The French application portal has just gone live so I may be about to become a little bit more French? Exciting times, and a bit scary too. Anyone else considering taking the leap?

You spend >183 days a year in France ?

My folks have a house/business in France and it wasn’t even a straight forward process for them.

I’m going to get an Irish passport at some stage (I qualify through my maternal grandmother, thanks Nana), does that count?

My folks have a house/business in France and it wasn’t even a straight forward process for them.

+1 my brother has lived and worked in France for 28yrs, the bureaucracy he had to overcome to get citizenship last year was crazy

I live here but have never needed residency. Brexit has changed that so an application for residency is pending.

Residency and citizenship are different in different countries.
Italy were one of the first countries in EU to make it clear what would happen to resident Brits after Brexit. We moved here a year ago and the process has been super simple (a few visits to local offices etc) and we can now stay for 5 years.

Citizenship is different (far more complex) to residency. The French have made residency a lot easier of late, especially for anyone who has lived here for more than 5 years.

We moved here a year ago and the process has been super simple (a few visits to local offices etc) and we can now stay for 5 years.

I’m hoping to do the same. How does health care work in Italy?

Citizenship is different (far more complex

Yup . My folks have conceeded that citizen ship will never happen for them.

Residency is Spain is pretty simple, too. Citizenship is a whole load of paperwork which is why I’ve never got round to getting it 🙂

I’ve got just over a year to wait until I can apply for Dutch citizenship. I’ll be doing it literally the day I become eligible.

Italy healthcare… First buy insurance, which is a couple of hundred for a year. Once you are resident and paying taxes you can sign on to the local system I think… I’ve not actually done this bit yet.

I watch Montalbano every weekend and love coffee, icecream and pizza. That’s all I need to move to Italy right?

Hell yes. As soon as I can apply gor permanent right to remain over here, I will and then I will chop that for Citizenship as soon as I reach three years here (which is April).

Italy healthcare… First buy insurance, which is a couple of hundred for a year. Once you are resident and paying taxes you can sign on to the local system I think… I’ve not actually done this bit yet.

it sounds v similar to France. I’m just collecting quotes for insurance. Once residency is granted we will be in the system proper. Good luck.

Splitters! 😁

I need to look into it for my wife and children.
I am hoping it will be straight forward.
When we lived in the UK, I registered wedding and children with French consulate.

There is a high chance I’ll be going for Dutch residency and possibly citizenship at some point. My wife of 25 years and children are all Dutch citizens so hopefully it will be fairly straight forward.

My neighbour has just got citizenship, Chris. He’s paxé with the mother of his three children, they both work and he started the process just after the Brexit vote. It was just a matter of patiently going through the process. That’s two out of three of the people I know who have applied who have succeeded. The third can be less than tactful, but he’s progressing slowly.

Yeah, we’ve just moved to the Alps so will be applying for residency just as soon as we’ve got our heads around the healthcare part. I think ultimately the plan will be to go for citizenship but as said above, this seems a bit trickier and we’ll come to that in due course.

I’ve moved back to Scotland and maybe in another few years we’ll get back in

I’ve been resident in Spain ten years, with nary a problem until now.

Thanks to the B word, my UK driver’s license becomes invalid on 31/12 and I would assume it’s the same for France too. If you’re resident in EU you must have the corresponding license.

Currently I can change it for a Spanish one at the equivalent of DVLA, simple enough – fill out some forms and have a medical, but it has to be done in person and the system is completely choked. After 31/12 the change isn’t possible and you’d have to take the Spanish driving test (in my case, three if I want to keep all categories*).

I have an appt. on Tuesday, but thanks to la ley de Murphy, I’m self isolating at home pending a CV19 test on Monday. If I test -ve (and get the text message in time), I can go to the appointment. If not, I might be retaking my driving test… hands at ten-to-two

*My fault, none of this is a surprise as we knew about it a year ago.

It’s all come a bit too soon for us. Or we are late not sure which it is.

Our original plan was to move to France when the kids had finished Uni. The Mrs Being French has always wanted to return at some point and we had planned to do so, but not for a few years. Would have been easy for me before the brexshit vote which has now really f#@&ed up our long term plans, now it won’t be so easy.

I’m lucky in the sense that I can do my job from anywhere, but would have to register with our French branch now as I will have to prove I can support myself. But it will mean the I will be a salary burden on that branch whereas before not so.

Once we register residency, I have to wait four years to apply to become a French citizen. As others have said the French love their bureaucracy and I don’t expect it to be an easy ride.

Residency, yes. Citizen, no. I’ve been here for twenty years but don’t feel French enough to justify it. It’s seen in some quarters that you need to be more French than the French themselves, if you get my drift.

