Brexit and MEU1 etc

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Lincoln
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Brexit and MEU1 etc

Post by Lincoln »

This is well worth reading especially those without the MEU1, as after 29th March they will be classed 3rd world citizens in Cyprus.


Posted: 25 Feb 2019 07:13 AM PST
Cyprus Mail - 25 February 2019

There are around 70,000 UK nationals in Cyprus

By Elias Hazou
EARLIER this month foreign minister Nicos Christodoulides sent a letter to his UK counterpart Jeremy Hunt, assuring him that the rights of British expats in Cyprus would be honoured in the event of an ‘orderly’, or agreed Brexit.
At the same time, however, the British parliament has rejected the withdrawal agreement brokered by Theresa May and the EU, leaving matters in a state of flux while the March 29 deadline for the UK to leave the EU fast approaches.
May is seeking further concessions in the hope of winning the support of lawmakers before putting it to another vote in parliament. If she fails, she will have to decide whether to delay Brexit. She has promised that if she does not bring a revised deal back by this coming Wednesday, parliament will have an opportunity to vote on the next steps.

Despite Christodoulides’ missive, as well as subsequent updates from the British High Commission, these communiques have perhaps raised more questions than answers.
In his letter, the foreign minister said Cyprus was preparing in close cooperation with the EU and other member states for all outcomes, including that of a no-deal exit.
In case of a hard Brexit, he added, “Cyprus stands ready to ensure that those British citizens residing in Cyprus presently, and until 29 March 2019, will be able to continue residing and enjoying the same rights as provided for in the withdrawal agreement.”
But the big unknown is what happens to those who want to move here after March 29. Although the answer to that is a riddle wrapped in an enigma, since no one can tell until some Brexit deal is reached, the Sunday Mail sought some clarity from the High Commission here.
A spokesperson for the High Commission said:
“Securing a deal remains the Government’s top priority. A majority of MPs have said they would support a deal with changes to the backstop. The Withdrawal Agreement provides citizens with the certainty they need about their rights going forward. It means over three million EU citizens in the UK and nearly one million UK nationals in the EU can continue living their lives broadly as they do now. We have also reached similar citizens’ rights agreements with the EEA EFTA States and Switzerland.”
According to the High Commission, an agreed exit provides for the necessary implementation period from March 30, 2019 until December 31, 2020, during which the UK and the EU will negotiate on their future partnership and citizens will have the opportunity to regularise their status.
“In practical terms, what this means for British nationals in the Republic of Cyprus is – as we have always said – they need to regularise their status on the island by applying for either an MEU1 or MEU3.”
There are essentially three residency statuses that British expats are entitled to: MEU1 (registration for residents that want to live in Cyprus for more than three months); MEU3 (residents who have lived in Cyprus for more than five years); and citizenship (residents who lived in Cyprus for more than seven years).
An estimated 70,000 British expats currently live on the island, although this includes a number of ‘swallows’ – people who come and go.
The High Commission said that, in an agreed exit of the UK from the EU, British nationals will have the right to move to Cyprus until 31 December 2020 and will be able to secure and settle their residency status when they complete the necessary paperwork and meet the conditions.
“What happens from 2021 will be subject of the future relationship between the UK and the EU.
“In a no deal exit of the UK from the EU, British citizens will be considered third-country nationals in Cyprus. However, this is one of the issues that we are working on with EU and Cypriot authorities in order to get clarity on how Britons who want to move from the UK to Cyprus after March 29 retain the right to do so.”
To recap: in an agreed UK exit, the transition period will start on 30 March 2019 and end on 31 December 2020. In a no-deal situation, there is no transition period.
These are the known knowns and the known unknowns, to borrow the phrase popularised by former US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.
But another question is, on what basis did Christodoulides give the aforesaid assurances to the British Foreign Secretary, when presumably Cyprus cannot act by itself in this regard? Did Cyprus not need the agreement of the rest of the EU member states?
The short answer is that, when it comes to matters impacting the daily lives of EU citizens, there’s an understanding in Brussels that during this uncertain period some leeway would be granted to individual countries to work out bilateral arrangements with the UK.
The Sunday Mail is told that Christodoulides’ missive to Hunt was in fact a response to a letter addressed to the Cypriot government days earlier, where London assured Nicosia it would keep in place the rights of Cypriot nationals residing and working in the UK.
It turns out that, to date, Britain has struck such bilateral understandings with 24 EU member states. Cyprus was the latest country to exchange pledges with the UK.
These bilateral assurances are statements of intent, not legally binding. Nevertheless, the Sunday Mail understands that, as things stand, Cyprus fully intends to indefinitely keep intact the rights of UK nationals already on the island, be it under an agreed or no-deal Brexit.
Individual EU member states do have a little wiggle room to act in this way. For instance, when it comes to residency, this area is considered as coming under national competency.
Social security contributions fall in the grey area. If a UK national has worked in England, Italy and Cyprus, and made social security contributions in each of these countries, it might still be possible for the UK and Cyprus to make bilateral pension arrangements.
However, in this hypothetical case that would leave out the contributions the person made while in Italy. It would therefore make more sense for the issue of social security contributions to be agreed collectively, on the EU-27 level. Absent a Brexit deal for now, mark that down as a known unknown.
Citizens’ rights include residency, healthcare, driving, buying property, voting, receiving pensions, getting married and so forth.
~#In the event of a no-deal Brexit, UK nationals with no legal status in Cyprus will be considered third-country nationals as of March 30.#
UK nationals visiting the island after that will be allowed to stay here for three months, without a visa. The Sunday Mail is told that the visa waiver will remain in place indefinitely under all circumstances. Should UK nationals wish to stay longer – to live or work – they would have to secure the necessary permits as third-country nationals do.
Last edited by Lincoln on Tue Feb 26, 2019 2:34 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Spock
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Re: Brexit and MEU1 etc

