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Expat Citizenship News
Latest 10 news items tagged Citizenship
19 Oct at 6 PM 2018
Expat voters with representatives could change the world
Over the last five decades, the number of expats living abroad has soared to 250 million, but almost all have no effective political representation back in the home country. Whilst it might seem illogical that citizens who’ve opted to spend many years overseas should have a say in the politics of the home country, the last few years have shown how necessary this is. Across the world, recent elections and one referendum have brought in disastrous changes which would possible not have happened should expat opinions and their votes...
19 Oct at 6 PM 2018
No need for UK expat panic over French draft law
A media clarification about the French government’s intentions for UK expats after a no-deal Brexit explains the issue as it now stands. Recent press reports on British expats’ status in France should a no-deal Brexit happen have caused unnecessary concern to many UK citizens who’ve chosen to make the country their permanent home.The French parliament’s recently released draft law does not in any way make life impossible for the British expat community. Misinterpretation of the document’s initial paragraph seems to have...
17 Oct at 6 PM 2018
Disenfranchised Brit expats come closer to getting vote
A Welsh MP's private members’ bill aimed at ending the hated 15-year disenfranchisement rule has moved one small step closer to becoming law. The Overseas Electors Bill, brought forward by MP Glyn Davies and supported by famous nonagenarian British expat Harry Shindler, has been passed for a second reading by the British House of Commons. Parliamentarians approved the financing of the bill, but also stated there are serious concerns about the cost of adding some five million voters to Britain’s electoral roll. The 15-year...
16 Oct at 6 PM 2018
Controversy surrounding Golden Visas causes calls for more control
Recent publicity surrounding the controversial subject of Golden Visas is resulting in calls for more control over their issuance. EU lawmakers are now calling for tighter controls over the so-called Golden Visa purchases of second passports and residential rights in exchange for cash. Major concerns about the second passport schemes are centred around the likelihood of money-laundering, especially since a spate of scandals concerning Malta, Estonia, Denmark and Latvia came to light. It has to be said that it’s not clear whether or...
12 Oct at 6 PM 2018
New German laws aim at helping UK expat workers avoid post-Brexit problems
Germany is making plans to simplify the lives of resident British expats during the post-Brexit transition period. As the British government struggles to get its own way over Brexit, German Chancellor Angela Merkel is working on a plan to make UK expats’ lives easier for at least a short while. Berlin is now drafting a new law which will allow British expats living and working in Germany the option of keeping their UK citizenship after applying for German citizenship for at least as long as the duration of the post-Brexit...
11 Oct at 6 PM 2018
Portugal Golden Visa programme nets four billion euros
Portugal’s Golden Visa programme has now benefitted the country by around four billion euros since its 2012 inception. The term ’Golden Visa’ tends to raise blood pressures in Portugal’s everyday expat communities and invariably attract negative comments, but they’re a great way for a country to fill its coffers with cash, wherever the funds originate and however they arrived in the country. A total of 6,500 second passports and residency rights have been granted, and the cash investment required has been mainly used to...
9 Oct at 6 PM 2018
Is Vision 2030 the end for expat professionals in Saudi
Is Vision 2030 the death knell for expatriate professionals in Saudi Arabia? Launched in 2016 by Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince, Vision 2030 is intended to diversify the Kingdom’s economy away from its traditional dependency on oil revenues. For decades, the Gulf State has been a haven for expat professionals earning salaries and living luxury lifestyles unimaginable in their home countries. Nowadays, the introduction of Saudization is gradually decreasing opportunities and discouraging top talent from risking their careers in what...
8 Oct at 6 PM 2018
Meetup between Brit diplomats and expat campaign groups disappoints
Last week’s meeting in Madrid between leaders of UK expat anti-Brexit campaign groups and Britain’s Minister for Exiting the European Union Robin Walker seems to have been yet another unsuccessful attempt to clarify UK expatriate concerns. British expats living, retiring and working in Spain may well consider the sudden interest in their cause by UK parliamentary lawmakers is a perfect example of ‘too little, too late’. The meetup, held at the British Embassy in Madrid, involved Spanish business leaders, Spanish politicians...
5 Oct at 6 PM 2018
South Korea to toughen health insurance rules for expatriates
The South Korean government is to revise the rules by which expats and Korean citizens living overseas access its national health insurance system. According to the Korean government, the toughening up of its national health insurance regulations is the result of the exploitation of loopholes in the system by expats, allowing expensive treatments to be provided for small payments. The changes will take effect from early this December, according to the Korean Ministry of Health. It would seem foreigners have been taking advantage...
4 Oct at 6 PM 2018
