Brexit

END OF THE TRANSITION PERIOD :

As of the 1st of January 2021, which marks the end of the transition period, European right will no longer apply within the UK. The regulations governing the movements of UK citizens and their family members will change from that date onwards. The regulations governing the movements of some third countries nationals residing in the United Kingdom will also change from that date onwards.

WITHDRAWAL AGREEMENT :

You are a British citizen / family member of a UK citizen and you moved to France before the end of the transition period, ie before the 1st of January 2021 : You benefit from the withdrawal agreement and can continue to reside in France. You are entitled to a residency permit ‘withdrawal agreement’ of either 5 years (if you have lived in France for less than 5 years) or 10 years (if you have lived in France for more than 5 years) – you had to request this residency permit online before July 1, 2021. However, people who have not been able to apply for a residence permit by the deadline will still be able to do so until 04 October 2021, as this website will remain open until that date. As of 1 January 2022 you must be in possession of your residence permit.
You are a British citizen, have been married or in an established relationship* with a French National prior to the 1st of January 2021 and moved to France prior to that date : You benefit from the withdrawal agreement and can continue to reside in France. *Established relationship: either a PACS or durable, duly attested relationship. Attention, if you move to France after the 1st of January 2021, you will need to apply for a Long Stay visa.
You are the family member (spouse, partner, children, dependent ascendants, British nationals or citizens of third countries, the family link must be prior to 2021 except for descendants) of a British citizen and will not have moved to France by the 31st of December 2020 : If you are moving to France to be with your British family member who already resides in France or if the ties that link you with your British family member were established by the 31st of December 2020, you will need to apply for a short-term Schengen entry visa. This will be granted free of charge (visa fee and service fee waived at the TLS drop-off centre), on the basis of an accelerated procedure upon evidence of your relationship and of documents showing that your British family member benefited from the withdrawal agreement. You are exempt from this entry visa if you are a British citizen.
You are British and you settled in France after January 1st 2021 or you wish to settle there soon : You cannot benefit from the withdrawal agreement and the common laws on the entry and residence of third country nationals apply. You will therefore need to submit an application for a Long Stay visa (staying more than 90 days in France) to the French Consulate General London if you are a UK resident or to the French Consulate in the country you live in.
You are a British frontier worker, working in France by the 1st of January 2021 and continuing to do so thereafter whilst residing in another EU state (or assimilated) : You will benefit from a right to enter and stay. As from the 1st of October 2021, you will need to hold a ‘document de circulation’ stating "Article 50TUE- travailleur frontalier/Accord de retrait du Royaume-Uni de l'UE- Non-résident "(art 26). This will be granted free of charge and will need to be requested from the ‘Prefecture’ where you work.

For more detailed information, please see :

WHAT WON’T CHANGE ON THE 1ST OF JANUARY 2021 :

You may still travel / apply for a visa with your British passport issued prior to the 1st of January 2021 until it expires (even if bearing the mention European Union).
British citizens do not require a visa if spending up to 90 days over a 180 days period in the Schengen area. You may however be asked like any other third country nationals to justify your travel by the Immigration Officer (means of living, address of stay, medical travel insurance…). To see the map of the Schengen area here.
British citizens, married to EU nationals, wishing to settle or reside more than 90 days in France (at the same time as their spouse or rejoining him/her) will not require a settlement visa (pursuant to the EU Directive 2004/38).
To travel to the French Overseas territories, British citizens do not require a visa for short stays (up to 90 days).
No change either for the holders of other British passports : British Nationals (Overseas), British Overseas Territories Citizens, British Overseas Citizens, British Protected Persons, British Subjects.
UK citizens going to France to work for up to 90 days will not require a visa. They will need to obtain a temporary work permit unless travelling for a sporting, cultural or scientific event, a seminar or trade show, the production and broadcast of cinematographic and audiovisual works, modelling, IT/ asset management/ insurance/ finance/ design/ engineering audit or expertise missions. Attention, a long stay visa is required if staying more than 90 days in France.

WHAT WILL CHANGE ON THE 1ST OF JANUARY 2021 :

As of the 1st of January 2021, UK citizens will need a Long Stay visa if staying in France or in a French Oversea territory for more than 90 days whatever the purpose of stay (work, studies, ICT, Au Pairing, passport talent, visitor, family reunification, family members of French nationals, etc.).
Specific case of owners of second homes in France :
- If you are spending between 3 to 6 months a year in France, you are not considered as a resident in France and cannot pretend to a ‘Carte de Séjour’ under the withdrawal agreement. You will have to apply for a temporary Long Stay visitor visa ‘VLS-T Visiteur’.
- If you spend more than 6 months a year in France, you are then considered as a French resident and must apply for a Long Stay visitor visa (visa de long séjour valant titre de séjour VLS-TS « visiteur »).
Third country nationals, family members of UK citizens, can no longer pretend to visas as ‘family members of EU nationals’ (unless your UK family member benefited from the withdrawal agreement and lives in France). You are submitted to the rules set by the Community Code on Visas (CCV) for short stays: you will need to pay the visa and service fees and provide all documents as per the purpose of your stay in France. Those who wish to move to France will have to apply for a Long Stay visa.
Third country nationals, family members of EU citizens (other than UK citizens), residing in the UK under cover of a Residence card as the family member of a Union citizen can no longer travel visa-free. As from the 1st of January 2021 you will need to apply for a visa to travel and to move to France (pursuant to the EU Directive 2004/38).
Third country nationals, residing in the UK, are no longer automatically exempt from Airport Transit Visas (ATV) – depending on your nationality you may have to apply for a ATV.

For more information please consult the visa wizard.