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BREXIT

BREXIT: When should British residents in Spain get a TIE?

With the end of the Brexit transition period fast approaching, one of the key questions Britons who are already residents in Spain have is whether they should get the new TIE residency card even though it’s optional for them, and if so, when.

Published: 20 October 2020 12:52 CEST
BREXIT: When should British residents in Spain get a TIE?
Photo of new TIE card for British residents in Spain, with arrow pointing to the correct wording/status on the cards. Photo: British Embassy in Spain

Ever since the Spanish government started issuing the new biometric TIE cards “Tarjeta de Identidad de Extranjero” on July 6th, this question has been the subject of much debate among Britons who already have a green A4 residency certificate or a small green residency card.

That’s despite the fact that the official message from the British Embassy and Spanish authorities has been clear from the start: the TIE card is optional for Britons who were registered before that date.

“While you may choose to change your current certificate for a TIE at some point in the future, there's no requirement to do so,” British Ambassador to Spain Hugh Elliott stated back in July and has continued to do so.

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The BOE bulletin by the Spanish government which announced the launch of the TIE also confirmed this by stating that Brits who are already registered in Spain “will not have the obligation to apply for a new resident status nor, therefore, undergo a new documentation process, but they will have the right to receive a residence document that expressly reflects their status as a beneficiary of the Withdrawal Agreement”.

However, these reassurances haven’t convinced many British residents in Spain who are choosing to apply for a TIE now.

Mark Stucklin of Spanish Property Insight recently wrote an opinion piece on his website titled “British residents in Spain, don’t forget to apply for your TIE (Foreigner’s ID) card this year, just to be on the safe side”, in which he explained why he chose to apply for the card as “you never know what’s around the next corner with Brexit, so better safe than sorry”.

From a practical standpoint, the TIE is a hard, laminated card that is certainly more durable than the old A4 residence paper certificate or card.

But there are other potential advantages to the TIE relating to Britons’ status in Spain.

Nigel Aston, President of EuroCitizens, a lobbying group which fights for the rights of British residents in Spain, told The Local: “Holders of green cards/A4 papers can retain those as an alternative to the TIE, at the moment, in perpetuity.

“That may change in the future but the Spanish have, as yet, given no contrary indication.

“Nevertheless, the EuroCitizens' advice is to get a TIE.

“(Given the Spanish government’s stance) there is no rush but we recommend doing it for convenience reasons and, more fundamentally, as it confers status.”

Aston told The Local that the advantage of the TIE as envisaged in the BOE is that it clearly states that the holder is entitled to the rights set out in the Withdrawal Agreement and distinguishes between initial residency and permanent.

“The TIE for registered UK citizens living in Spain at 31 December is annotated to show that the holder is “protected” by the citizens' rights provisions of the Withdrawal Agreement.

“Whilst most officials in the Spanish administration and, indeed, counterparts in other Schengen states will recognise this protection in the passport/green docs, probably some will not, potentially causing bureaucratic issues.

“Holding the appropriate TIE, therefore, is a clear, unambiguous, confirmation of ongoing rights.”

However, there are two important setbacks Britons who are applying for the TIEs are facing which may push those who don’t need to apply to hold off for the moment.

Many Britons who have received their new residency cards in Spain have noticed that they contain information which isn't accurate.

“Some of the new TIEs obtained via the EX23 route (those who already had a green residency and just wanted to exchange them for the TIE) have picked their cards up from several different areas of Spain but they are wrongly worded,” Anne Hernandez, head of the Brexpats in Spain organisation, told The Local.

These biometric cards, which should have the wording at the bottom saying “Residence Permit/Titre de Sejour” instead state “family member of a Union citizen”.

“Some of the TIEs are also wrongly dated,” Hernandez adds.

“A permanent TIE card should be 10 years but it seems they are being dated to expire in 5 years”.

READ MORE: What we know about the two mistakes on the TIE residency card

There is also the issue of the lack of TIE appointments being made available, which is particularly worrying for those who have never registered rather than for residents.

“Those who are desperately trying to get their TIEs for the first time and benefit from the Withdrawal Agreement are very stressed because appointments are few and far between, Hernández told The Local.

“(Therefore my advice to residents) who choose to apply for the TIE is to leave it till after December 31st.

“It seems rather selfish to do it now, thereby further reducing availability of appointments before the end of the transition period.

“So think of your fellow Brits and wait till 2021 if you wish to exchange your green residency for the TIE but there is no obligation to exchange it.” 

READ MORE:  The quick Brexit guide for Brits in Spain: Residency, travel, healthcare, pets and pensions

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GIBRALTAR

Why has Gibraltar still not reached a Brexit deal with Spain?

With yet another round of Spain-UK negotiations set to begin more than eight years since the Brexit referendum, Gibraltar is still without a deal and a November deadline looms over any treaty. Why has it proven so hard to break the deadlock?

Published: 17 September 2024 13:38 CEST
Why has Gibraltar still not reached a Brexit deal with Spain?

On Thursday September 19th, Spain and the UK resume talks on Gibraltar’s post-Brexit status, and has been the case since 2016, uncertainty is still the prevailing feeling.

The British Foreign Secretary David Lammy recently received his Spanish counterpart, José Manuel Albares in London. Both did their diplomatic duties and talked up the prospects of a deal, with Lammy stating he hoped for an agreement that would ensure greater “prosperity and security for the people of Gibraltar.”

Albares, for his part, understandably centred any hypothetical deal on a “shared prosperity between Gibraltar and the 300,000 Andalusians connected every day in their normal lives”.

READ ALSO: Gibraltar demands Spain return stolen concrete block in new diplomatic spat

Though Lammy and Albares discussed the Rock, no formal negotiations or deal can be struck without EU oversight, so the meeting also included discussion of bilateral issues and international concerns such as the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East.

