bfg69bug

I dont think the OP will be back now. it wasn´t the reaction that they wanted.

gill556

The only suggestion I can make is for the OP to sell her house and rent thereby giving her enough money in the bank to apply for residency.

bfg69bug

Thats an idea, but it would probably mean getting rid of the animals too ? not many owners like having "animals" (they didnt say "i have 2 cats" etc?)

Mark604

Wouldn't that only be the case is everyone entering on a UK passport since Jan 1st has had their passport stamped? Otherwise someone could still say they entered Feb 1st or whatever and are now leaving but within their 90 days, no?

This last question has suddenly got me thinking that if a British passport holder has residence in another European country, can they stay in Spain longer?
Was that answered?
i.e. does the say, French, residence trump the UK passport or is it no matter the residence, everyone with a UK passport must abide by the new rules?
​​​​​​​

n77af

I would imagine that while the law says a UK passport holder legally resident in a European country can only spend 90/180 days in another Schengen country, there is no practical way to enforce it. As with no internal border controls there would be no way of quickly tracking your movements.

Stingychips

I’m sure if you get residency in any area country in the schengen then that would give you access to live anywhere else in the schengen. There are a lot of other countries in the schengen that have easier visa requirements. Brits are still number one property buyers in Spain regardless of brexit so a lot of British are convinced that the Spanish are not going to start rounding people up and sending them back to the UK. Who knows. We will be able to have a better idea these next few months. Will this be the end of spain being the number one hotspot for expats and tourists post brexit/COVID-19? I don’t think it will.

Chipmonk

Brits under WA do not have free movement even if they have residency in another EU country. This was made clear explicitly in the WA. You cant move from one country to another. Now I could be all high and mighty about this and say you should know this it's been published, ignorance is no excuse etc in the manner that some people are behaving here but truth is there are alot of changes to consider and we are not all perfect people.

Stingychips

Thanks for clearing that up. I didn’t know that as that would have been an obvious loop hole people would have exploited.

Moses2013

That's what I thought at first, but others here pointed out that countries like Spain want to attract the wealthy tax payer and already offer a Visa. Brits can still go on a package holiday without a Visa, so they won't leave either.

Joppa

When it comes to the crunch, it's up to you to show you have complied with Schengen rule, not for the border agent to demonstrate you haven't. So when asked how long you have stayed in Schengen, and there is no Schengen entry stamp, you need to evidence in any other way the length of your sojourn, such as travel tickets, boarding passes, accommodation receipts etc.

Red Eric

I know this is a bit off the original topic but as the OP appears to have left the room and as it's arisen :
When I arrived in Portugal 15 plus years ago, despite desperately wanting to do everything completely correctly, I got some stuff wrong. I didn't know - even after visitng the immigration and borders office to make an enquiry about something else, for example - that I was supposed to register my presence. That only became apparent to me about 18 months later, due to news about the process being devolved to town halls. Meantime, without any residence document, I had been able to do the necessary on the driving licence and to enrol in the public health service.

I didn't have a computer or an internet connection at home for several years, so any finding out involved going out and about. This is not an area of high immigration, so there are no associated advisors or support services. I sought advice on tax obligations from an accountant who was advertising services for doing the submissions, so got the first one filled out for me and used it as a template in subsequent years. Unfortunately, despite my having asked a question about the various forms of income, I had not been best advised and ended up paying a lot of tax that could perfectly legitimately have been avoided, for several years. What had been said by the accountant which led to this was also repeated by the assistant manager of my bank when we were chatting one day, so it seemed doubly reliable until I was finally in a position to delve more deeply into things.

We aren't all hugely clued up, methodical, articulate, able to speak the new language etc etc. Some people aren't confident about dealing with paperwork and officialdom, even in their own language. It's a little easier these days when so much more can be done online but even then, one has to be careful about what's being served up, whether it's trustworthy, whether it's current (even if it comes from an official source). Not everybody's internet savvy. Even those of us who have the advantage in those areas can get things wrong - I've read accounts from people who go to great lengths to give good advice on the France and Italy forums, saying they do it because of the mistakes they unwittingly made that they don't want to see others fall prey to. And professional advisors aren't always as professional as they might be, even if they do fill you with confidence that what they're saying is correct.

scot47

Ignorantia juris non excusat - Wikipedia

Ignorance of the law is not usually a defence. God save those who rely on TV and the tabloid papers for their information ! I suspect the Costas are full of those who fall into this category. Combine that with an inability to use the local language and you have a recipe for many individual tragedies.

wellinever

Here is a link to a schengen area calculator.....just start with some dates you want to come and go in the schengen area, then submit more on the next line and see what it says..
https://adambard.github.io/schengencalc/

bobd22

Red Eric I get all of what you say in your last post. Many of us make mistakes even after trying to do things right and seeking what we believe is proper advice. However going back to OP, it strikes me that the OP did know things did need to be done and sorted out, I say that from their comments " I didn't get around to it and I didn't think it would be a problem". That to me indicates they were aware something needed doing but that they calculated it didn't matter or they wouldn't be found out. I am not being nasty towards the OP that is simply how their posts come across also. As we get older it gets harder to get one's head around some administration factors especially as you mention things tend to become computerised that and lack of Spanish language skills can make things difficult but then as you did one has to seek advice from gestors, friends or wherever they can. That's what you did and then learned from, all be it the advise was not the best in the first place, however at least you were the right side of what should be done. I have done exactly the same myself, sometimes having to pay someone but learning myself as I have gone along. As someone earlier said ignorance is no defence in law, which is well known. Another well known phrase is, tax and death are 2 certainties in life. Where one pays that tax isn't certain but is down to the individual to find out. If one comes to the attention of the authorities re not following the correct legal procedure then an investigation is undertaken. Any investigator will try and establish is this intentional avoidance or accidental through ignorance, has the person thought about it and made a conscious decision to avoid something to prevent paying their full dues? Then the authorities will decide their course of action. It isn't always to prosecute or recover monies with penalties, a few years ago many were sent letters of amnesty by spanish authorities so long as the correct procedures were followed thereafter. It is what it is for the OP and I think that is what most have tried to point out. For the OP who, as you say seems to have taken offence and dissapeared, they need to legally and correctly sort things out or live wondering when they may get a knock on the door.

Stingychips

Worst comes to worst And the doors officially shut on the majority of future potential expats then there are always countries like Costa Rica and Bali. Even Portugal is a lot easier in regards to obtaining a visa. If these laws are implemented Ibiza , Tenerife , Majorca are in for a shock. When some doors shut other ones open.