Travel’s harder, the kids visit less and we can’t get cheddar
A retired British couple living in France say that rule changes after Brexit have made travel a “hassle” and led to them seeing their children and grandchildren less.
Owen and Beverly Leeds, both 66, told i that getting their favourite British foods such as bacon and cheddar cheese has also become an expensive quest as meat and dairy products cannot be brought into the European Union from a non-EU country.
The couple, from Northumberland, used to ask friends and family to bring items when they visited. Now they have to order them from Ireland, and the minimum spend is €100 (£82), with 2.5 kilos of bacon costing €39 (£34) and 800 grams of cheddar costing €14.95 (£13).
They have been living in southern Burgundy permanently since 2018, after buying a two-bedroom house for about £100,000 in 2015. But like other expats, they have found that post-Brexit travel rules are making life much harder.
Ms Leeds, a former lecturer, said that travel rules after Brexit are so complicated that they don’t go back to the UK to see their three children and two grandchildren as much as they used to.
Her children also visit France less often because of complex requirements for non-EU citizens that include proving they have €120 (£103) a day for the duration of their stay or having a “welcome letter” from a host; having proof of travel insurance that includes health and repatriation (not just an EHIC or GHIC); and having a return ticket.
“Our daughter has a dog and it is now a lot of hassle and expensive to bring a dog on holiday to the EU,” she added.
Since the end of the Brexit transition period in January 2021, Britons travelling to the EU or Schengen Area who do not have EU residency have their passports stamped so authorities can check they are not overstaying the 90-day visa-free period they are entitled to over 180 days.
The couple say they have had to repeatedly tell border guards not to stamp their passports as they have free movement in the EU as French residents.
When they recently tried to catch a flight from Tenerife, Spain, to the UK, Ms Leeds said a border control guard “threw my residency card at me and asked: ‘What is this stupid piece of plastic?’”
“I think Brexit was one of the most stupid and irrational things that the UK has ever done to itself and that any country has ever done to itself. I am resigned at the moment because I can’t do anything about it,” Ms Leeds said.
Things are set to get more complicated with the new European Travel Information and Authorisation System (Etias), which the EU plans to launch in 2024.
An approved Etias application will be mandatory for all visa-exempt travellers, including British passport holders, while visiting any of 30 countries in Europe. EU nationals and those who have a residence permit, card or document issued by any EU country are exempt.
“We are really worried of what’s going to happen when we try to either leave or come into France from the UK without an Etias,” Ms Leeds said.
“We can’t apply for one because we are French residents but having had the problem with passports being stamped, I can’t imagine what they are going to do when we don’t have an Etias and they think we should have one.”
Besides travelling, another “frustrating” issue the couple have encountered since trade regulations between the EU and the UK changed is getting food shipped from the UK.
Ms Leeds, who has coeliac disease, said she used to get gluten-free flour from Britain as such products are “really expensive” in France. Since the company she previously used stopped shipping when paperwork became “too complicated” after Brexit, Ms Leeds has had to fork out €8 (£7) for a kilo of gluten-free flour in France.
The couple say they now make orders with other Britons in their area to share the goods and cost.
Ms Leeds says she appreciated “it would never be the same again” after the UK decided to leave the EU in 2016, but wished trade rules could return to how they were.
“Brexit has caused that [change] and I blame the people who lied [about its benefits],” she said.
