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Danish government outlines no-deal Brexit advice for British residents

Denmark’s Ministry of Immigration and Integration has advised certain steps for British citizens in anticipation of the United Kingdom leaving the European Union without a withdrawal agreement.

Published: 22 January 2019 17:40 CET

Danish government outlines no-deal Brexit advice for British residents

File photo: Mads Claus Rasmussen/Ritzau Scanpix

The Danish government has prepared for all possible outcomes of the ongoing political tumult in the UK over Brexit, including a no-deal scenario, according to a message posted on the immigration ministry’s website on Tuesday.

“Necessary measures have been set in motion to enable authorities to manage the possible no-deal scenario from March 30th onwards,” the ministry wrote.

The following information relevant to Denmark-based British residents, should a no-deal Brexit occur, was outlined by the immigration authority:

British citizens living in Denmark who have not already obtained an EU registration certificate (EU-registreringsbevis), or have not already applied for one, are strongly advised to do so prior to March 29th.
Family members of Denmark-based British citizens required to apply for Danish residence via their family member’s status are also advised to do so before this date.
British citizens who qualify for permanent residency (tidsubegrænset ophold) in Denmark in accordance with EU rules are also advised to apply for this prior to March 29th.

“This will make it easier for you to prove you have the right to reside (in Denmark)” while enabling Danish authorities to see that residency had been approved prior to March 29th, the ministry wrote.

Applications for EU registration certificates and residency permits should be made to the State Administration (Statsforvaltningen), where more information on EU free movement residency rules is also available.

The ministry also advised persons with questions regarding residency and rights connected to Brexit to contact the Ministry of Immigration and Integration via email.

Although Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen has previously moved to reassure Denmark-based British citizens over their future status in the event of a no-deal Brexit, no official approach has yet been made clear.

But the ministry moved to provide the information via its website on Tuesday.

“Great Britain’s decision to leave the EU creates general uncertainty about the future for all parties. At the same time, the potential outcome of a no-deal scenario is a cause of concern for Denmark-based British citizens as well as their families,” the ministry wrote.

The website post notes that the agreement reached between British Prime Minister Theresa May and EU negotiators in November sought to “ensure that British citizens who, prior to Brexit, were legally resident in the EU under free movement rules, can continue to live in the EU after March 29th, 2019 under conditions that generally follow those in place today.”

That agreement was, however, rejected by an overwhelming majority in the British parliament last week, and has seen extensive criticism from both pro-Remain and pro-Leave voices in parliament and society alike in the UK. It remains unclear whether any agreement will be approved.

If no agreement is voted through, the default outcome is a no-deal British withdrawal on March 29th.

The ministry made its position over the agreement clear in the statement published on its website.

“It is still the hope of the Danish government that the withdrawal agreement currently on the table will be approved. That would undoubtedly be best for all parties and not least for citizens who have taken advantage of free movement to and from the United Kingdom, and their families,” the message read.

“What will happen is still unknown. That depends on the United Kingdom,” the ministry also wrote.

Faced with Russia’s war in Ukraine, the potential return of Donald Trump as US president and competition from China, the new commission will need to steward the EU at a time of global uncertainty.

To confront the challenges, von der Leyen handed powerful economic portfolios to France, Spain and Italy — with a hard-right candidate from Rome taking a top role in a commission seen shifting broadly rightward.

“It’s about strengthening our tech sovereignty, our security and our democracy,” the commission chief said as she announced the team at the European Parliament in Strasbourg.

France’s outgoing foreign minister Stephane Sejourne was handed an executive vice president role overseeing industrial strategy, after von der Leyen ousted Paris’s first nominee.

Spain’s Teresa Ribera, a socialist climate campaigner, was also made an executive vice president, tasked with overseeing competition and the bloc’s transition toward carbon neutrality.

As Russia’s war against Ukraine grinds on through a third year, security and defence assumed a new prominence.

Former Lithuanian prime minister Andrius Kubilius landed a new defence role overseeing the EU’s push to rearm, making him one of several hawkish Russia critics in eastern Europe to receive a prominent position.

Those also include Estonia’s ex-premier Kaja Kallas, already chosen by EU leaders as the bloc’s foreign policy chief.

And Finland, another country neighbouring Russia, saw its pick Henna Virkkunen given a weighty umbrella role including security and tech.

As part of the bloc’s careful balancing act, the German head of the EU executive had to choose the lineup for her second term from nominees put forward by the other 26 member states.

That has meant treading a political tightrope between the demands of competing national leaders — and putting some noses out of joint.

The highest-profile casualty was France’s first-choice candidate Thierry Breton, who quit suddenly as internal market commissioner on Monday accusing von der Leyen of pushing Paris to ditch him.

Von der Leyen fell short in her efforts at gender balance, ending up with 40 percent women after pressuring member states for female nominees.

But women obtained the lion’s share of executive VP roles, with four of six posts.

Controversial Italian pick

The choice of who gets which job is an indication of where Brussels wants to steer the European Union — and the weight commanded by member states and political groupings after EU Parliament elections in June.

Cementing its status as parliament’s biggest group, Von der Leyen’s centre-right European People’s Party commands 15 of 27 commission posts — to the chagrin of left-wing lawmakers like France’s Manon Aubry who warned of a lurch “far to the right” in terms of policies too.

Among the powerful vice presidents is Italy’s Raffaele Fitto, handed a cohesion brief in a nod to gains made by far-right parties in the June elections.

Giving a top role to a member of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s post-fascist Brothers of Italy party has raised hackles among centrist and leftist groups — while Meloni said it “confirms the newfound central role of our nation in the EU”.

After Green party losses at the June ballot, whether climate would remain high on the agenda and which commissioners would steer green policy was a subject of scrutiny.

As well as Ribera’s overarching role, the centre-right Dutchman Wopke Hoekstra will carry on in a position handling climate and the push to make the EU carbon neutral.

Among other eye-catching choices, Croatia’s Dubravka Suica obtained a new role overseeing the Mediterranean region, and the enlargement gig went to Slovenia’s Marta Kos — yet to be confirmed as her country’s candidate.

Other important figures going forward look set to be Slovakia’s Maros Sefcovic, handling trade, and Poland’s Piotr Serafin, who will steer negotiations over the bloc’s next budget.

All would-be commissioners still need to win approval from the European Parliament, with hearings to start in coming weeks.

Lawmakers could flex their muscles by rejecting some candidates — or at least dragging them over the coals, as expected with Italy’s Fitto.

Chief among those suspected for the chopping block are Hungary’s Oliver Varhelyi, nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s man in Brussels these past five years, who received a diminished portfolio covering health and animal welfare.

The stated target is to have a new commission in place by November 1st, but diplomats say that looks ambitious, with December 1 more likely.