British expats in France and other EU countries

Thank you Mamie for common sense and a rather more helpful explanation of the situation.

BRITONS living in France will instantly be deemed illegal immigrants if the UK crashes out of the European Union without an exit deal, Emmanuel Macron’s government has proposed

I am relieved to see that Jura has now toned down yet another exaggerated sensation seeking misrepresentation of fact.

Surely Jura would have learned to check her facts before another knee jerk over reaction?

I think welshwife that the rights to residence for those legally established would not change, but would be different for those wishing to come. I have read that the law of "droit acquis" might also be significant.

The report also mentions people who have been fiscally resident in France for more than five years have an automatic right to permanent residency.

I have just read a report that the statement was to show the legal position of Brits in France the day after Brexit if nothing is done. It is to enable steps to be taken to prevent this. But the French are saying that this is dependant on a reciprocal agreement for French citizens in U.K. being agreed - which has not been done at all - TM is always gives very fudged answers on this point.

Is that right? Do third country nationals have automatic rights to live and work in the UK? I thought it was quite difficult. I know of some Canadian teachers who have had visa problems recently.
When the UK leaves the EU it becomes a third country. That is the reality.

No, it is simply the law. The French Prime Minister has been very clear about reassuring us that we will be supported in doing what we need to do to be allowed to stay. The French Interior Ministry is working with the British Embassy to ensure that.

In that case Mamie we have kinder laws here than you do, which doesn’t surprise me.

Elegran may well be right, posturing from Macron, or it could be that he and his cabinet are anti English in general
Much like De Gaulle was.

This is nothing to do with Macron, governments or hostility. It is simply a statement of the law as it stands, about third country nationals in France.
I don't think it can be explained any more simply than that.

Hostility from neighbours cannot be blamed on governments.

I think you will find Macron is unpopular in France Crystal and yes, better led in terms of the moral high ground certainly.
£35,000 for a couple working here isn’t actually that much!

Tell that to my Polish friends with the terminally ill daughter who have worked so hard here but now have to leave ,due in part to hostility from neighbours.

Oldbatty where have you been?
T May has given this reassurance many times to all EU nationals already living and working here.
Certainly to those already here up to the referendum date.

Better led government????

lemongrove- could you please provide a VERY recent official statement confirming this please. Have you no heard about the 35.000 minimum salary to be able to stay, and rising to £50.000.

telling all EU nationals they are welcome to stay? Where is this....in a parallel universe?

Reading the OP jura I thought to myself ‘ well, that’s the French for you then!’
Here in the UK we are doing the opposite, telling all EU nationals that they are welcome to stay.
We are clearly the better led government.

Unless you mean this from Elegran 'This is posturing before the talks,' - in which case, yes.

Some UK friends did not change their driving licence because they keep a car in the UK, and you can't insure it if you have a foreign licence. We were in that position for a while, as we kept my old car at our flat for use when we are there- but had no choice but to get rid, as we had to exchange licence here in Switzerland.

Fennel 'So to say it was written to show the UK what will happen, is paranoid in the extreme.'

who said that and where?

Here's the original document:
www.senat.fr/leg/pjl18-009.html

From another forum:
"The text that's suddenly being bandied about the UK media is a piece of internal French legislation. It wasn't written for British consumption. It was produced by the French government as part of doing its job. So to say it was written to show the UK what will happen, is paranoid in the extreme. Plus, the future of British citizens is not the main thrust of this document. It covers all the key areas for concern - trade, transport, food safety, animal health etc etc etc. "

On the subject of driving licences - if people have lived here for years without exchanging their licence for a French one then more fool them. The card licences would be out of date anyway. You would have to have had an old paper licence and not fallen foul of a speed trap ever. Unlikely I feel.

I don't disagree with any of that Jura. There are also lots of stressed and worried people in the UK. If you read Mumsnet and other sources there are plenty of factual reports of people who are already losing their jobs and their businesses because of Brexit.
I personally just don't find that there is much point in discussing it on here any more. It is quite clear that (the vast majority) of posters won't change their minds.
Having said that, I will continue to point out when I know that the British press is misleading people.

stree - that is the whole point- When you are in the EU (or Switzerland) that did not previously matter. You did not require work permits and residency permits, and you were entitled to reciprocal health care, you could exchange your driving licence, etc. People made their choice to move on THAT basis, having done their research well.