Protecting the rights of both UK Nationals living in the EU and EU citizens living in the UK is an absolute priority for the Government. I am writing to set out the actions that the Government is taking to protect the rights of UK Nationals living in the EU if we leave the EU without a deal. While this Conservative Government is taking actions to safeguard our citizens, all the Labour Party offer is more pointless delay and uncertainty - stopping the country the country from moving beyond Brexit which means we can't get on with the important issues that matter to people.
Status of Member State plans
Over 1 million UK Nationals live in the EU27. If we leave the EU without a deal, UK Nationals must rely largely on the EU and Member States to protect their rights.
Following an intensive lobbying campaign by the UK Government, all Member States have now drafted or passed legislation to protect UK Nationals' rights if we leave the EU without a deal. We are now re-doubling our efforts to encourage Member States to address remaining gaps where their plans fall short of the UK's guarantee to EU citizens - for example on the conditions associated with residency, or the length of the application window. We are also calling on Member States to ensure robust and well-resourced implementation of their plans, and to communicate clearly to UK Nationals the actions they need to take. I am pleased to report that several Member States have already strengthened their protections for UK Nationals in response to our lobbying. For example, Cyprus has extended the registration period for residency to the end of 2020, and Ministers from Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia and Hungary have committed to re-examine their plans with a view to ensuring reciprocity with the UK's offer to EU citizens.
We have reached separate agreements on citizens' rights with the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) states: Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein and Switzerland. These agreements provide certainty to both UK Nationals in the EFTA states and EFTA Nationals in the UK resident in each other's countries before Brexit that they can continue to live, work, study and access benefits and services broadly as now. We have also agreed a transitional migration agreement with Switzerland to provide for access to each other's labour markets until December 2020.
Social security coordination, including reciprocal healthcare
Social security coordination is an important element of citizens' rights. Certain aspects of social security coordination, including reciprocal healthcare, cannot be protected unilaterally and require reciprocity and cooperation from the EU or individual Member States.
Our priority has always been to maintain reciprocal healthcare arrangements once we leave the EU. That is why the UK Government has proposed to the EU and all Member States that existing reciprocal healthcare arrangements (under Regulation 883) continue until 31 December 2020 if we leave the EU without a deal. Continuing these arrangements would safeguard healthcare for the hundreds of thousands of UK insured persons who reside in Member States or who require medical treatment each year while holidaying in Europe.
The UK and Spain have now put measures in place to ensure that people living in each country will continue to access healthcare as they do now until at least 31 December 2020.
Maintaining existing reciprocal healthcare arrangements, however, relies on agreement from Member States, and so in the event that arrangements with all Member States have not been finalised by 31 October, the Government announced on 23 September that it is putting in place comprehensive contingency arrangements. These cover people whose healthcare the UK would currently fund, as either a resident in the EU, or a temporary visitor in the EU whose trip to the EU or treatment started before Brexit.
The Government laid a Written Ministerial Statement (Update on Reciprocal Healthcare Arrangements for Brexit) on 26th September which explains in more detail the status of our discussions with Member States and the contingency arrangements.
Detailed information has been published on gov.uk and nhs.uk on the situation for each Member State, including what arrangements have been put in place. These pages will be kept updated as further assurances from Member States are received. We have also written to S1 holders in Member States to encourage individuals to consider their circumstances and options and to take the necessary steps to ensure they have appropriate coverage in place.
Reciprocal healthcare sits within the wider EU social security coordination framework. The UK Government, therefore, wants to continue to apply the current EU social security coordination framework for a transitional period until the end of December 2020. This would ensure, amongst other things, that workers only pay into one social security scheme at a time.
Discussions with Member States are ongoing, but we have also put in place a set of measures, in addition to the reciprocal healthcare contingency arrangements, to provide certainty to UK Nationals in the EU where it is possible for us to do so unilaterally. Recently, the Government has committed to uprate UK State Pensions for pensioners living in Member States for 2020-21, 2021-22 and 2022-23, while we seek reciprocal arrangements.
Education
The Government has sought reassurances from Member States that they will protect UK higher education (HE) students already enrolled on courses in the EU, for the duration of their courses, if we leave without a deal. The four countries where the majority of UK Nationals are studying (the Netherlands, Germany, France, Ireland) have already provided full reassurances that UK HE (non-Erasmus) students will continue to have access to their equivalent of domestic fee status and will maintain access to student finance (where relevant) and temporary residency and healthcare for the duration of their current course. Discussions are ongoing with other Member States.
DHSC have also committed to continue existing cover of healthcare costs for students for the duration of their course, should they be already studying in a MS at the point that the UK leaves the EU.
We have published guidance on 'continuing your studies in the EU after Brexit on gov.uk. This also links to further guidance from the Office for Students (OfS) and UCAS on additional support for UK higher education students in the EU if we leave without a deal.
UK Nationals and their children living in the EEA or Switzerland, who wish to study in the UK, will be eligible for home fee status and student support for courses starting up to seven years from exit day. Further guidance is available at gov.uk/guidance/advice-for-british-nationals-travelling-and-living-in-europe
Voting rights
The Government has been clear that the issue of local voting rights of EU citizens living in the UK needs to be considered alongside the rights and interests of British expats living abroad.
The rights of EU citizens to vote and stand in UK local elections will not immediately change on exit from the EU and we are seeking reciprocal bilateral agreements to maintain this right. The Government has already signed reciprocal bilateral agreements with Spain, Portugal and Luxembourg to guarantee local voting and candidacy rights for UK Nationals in those states.
Communication and engagement
The FCO is running an £11m information campaign to provide clear factual advice to UK Nationals living in and travelling to the EU. We are directing UK Nationals to "living in' guides and travel advice on gov.uk, which provide up-to-date guidance on the actions that individuals need to take now to get ready for Brexit on 31 October.
Our Embassies and Consulates are intensifying their engagement with British communities in Member States. To date we have held over 552 outreach events for UK Nationals across Europe since November 2017, reaching over 258,000 attendees. We have significantly increased the capacity of our Europe consular network to ensure we can effectively respond to any increase in UK Nationals seeking consular help following Brexit. Furthermore, we have announced up to £3 million in grant funding to third-party organisations to provide practical help to UK Nationals with applying for residence in their host Member States.
Should you receive enquiries from your constituents regarding steps that they - or their friends and families living in the EU – need to take to get ready for Brexit on 31 October, please direct them to the relevant 'living in' guide on gov.uk. If your constituents are planning to visit the EU after Brexit, please direct them to the guidance at gov.uk/visit-europe-brexit.