No-Deal Brexit Updates

---

At a Glance 

• The Dutch Immigration and Naturalization Service (IND) updated its Brexit website with new information for UK nationals and their family members in the Netherlands about the transition period that would follow a no-deal Brexit.
• Under the updated instructions, the 15-month transition period would run until January 31, 2021 if the UK leaves the EU without a deal on October 31, 2019.
• The IND plans on re-sending temporary residence permits to registered UK nationals and their family members to allow them to continue to reside in the Netherlands during the transition period.

 

The situation

The Dutch Immigration Authority (IND) updated its Brexit website with new important conditions for UK nationals and their family members in the Netherlands after the transition period that would follow Brexit.

 

A closer look

The most important new information is:

• Transition period end date. The transition period in the event of a no-deal Brexit will be extended until January 31, 2021.
• Residence permit receipt for no-deal Brexit. The website contains information on how the IND will re-send temporary residence permits to registered UK nationals and their family members living in the Netherlands to allow them to continue to reside in the Netherlands during the national transition period.
  • No-deal Brexit. In the event of a no-deal Brexit, new temporary residence permits will be sent out by mail in two stages:
    • A few days before Brexit. The IND will send temporary residence permits in the form of a letter to registered UK nationals who did not receive one in March 2019. This also applies to those arrived in the Netherlands and registered their permit after March 29, 2019. These temporary residence permits are valid during the national transition period until July 1, 2020.
    • After Brexit. The IND will send out new temporary residence permits to all registered UK nationals and their family members who already received one. This temporary residence permit will be valid during the national transition period until January 31, 2021.

 

Impact

The new information on the IND website updates the old information, which was based on the old Brexit date of June 30, 2019. Since foreign workers must provide valid temporary residence permits to their employers for immigration rule compliance purposes, it is important for foreign nationals to obtain residence permits with updated validity dates. 

Background

The Dutch government launched the Brexit website in February 2018 to help businesses assess the potential impact of Brexit on their organizations, prepare contingency plans, and monitor developments.

Many other EU countries have published contingency plans for UK nationals in case of a no-deal Brexit.

Looking ahead 

 

Although the UK Parliament has passed a law to attempt to block a no-deal Brexit, the default position is that the United Kingdom will leave the European Union on October 31, 2019 without a deal unless a further extension is approved by the European Union or a deal is agreed before then. Fragomen’s advice therefore remains to ensure that businesses have contingency plans in place for a no-deal Brexit on October 31, 2019. 

 

This alert is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions, please contact the global immigration professional with whom you work at Fragomen or send an email to [email protected].