The meeting between the two Ministers was therefore a preamble to yet more formal treaty negotiations in Brussels on Thursday. Since Brexit came into effect at the end of 2020, Gibraltar has essentially existed in legal limbo with no formal treaty.

Border controls have been fudged ever since, leaving locals and Spaniards across the border faced with inconsistent rules and forcing travellers to find creative ways to bypass rules and get over ‘La Línea’. 

Why hasn’t a deal been reached?

So why all the meetings and pre-meetings and endless rounds of negotiations? How is it possible that Gibraltar is still without a Brexit deal all these years later?

A recent piece in El País by Rafa de Miguel, the daily’s UK and Ireland correspondent, perhaps put it best: “The amount of warm words in any political statement is inversely proportional to the progress in the negotiations.”

The reality is that, however many handshakes and photo opportunities and positive attitudes expressed between Spain and the UK on a bilateral level, these are ultimately irrelevant as nothing can be signed without the EU’s approval. 

This is further complicated by the fact that this makes any deal dependent on four way negotiations between Spain, the UK, the EU, and Gibraltar.

Each of these parties has their own individual set of needs, preferences and motivations. The EU won’t want to be seen to give Gibraltar, and by extension the UK, any special treatment for fear of emboldening other member states who desire bespoke arrangements when it comes to border controls and customs checks.

In light of Germany recently reimplementing land border checks, something some say is a direct violation of Schengen rules, this will be especially sensitive in these latest rounds of negotiations. 

Spain has long made territorial claims on Gibraltar dating back to the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht, when the overseas territory was first ceded to the UK, and will want to come out of negotiations with something that can be perceived as a political victory, likely an increased Spanish role in border patrols.

Fabian Picardo, Gibraltar’s Chief Minister, has ruled this out definitively over the last few years, citing concerns about British sovereignty.

The UK government in London will also have worries about British sovereignty, but will balance this with the knowledge that Gibraltar negotiations are also an opportunity to reset relations with Europe more widely, something the new Starmer government has repeatedly stated since coming into power.

READ ALSO: ‘It’s time to reset Britain’s relations with Europe’, says UK foreign secretary

Some reports, however, suggest that despite the positive musings coming from London, negotiations have stalled and that Lammy has no intention of signing anything that would deviate from Gibraltar’s needs and concerns.

Political tensions were increased recently when Gibraltar demanded Spanish far-right party Vox return a concrete block stolen from British waters, and the Euro 2024 winning Spanish football team made international headlines when it celebrating by singing ‘Gibraltar es Español’ (Gibraltar is Spanish).

READ ALSO: ‘Gibraltar is Spanish!’: How Spain celebrated Euro 2024 heroes

Despite wanting to improve relations with the EU, Lammy is expected to reiterate the Labour government’s unwavering commitment to the “double lock” on sovereignty, sources told El País.

Perhaps most pressingly, however, is the fact that these new negotiations now have a deadline: the enforcement of new Schengen Area border rules come into force on November 10th and a treaty must be finalised before then. 

READ MORE: Hard border? What we know so far about new Gibraltar-Spain checks

Schengen Zone rules mean that there are two major outstanding points in treaty negotiations: firstly, the sore point of Spanish border guards on British soil, something Gibraltar rejects outright, and also the question of who would run Gibraltar’s airport, which is located on the isthmus between Spain and the British territory, an area Madrid claims was never included in Treaty of Utrecht.

The most contested aspect of negotiations is Madrid’s demand that Spanish agents should be allowed to carry out checks on passengers arriving at Gibraltar airport and that they should be armed and in uniform.

For many Llanitos (Gibraltar locals) this is an intolerable idea and one Picardo rejects outright: “There will be no Spanish boots on the ground,” he has said repeatedly.

On the other hand, Spain argues that no specific protocol can be designed for Gibraltar and that if it wants to join the border-free European area, it must accept Schengen rules.

Spanish boots on British soil is a particularly visceral point for many Gibraltarians of a certain age. In June 1969, Spanish dictator Francisco Franco closed the border gate between Gibraltar and La Línea de la Concepción, cutting the tiny overseas territory off from the world, separating Spanish-British families and forcing Gibraltar to source food from elsewhere on the planet. 

It was eventually reopened in December in 1982 but those 13 years have taken deep root in Gibraltar’s historical memory and is now embedded into the Llanito collective imagination and identity.

For many on ‘The Rock’, the idea of Spanish border guards on British soil, whether it be in the airport or elsewhere, is simply unacceptable under any circumstances. 

Tax could also prove to be a sticking point. Gibraltar has no VAT, but Madrid has argued that if it wants to benefit from fluid border movement, its tax rules must be brought into line with EU rules.

Of course, there’s also both the domestic and international geopolitical contexts to consider here too. All parties – Spain, the UK, Gibraltar and the EU – have been distracted by other events in recent years.

Spain has been preoccupied by political tension, snap elections and the Catalan amnesty, while Britain suffered the almost cartoonish political instability of the outgoing Conservative government and treaty talks were postponed after the general election in July.

Added to this is the fact that the mediating party, the EU, has had its hands full with the war in Ukraine and surging far-right parties across member states, a trend that interestingly both the UK and Spain buck as the only major European states with centre-left governments.

Talks resume on Thursday September 19th, over 8 years since the Brexit referendum.

In British politics, the UK’s exit from the EU now seems strangely absent from debate, as though the issue is over and the country has finally begun to move on — but for Gibraltarians and the thousands of Spaniards who cross the border and work there everyday, Brexit is still an open-ended question.

READ ALSO: ‘Starting now’: New UK govt wastes no time in Gibraltar post-Brexit talks with Spain

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