.

According to Hitchcock, the situation in which Brexit left them represents a change “for the worse” Back to the 1980s that he found “very sad” He insists that in the current situation, only those with significant financial support will be able to act.

This new situation – with demands that are difficult to bear – Nor is he favored by British retirees The head of this entity, Anne Hernandez, says that a large percentage of those who want to retire in Spain are accustomed until now to settling in the regions of Malaga, Alicante, Mallorca or the Canary Islands.

Old They have pensions and many of them also have some savingsHernandez, who, like Hitchcock, lived in Spain for years, explains something that before the UK left the European Union was enough to live here. However, they now have to adapt to this new requirement and meet the stringent requirements established by Spanish law, He insists that some of them are very difficult to assume, such as getting health insurance Covering that, due to age and illnesses, it is “almost impossible” to pay or justify an amount of money in the bank that the majority does not have, concludes the president of “Brexpats in Spain”.