A 26-year-old UK national, Niamh Chapman, who has been living in France since she was a child, has been ordered by the French authorities to leave the country due to the strict residency rules that have been introduced post-Brexit.
As the Local explains, Chapman has lived in southwest France since she was seven years old, and she just recently got married to a French national. However, despite this, she has received an obligation to leave French territory (OQTF), Schengen.News reports.
According to the department’s prefect, Jean Salomon, the OQTF was imposed on her as a result of the post-Brexit residency rules that have been applying on British nationals in France since the UK left the bloc.
On a letter addressing the matter, Salomon noted that since January 1, 2022, all British nationals have been required to obtain a residence permit to be able to legally reside in France.
The same stressed that under the current rules, in order to enter and settle in the country, Britons need to first obtain a long-stay visa.
Following the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union, British nationals have been required to obtain a residence permit since January 1, 2022. In order to enter and settle on French territory, it is also necessary to first obtain a long-stay visa.
Her Residence Permit Application Was Denied in Line With the Law in Force, Authority Says
Chapman explained for local media that she went back to the UK at the end of 2018 for a temporary period to help her father take care of her elderly grandmothers. Due to the Covid outbreak, she was then obliged to remain in the UK due to the strict travel restrictions, the Local notes.
When she returned to France, the Brexit had already entered into force and all Britons residing in France needed to hold a carte de séjour to be able to reside in the country.
Brits who were living in France before the Brexit were able to apply for the specific carte de sejour while in the country. The case is not the same for those out of the country.
Since after Brexit, UK nationals were treated as non-EU citizens, they were required to first request a visa and then a residency permit in order to be permitted to remain within the French territory long term.
Commenting on the situation of Chapman, Salomon said in the letter that while it is understandable that she needed to be in the UK during that period, she should have made sure to take the new rules into account when wanting to return to France.
Solomon argued that she could not be unaware of the Brexit effects that were regularly mentioned in the media and institutional sites.
The same stressed that her residence permit application was refused in line with the law in force in France.
Marriage to French National to Offer Route Back to Legal Residency
While Chapman has been ordered to leave France, Solomon explained that her marriage with the French national is likely to offer her a route back to legal residency.
Solomon said that the marriage will allow her to apply for a long-stay visa and then following the document’s issuance, Chapman will be able to reside regularly in France.
This will allow her to apply to the French Consulate in the United Kingdom for a long-stay visa in view of her marriage to a French national, which occurred after the obligation to leave French territory was issued. Following its issuance, Ms Chapman will be able to reside regularly on the French territory.
Chapman was expected to voluntarily return to the UK on March 10. It is yet to be seen what will happen with her case.
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