I finally sorted Swedish citizenship (dual nationality with the UK) last year when it became clear Brexit was definitely happening, I’d swapped over driving license the year before. Not too complicated a process as I’d been here a while. 😏
But it still pisses me off that it was necessary!

I’m currently in Spain now trying to do the same (residency – Citizenship is lengthly and has many implications).

System has been choked up since August. Managed to get some apointments – you need private healthcare now or a job. Still under the withdrawal agreement, so after 31st, who knows.

The driving license business is insane. Hoping to get that changed but unlikely I’ll get it in time. Sitting motorcycle test in Spain doens’t sound fun and apparently the driving test is ridiculous too.

I live in Scotland, we’re going en-bloc in a few years.

Bob, I got my spanish d licence today. All the appointments are bagged by the gestors so I paid 100e and they did everything. The medical is easy, a sort of video game driving test, eye test and blood pressure.

Re residencia I got everything in order, as it predates 2012 I get free state healthcare which is a massive bonus.

Ironically I actually spend more time in UK now, but under the threshold, so may surrender the residencia when brexit rules are clear.

@fatmountain Not sure where you live, but you’ll be lucky to get an appt. at DGT online or calling. I rang a few times and they just told me to keep trying, couldn’t offer any tips as to what day/time was best to try though, it was a waste of time.

I got one in the end by ringing a gestor and I had an appointment confirmed same day. Had to pay, of course, but they seem to be able to get slots where mere mortals cannot. Good luck.

@poolman posts crossed but yep, sounds right. I’ve actually done the first appointment twice before, but both times they rang me to come in for the second appt I was in the UK….

Residency, yes. Citizen, no. I’ve been here for twenty years but don’t feel French enough to justify it. It’s seen in some quarters that you need to be more French than the French themselves, if you get my drift.

For me it’s more about getting my EU citizenship back.

Had a quick look and it looks fairly simple . Will have to do my eldest son too as he is turning 18 this year .

Bob, here on the coast the dgt offices are full up so people are going inland where appt are avail. I just checked my spanish dl and all the extra bits like van, trailer, full motorbike have been added. Apparently you have to state that you want them transferring or they can get dropped.

Good luck, I have checked with my gestor many times to confirm all papers are in order. Residency card valid and open ended so will be reluctant to surrender it if i move back to uk.

Leffegarcon here.  Been Belgian for over a year now.  It’s a bit weird as my language and national knowledge will never be enough to feel properly Belgian but I can’t vote in the UK and have paid more tax here so why not

@asbrooks I fully agree with you on that principle, but feel it’s not enough personally for taking another nationality. I’ve read the the livret de nationalité many times and agree with everything in there, it’s still barely scratching the surface of what it is to be French. I’m just not yet feeling it, man. Check back in 5 years time…
As long as the kids are ok; the eldest got his certif de nationalité last month, it’s very simple for 18 yr olds. The younger one is 12, so she can wait another year before we think about starting her paperchase (she’s got an Irish passport anyway)

Not residency, but I’m practising my Irish accent, so I am…

Bob, here on the coast the dgt offices are full up so people are going inland where appt are avail. I just checked my spanish dl and all the extra bits like van, trailer, full motorbike have been added. Apparently you have to state that you want them transferring or they can get dropped.

They are and they aren’t full… I was trying offices within a few hours (Pamplona, Vitoria, Bilbao plus places where I know people like Girona) and they were all fully booked too. Not nearly as many UK citizens up here either so it’s a CV19 thing rather than a last minute rush to change licenses over.

Then I ring a gestor and she gets me an appointment 😀

Thanks for the headsup about the categories. Don’t wanna lose my A2 moto because I’m also matriculating a UK bike here (passed the ITV, just waiting for – you guessed it – a DGT appt!)

I’m also in the process of becoming a German citizen. Been here for 20 years and all my children are German nationals. The main reason is that I have absolutely no voice at the moment. Can’t vote in the UK and now can’t vote in EU elections. 🥺

I’m also in the process of becoming a German citizen

And am I right that you would then have to give up any other citizenships you might have?
Not that it’s necessarily a loss, just remember reading something along those lines

I’ve Irish grandparents, so if the need arises I’ll register on the foreign births register and get a passport. Currently can’t justify the approx £300 it’ll cost, just so I can skip the looooong immigration queue the next time I visit the EU (leaving my wife and kids in the queue may be a problem 😂)

And am I right that you would then have to give up any other citizenships you might have?
I know that before Brexit Germany allowed dual nationality from EU countries. I’m not sure now what the new situation is but if I have to give up my UK citizenship then so be it. Looking from the outside it seems to me the UK is pretty much finished anyway.