Woman in France since age 7 ordered to leave due to residency card irregularities
The 26-year-old was issued the order despite growing up in France
Niamh Chapman applied for a Brexit WA residency card when she should have applied for a visa, says Hautes-Pyrénées prefecture
BreizhAtao / Shutterstock / Diocese in Europe
A 26-year-old British woman who grew up in France has had to move back to the UK after facing two OQTF (Obligation to leave French territory) orders to leave the country over residency irregularities linked to Brexit.
She moved voluntarily in an agreement with the prefecture, rather than await expulsion, but Niamh Chapman is now reportedly looking to come back again via a long-stay visa application linked to the fact she married a French citizen last December.
Her situation has drawn attention to the strict residency rules faced by Britons since 2021 – which, as her prefecture has pointed out, are the same for all non-EU foreigners.
The prefect of the Hautes-Pyrénées, Jean Salomon, told la Dépêche du Midi the order to leave was due to the fact she had no valid visa or residency card and France must act “neutrally”, without regard for a person’s country of origin.
Ms Chapman had lived in France since she was seven, when her parents moved from North Yorkshire, but moved back to the UK in 2018 to help her sick grandmother.
She partly delayed her return due to Covid restrictions, meaning she came back after Brexit took effect.
She then attempted to apply for a residency card.
However, the prefect said the reason for the OQTF was that she should have applied for a visa in the UK and because Britons are now obliged to hold a visa and/or residency card to stay long-term.
Britons living in France before December 31, 2020, who continued to live here qualified for special Withdrawal Agreement (WA) residency cards without the need for a visa.
However, there are no special exemptions for adult children of ‘WA’ Britons.