Post by Spock »

Lincoln wrote: Mon Feb 25, 2019 9:19 pm


There are essentially three residency statuses that British expats are entitled to: MEU1 (registration for residents that want to live in Cyprus for more than three months)
.
.
UK nationals visiting the island after that will be allowed to stay here for three months, without a visa.
What I have not been able to determine is exactly what this means. Three months in any year, or three months in any one trip?
I visit Cyprus four times a year for six or seven weeks at a time. Clearly more than three months total, but less than three months at any one time.

I emailed the immigration department but the reply I got said that " ...you are eligible to apply for MEU1...", which doesn't answer my question. Although I own a house here, I consider the UK to be my place of residence.
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jeba
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Re: Brexit and MEU1 etc

Post by jeba »

Spock wrote: Tue Feb 26, 2019 9:29 am
What I have not been able to determine is exactly what this means. Three months in any year, or three months in any one trip?
3 months per trip but not more than 180 (or 182?) days per year. Within the Schengen area there is also a restriction to not stay more than 90 days within every 180 day period. As Cyprus isn´t part of the Schengen area I´m not sure whether that applies here, too.
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Spock
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Re: Brexit and MEU1 etc

Post by Spock »

jeba wrote: Tue Feb 26, 2019 9:36 am

3 months per trip but not more than 180 (or 182?) days per year. Within the Schengen area there is also a restriction to not stay more than 90 days within every 180 day period. As Cyprus isn´t part of the Schengen area I´m not sure whether that applies here, too.
Thanks jeba.
That's the way we have looked at it so far and will continue to do so.
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ApusApus
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Re: Brexit and MEU1 etc

Post by ApusApus »

The only thing you need to watch out for is if you stay in Cyprus long enough in any given year, then you are deemed a tax resident?


Shane
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Jimgward
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Re: Brexit and MEU1 etc

Post by Jimgward »

I understood the at a non eu citizen would be 3 months in total
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Spock
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Re: Brexit and MEU1 etc

Post by Spock »

ApusApus wrote: Tue Feb 26, 2019 10:36 am The only thing you need to watch out for is if you stay in Cyprus long enough in any given year, then you are deemed a tax resident?


Shane
We did register with the Tax Office for IPT but have no income in Cyprus and are below the threshold for IPT.
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Spock
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Re: Brexit and MEU1 etc

Post by Spock »

Jimgward wrote: Tue Feb 26, 2019 3:10 pm I understood the at a non eu citizen would be 3 months in total
Hence my confusion. So many different interpretations and I don't know which is correct!
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