British tourists might need to apply for a £52 visa to travel to the EU after March 29 due to a fresh argument over the status of Gibraltar, a British overseas territory.
Although remaining EU member states had agreed to exempt UK nationals from requiring a visa to travel to continental Europe after Brexit, Spain has insisted that the legislation being drawn up to allow this to happen should include a footnote describing Gibraltar as a 'British colony'.
However, this was rejected yesterday by the European parliament, which denounced the description as 'colonial language which has no place in the world'.
If the member states are unable to reach an agreement on the wording in the next few weeks, there will be no visa exemption for UK travellers to the EU after March 29.
This might mean they would have to apply for a Schengen visa, which costs €60 (£52) and takes up to three weeks to process, or wait for the completion of bilateral deals with individual member states before being allowed to travel.
Czech MEP Petr Jezek told The Guardian: "The negotiation is stuck.
"Brexit will hurt immensely and we should do everything possible to soften the impact rather than create further problems for half a billion people. If there is no agreement, and no visa exemption for the UK, the British government may adopt a similar approach - and that would be a disaster."
The European Parliament has suggested the footnote should simply state that there is 'a controversy between Spain and the United Kingdom concerning the sovereignty of Gibraltar', but so far this has not proved acceptable to the European Council.
Courtesy of Travelmole
I am pretty sure that those in the tourist trade in Spain won't want this. Imagine if British holidaymakers boycotted Spain.
Or any other EU country without paying your fifty two pounds.
Exactly Judith. Far too much information & hassle required.
Glynis, the link you provide is to a commercial Visa application agency which has a vested interest in making applying for a visa for entry to Spain appear so complicated that you would be well advised to pay extra to a 3rd party agency. If you look at the Spanish Consular website it looks much more straightforward and it also lists a considerable number of countries for which no visa is required anyway and others for which the process is more streamlined than that agency makes out. To be honest I don't think it would take much for the UK post-Brexit to be added to that list. However, the easiest way for the UK Government to get around the seeming impasse is to agree to acknowledge that Giberalter is indeed a UK colony. It's a throwback to the days of Empire that should really have been sorted long ago.
But does applying for visas really deter UK people from going to visit those countries that require them? Do people, for example, really think 'I'm not going to go to the USA because I'll have to get a visa? I have to say that whether I'll need a visa or not has never played a big part in my decision making. And without wanting to start a big political discussion, all this furore says to me is that an awful lot of 'Leave' voters don't have a leg to stand on when objecting to this because they've kept telling 'Remain' voters like me that of course they knew exactly what they voted for and that 'Leave means leave'! Well now they are discovering that 'Leave means that you'll need a visa'.
But does applying for visas really deter UK people from going to visit those countries that require them? Do people, for example, really think 'I'm not going to go to the USA because I'll have to get a visa? I have to say that whether I'll need a visa or not has never played a big part in my decision making. And without wanting to start a big political discussion, all this furore says to me is that an awful lot of 'Leave' voters don't have a leg to stand on when objecting to this because they've kept telling 'Remain' voters like me that of course they knew exactly what they voted for and that 'Leave means leave'! Well now they are discovering that 'Leave means that you'll need a visa'.
SMa, would you provide a link to the website you used as I'd like to have a look? Thanks.
Taking a look HERE it appears that back in 2012, when applying for a Spanish visa, similar information was required & was causing upset for the traveller.
I've been to the US &, at the time, was able to complete my visa application on the flight. Will this change?
Yes, personally speaking, if countries require bank statements or letters from employers etc or any other information that's going to be long winded then no, I won't bother going.
Taking a look HERE it appears that back in 2012, when applying for a Spanish visa, similar information was required & was causing upset for the traveller.
I've been to the US &, at the time, was able to complete my visa application on the flight. Will this change?
Yes, personally speaking, if countries require bank statements or letters from employers etc or any other information that's going to be long winded then no, I won't bother going.
This is the lnk to the information on the website for the Spanish Consul in London:
http://www.exteriores.gob.es/Consulados/LONDRES/en/Consulado/Pages/CheckPassport.aspx
There is more to the story behind the link to the post on Tripadvisor than first meets the eye, A 'Schengen Visa' is what you need for an extended visit of 90+ days and also gives you some residency rights plus the right to then travel anywhere within the Schengen area. No one just planning a holiday visit to Spain is likely to need a 'Schengen visa'. Plus I suspect that the person concerned (wife of the poster?) was probably not a US passport holder either because under the current regulations USA citizens don't need a visa to visit Spain for less than 90 days and was, therefore, probably a citizen of one of the countries listed in Section 3 rather than Section 2 on the link above.
The situation and regulations described in that Tripadvisor post seem to be very similar to what the UK authorities requires for anybody from outside of the EU wishing to visit the UK for longer than 90 days on a family or spousal visa. I know a number of people who've had to jump through the same hoops to bring family members here for a visit from Cuba or from a number of Commonwealth countries.
I've no idea what will happen re the USA in future and doubt that anybody knows what spanner Trump might throw into the works! But all countries tend to have much sticter regulations for people wanting to make extended visits of 90+ days compared to the 2/3 weeks that most people's holiday trips last.
http://www.exteriores.gob.es/Consulados/LONDRES/en/Consulado/Pages/CheckPassport.aspx
There is more to the story behind the link to the post on Tripadvisor than first meets the eye, A 'Schengen Visa' is what you need for an extended visit of 90+ days and also gives you some residency rights plus the right to then travel anywhere within the Schengen area. No one just planning a holiday visit to Spain is likely to need a 'Schengen visa'. Plus I suspect that the person concerned (wife of the poster?) was probably not a US passport holder either because under the current regulations USA citizens don't need a visa to visit Spain for less than 90 days and was, therefore, probably a citizen of one of the countries listed in Section 3 rather than Section 2 on the link above.
The situation and regulations described in that Tripadvisor post seem to be very similar to what the UK authorities requires for anybody from outside of the EU wishing to visit the UK for longer than 90 days on a family or spousal visa. I know a number of people who've had to jump through the same hoops to bring family members here for a visit from Cuba or from a number of Commonwealth countries.
I've no idea what will happen re the USA in future and doubt that anybody knows what spanner Trump might throw into the works! But all countries tend to have much sticter regulations for people wanting to make extended visits of 90+ days compared to the 2/3 weeks that most people's holiday trips last.
If it's a case of a visa costs you £52 to enter Spain, you pay your money on entry, fair enough, that's up to the individual. I've paid £10 to enter Turkey in the past.
If, they only want proof of earnings, letters from employers, how much cash in your bank etc, for stays longer than 90 days, again that's fair, I know Australian immigration require such information as do ours.
The Balearic Islands.... With their tourist tax & potentially a visa tax.... 😳
Thanks for the link SMa it'll be helpful in the future for updates. 👍
If, they only want proof of earnings, letters from employers, how much cash in your bank etc, for stays longer than 90 days, again that's fair, I know Australian immigration require such information as do ours.
The Balearic Islands.... With their tourist tax & potentially a visa tax.... 😳
Thanks for the link SMa it'll be helpful in the future for updates. 👍
At the moment the Visa for USA is a lot cheaper than the proposed euro visa. It also lasts for 2 years.
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