Extra UK Funding for Groups Helping Brits With Spanish Residency Applications

EXTRA UK funding had been signed off for groups helping Brits with their Spanish residency applications following Brexit.

As reported in SUR, A further €1 million (£867,180) has been allocated to eight organisations across Europe from the British government. The funding is for groups who have been assisting Brits with their residency applications under the terms of the withdrawal agreement.

The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) in Andalisua is working for the British government as part of the UK Nationals Support Fund in helping more vulnerable residents apply for their residency. Babelia and Age in Spain are also helping in different parts of Spain.

The announcement of extended funding came as data was published stating that on December 31 last year Spain had recorded 381,448 Brits as official residents, which is an increase of 15,000 from the last published data which was on June 2020.

There are believed to still be many people residing in Spain without their residency, despite the increase in funding, who are entitled to apply under the more favourable pre-Brexit conditions of the withdrawal agreement. Many Brits have also been stung with high fees from third party agencies assisting them with their applications.

The withdrawal agreement means: “All UK nationals and their families, nationals of third countries, that resided in Spain before the end of this Transition Period will maintain their rights deriving from the application of EU law (except the right to vote and to stand in elections to the European Parliament and the exercise of the EU’s Citizens Initiative), states the La Moncloa website.