WHERE DO BRITS live in the EU?
THE RIGHTS of Brits living permanently in EU countries “will be seriously restricted” when the UK leaves the EU, an expert has claimed.
With less than a year to go until the UK bids farewell to the EU, some 784,900 citizens are living in other member states, according to the Office for National Statistics
EU members have relaxed immigration rules allowing freedom of movement between countries.
It means that, for example, a UK citizen could live permanently in France with little to no difficulty. But freedom of movement for UK citizens will be restricted after Brexit. While UK citizens will still be able to holiday in EU countries, they will not be able to live there permanently without restriction. Of the EU countries Brits currently live in, Spain is the most popular - around 293,500 people are registered as living there. Some 152,900 expats live in France, too. Also popular is Germany (96,500 Brits) followed by the Netherlands (45,300).
Italy is the fifth most popular country for expats, with 27,200 UK citizens.
However, the total number of people registered as living abroad is likely greater than the 784,900 accounted for - as the ONS figures don’t include people living in Ireland.
It is estimated there are some 277,200 people from the UK living there.
Eastern European countries prove least popular with Brits. Just 200 people from the UK are registered as living in Lithuania, followed by a further 300 in Latvia.
Some 500 live in Slovenia, and 600 people live in both Estonia and Croatia.
British in Europe campaigns for British citizens’ rights while living and working in Europe.
Daniel Tetlow, co-founder of British in Germany, said: “The bottom line is that David Davis and Michel Barnier are misleading us when they say citizens’ rights have been signed off.
“Before the Brexit negotiations both sides said nothing should change for the lives of British citizens living in Europe, but under the present withdrawal agreement proposals this will not be the case.
“As things stand, the rights of British citizens living and working in Europe will be seriously restricted.
“For example we no longer have the right to Freedom of Movement to work and live anywhere in the European Union, but we will be ‘locked in’ to working only in the country where we reside.” A spokesperson from the Department for Exiting the European Union said: “Securing the rights of citizens has always been our priority in these negotiations. “We’ve delivered on this commitment, reaching a reciprocal agreement with the EU on the rights of citizens resident both before our exit and during the implementation period. “This will give certainty to individuals and businesses.”