Has anybody got a clue, for people who spend 6 months of the year in Bg?

[johndoe3]

Mrs. Doe and I are wondering how the documentation is going to transpire.
From previous posts, I garner that an International Driving Licence may be required.
3 months is the normal length for a visa.
There are "interesting times" ahead for us, when we go to Dobrich for our Lichna Karta.
Computer says no .

[paul-alice]

We live near Dobrich and if you want your Lichna Karta best get it before BREXIT, its an easy process and you have it in one or two days after applying.
I am exchanging my uk licence to a bg one so i will not need an international licence, i know a couple of people who have got their residency cards and only here 4 months of the year here in bg.

[Mat]

Legally to retain residency you must be resident at least 6 months of the year. Of course, with the UK being in the EU this is all unnecessary but with the new arrangements, there will be passport stamps and much more in the way of date counting. I have a Canadian friend who has to religiously check his days in and days out to not lose his deeply treasured 10% tax rate. Post Brexit, the formal tourism allowance will be 3 months in 6 months and you will not be able to 3 months + 3 months and then leave for 6 months. I would strongly advise you to get the residency now (before March) and then make your travel plans accordingly to ensure that you retain it. No doubt over time sense will prevail and something approaching what we currently have will be worked out (for non-workers).

[johndoe3]

I expect that this year will be a bit of a bumpy ride for Mrs. Doe and me. As luck would have it,
our EHIC card runs out in February, and cannot be renewed until February.
Our Bg. Card (renewed every 5 years), also runs out at the same time. So we will be in new ground,when we go up to Dobrich in mid April.
Interesting times lie ahead for certain,so I am expecting a new Industry of “Fixers and Agents” to
appear on the scene to replace the “Estate Agents”.

[Mat]

I would strongly advise that you change your plans and go earlier - your status on 29th March 2019 will determine your future status after that date, so if you wait until April when your residency will have lapsed you will be considered as if you have never been to BG. This will potentially affect everything, including your ability to own a house in your name - conceivably you will have to establish a company, sell your house to the company (and pay a bunch of taxes) and then have the costs of operating the company.

[truckyboy]

If we manage to leave on the 29th march, theres no panic, as we will have a transition period, so basically nothing will change, this gives us time to make reciprocal arrangements, with the countries in the Eu, of whom we will allow their citizens to remain..so dont worry, its all about the scaremongering, and many have fallen for them.

[Mat]

It could be scaremongering, but much like Project Fear, it is actually the truth. We may dodge a bullet down the road, but you would be a fool to believe that everything will be OK and they need us as much as we need them. A specific policy objective of Brexit is to reduce the number of people from the EU living in the UK - why would this not lead to a reciprocal response from the EU? Theresa May has shown an absolute willingness to throw us living in the EU under the bus at the very first opportunity, don't look to her or the UK for any protection whatsoever.

Edit: IF we manage to get an agreement - which now seems extremely unlikely. If we crash out on 29th March 2019 there will be no transition period and your status as of that day will be paramount.

[banjo]

From reading the reports T.M will not get the deal through the government if that is the case then we will leave the EU on the 29th march without any agreement. Thats when the sh*it will hit the fan as of yet no one has a bl**dy clue what will happen if the above happens apart from the government opening up old airfields down south to stack up lorries. Just been reading about the effect it will have on Brits living in Spain 1.2 million a good estimate we all are in limbo so carry on as normal until something happens that we can do something about. Mat one of the first things T.M and Junker agreed to was to protect people living and working in the UK and visa versa but if we leave with no deal things I think will get rather uncomfortable but we will have to wait and see.People are still booking their summer holidays to Europe and people in Europe are still coming to the UK.

[Mat]

Agreed, it was one of the first things they said they would do - and since then have done precisely the opposite! They could easily have cut this out as a side conversation and said 'right, all you lot freeze - your status stays the same until you die whatever the overall agreement says'. But May refused and has since come up with her own rules that are way less than this for EU citizens living in the UK - to which the EU has to respond reciprocally. It is likely that we will not be forced out, but if you do want to stay it might not be a bad idea to do as much as you can now. This whole debacle has been caused by people voting on something they didn't understand assuming that the political elite will look after us. They clearly have no more clue than the bloke in the pub, so you would be well advised to do whatever is in your power to get as secure as you can in your residency before the end of March. Cos after that is a big black hole of mystery and chaos...

[Mat]

People are still booking their summer holidays to Europe and people in Europe are still coming to the UK.

For holidays you will be fine - even if you need a visa it will be cheap and painless and electronic so you will barely notice it. Its for residency and working that the issue is more serious...