By Humphrey Carter

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The devil is in the details and no one is too sure what were the exact details discussed during the meeting between the Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and Sir Keir Starmer last week. Was the 90-day rule brought up? However, it appears that the 90-day rule and the status of British home owners in France continues to be a burning issue.

The French Senator for Savoie Martine Berthet, who the Bulletin has been in regular contact with, contacted the Bulletin this week to share with you a copy of the letter she has receieved from the Minister of the Interior Bruno Retailleau regarding the conditions for authorising British nationals who own second homes to reside in France.

“Dear Senator,
You brought to the attention of Mr Bruno Retailleau, Minister of State, Minister of the Interior, the situation of British nationals who own second homes in France and would like to see a simplification of the procedures for issuing long-stay visas. Attentive to your request, the Minister has had the situation reviewed.

Upon leaving the European Union (EU), the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland chose to renounce the principle of free movement of persons, which allowed its nationals to live, study, work and travel freely in any EU Member State. This decision put an end to the legal framework for long-stay visa exemptions for the purpose of settling in France, which UK nationals were able to take advantage of before leaving the Union.

The agreement on the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the European Union provided for the possibility for British nationals who were residing in the territory of a host Member State before 1 January 2021 to continue to reside there. This provision also applied to their family members who are third-country nationals residing with them in the host Member State.

Since 31 December 2020, the end of the transition period during which British owners of residences in France were able to assert their right to reside in France, common law applies. The Code on the Entry and Stay of Foreigners and the Right of Asylum (CESEDA) offers two possibilities for long stays:
– For stays of between three and six months, a foreign national may apply for a temporary long-stay visa (VLS-T ‘visitor’) which cannot be renewed in France and which exempts its holder from the requirement to obtain a residence permit during its period of validity and does not involve any other formalities or payment of fees.
– For stays of more than six months, a foreign national may apply for a long-stay visa valid as a residence permit (VLS-TS ‘visitor’), with the secondary residence becoming de facto the foreign national’s main residence. This visa is valid as a residence permit for a maximum period of 12 months and allows the holder to apply for a residence permit at the prefecture two months before its expiry date.

Consequently, British citizens wishing to settle in France must submit an application via the France-Visas application. In this regard, outsourcing the processing of visa applications in the United Kingdom makes it possible to cope with the increase in the overall volume of applications and absorb seasonal peaks, while ensuring an excellent level of quality in the processing and reception of the public by reducing queues through the use of dedicated appointments.

In 2024, our consular office in London issued 139,317 visas. The waiting time for an appointment to submit a long-stay visa application is 3.5 days, and the processing time for this type of visa is 8 days.
The French authorities consider that this system guarantees the efficient processing of visa applications, ensuring a high level of security both for applicants and in the quality of the examination of applications.

With regard to a possible simplification of the procedure involving the uploading of supporting documents to France-Visas, this is being considered for both short-stay and long-stay visas, as a European regulation of 22 October 2023 provided for this possibility from 2028 onwards.
However, the collection of biometric data will remain mandatory under the conditions provided for by the European regulatory framework insofar as it meets the objective of preventing fraud and contributes to the security of the Schengen area.
Yours sincerely,
Xavier Thirode”