This blog post was published under the 2015 to 2024 Conservative government

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Leigh Turner

Ambassador to Austria and UK Permanent Representative to the United Nations and other International Organisations in Vienna

Part of Brexit UK in Austria

14th January 2020 Vienna, Austria

New video: an update for UK nationals in Austria

Video Script:

Where are we with Brexit? The Withdrawal Agreement Bill is working its way through Parliament in London. Once confirmed in the UK, it has to be agreed by the European Parliament. The UK will then leave the European Union, with a deal, on 31st January at 11pm UK time.

At this point, we will enter a “transition period” or “implementation period” until 31st December 2020, during which the UK and EU will negotiate our future relationship. You may still hear talk about a possible “no deal” during this time, but this refers mainly to our future relationship in areas such as trade, and not your right to live in Austria.

So, what does this mean for UK nationals living in Austria now, and what action do you have to take?

The Withdrawal Agreement provides certainty to UK nationals resident in the EU that you will be able to continue to live your lives broadly as you have done so far after the end of the Implementation Period – whether you are studying here, working, or retired. During the Implementation Period, you will also be free to move to live in another EU country, should you wish. But you will, after 31st January, need to do some form of registration with the Austrian authorities to exercise your right to continue to live in Austria.

We are waiting for confirmation from the Austrian authorities on the exact registration process you will need to follow, but the Withdrawal Agreement states that they will be “transparent, smooth and streamlined”. In the meantime, do ensure that you are correctly registered in Austria. Like before, this will usually mean having your Meldezettel and Anmeldebescheinigung in order.

So, to be clear, you do not need to do anything before the 31st of January, other than ensure you are correctly registered according to the current rules.

We are in regular contact with the Austrian authorities and will keep you up to date, so do follow the embassy on social media, and sign up for email updates on our living in Austria guide, which is at gov.uk/livinginaustria.

If you haven’t checked out the Living in Austria pages at that website, do have a look.

Thanks very much.

About Leigh Turner

I hope you find this blog interesting and, where appropriate, entertaining. My role in Vienna covers the relationship between Austria and the UK as well as the diverse work of…

I hope you find this blog interesting and, where appropriate, entertaining. My role in Vienna covers the relationship between Austria and the UK as well as the diverse work of the UN and other organisations; stories here will reflect that.

About me: I arrived in Vienna in August 2016 for my second posting in this wonderful city, having first served here in the mid-1980s. My previous job was as HM Consul-General and Director-General for Trade and Investment for Turkey, Central Asia and South Caucasus based in Istanbul.

Further back: I grew up in Nigeria, Exeter, Lesotho, Swaziland and Manchester before attending Cambridge University 1976-79. I worked in several government departments before joining the Foreign Office in 1983.

Keen to go to Africa and South America, I’ve had postings in Vienna (twice), Moscow, Bonn, Berlin, Kyiv and Istanbul, plus jobs in London ranging from the EU Budget to the British Overseas Territories.

2002-6 I was lucky enough to spend four years in Berlin running the house, looking after the children (born 1992 and 1994) and doing some writing and journalism.

To return to Vienna as ambassador is a privilege and a pleasure. I hope this blog reflects that.

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