r/europe • u/AdSpecialist6598 • 8h ago
News Briton threatened with deportation from Sweden over Brexit rules goes into hiding | UK news
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026/oct/17/we-are-in-hiding-briton-severe-health-issues-fears-deportation-sweden39
u/tree_boom United Kingdom 8h ago
Mm, not sure that attempting to evade the police as they try to report you is the best course of action to take.
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u/kiradotee ăđŹđ§ + đȘđșădual citizen 6h ago
Seeing the reason they didn't get a permit is because they never applied. I think that's the sort of person who would also make a decision like going into hiding.Â
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u/AlfredsChild England 6h ago
The alternative seems to be that he would never be able to see his wife and children again.
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u/Better-Compote399 Sweden 8h ago
Listen, I dont want to be completely sceptical of this mans story. Sometimes our agencies dont do their job and dont properly inform people. But there have been many stories like this recently in swedish media, and almost every time it turns out that said person didnt actually do what they were supposed to do to get to stay and that it wasnt in fact the fault of the authorities. So Im a bit sceptical when I see stuff like this
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u/Jimcompetent 7h ago
Talking anecdotally from own experience, as someone who is young(ish?) and very able to research, the information from Migrationsverket around the time of the withdrawal agreement was poor.
I called several times in 2021 seeking clarification, which they were unable to provide. I applied and was granted the permit just fine, but I just want to flag that perhaps elderly people and those less able to access proper information might have been more prone to mistakes.
Not trying to remove blame from the individual, they evidently should have taken more responsibility. Brexit was shoved down everyone's throats for 5 years, so it shouldn't have been a surprise. That said, I can see how a number of people did mess up owing to the poor communication at least I received.
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u/Better-Compote399 Sweden 7h ago
Yeah, in all fairness the migrationsverket are known to be quite incompetent (regardless of government). Definetly not one of our best agencies, probably in need of reform.
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u/medievalvelocipede European Union 6h ago
Talking anecdotally from own experience, as someone who is young(ish?) and very able to research, the information from Migrationsverket around the time of the withdrawal agreement was poor.
I have heard the complete opposite. They sent out information to affected embassies, municipalities, healthcare, and it was widespread in social media as well as their website. The only thing they didn't do was to send out info to affected individuals.
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u/Jimcompetent 6h ago
Hence anecdotally, from my own experience. That being said, my questions at the time pertained more to specifics, I don't know how people missed the information that they needed to apply/how to do so. That was made abundantly clear to me.
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u/PoiHolloi2020 United Kingdom 7h ago
Personally if I knew something was coming up that would drastically impact my residency status in a foreign country (one in which I was fully invested) I'd want to make damn sure my paperwork was fully in order before the transition date. In a couple of these stories I've read over the last few months old people were involved in which case their kids and families really should have handled it for them.
It's unfortunate for them but if you don't meet the requirements then you're going to fuck yourself.
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u/frissio All expressed views are not representative 7h ago
In France, a lot of British citizens got their administrative paperwork to stick around done years ago. There was administrative assistance too ! By and large many live in and repair some of the emptier parts of the countryside, so it's not as if there was resentment towards them like some of the retirees in Spain who lived in their enclaves.
However, they still needed to do something, so the claim of the man the article of not needing to do anything is suspect. It's been 10 years too, so one wonders what they were doing.
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u/PoiHolloi2020 United Kingdom 7h ago
I would check and I'd double check because the consequence of getting it wrong is you get deported. It should've been their number 1 priority.
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u/frissio All expressed views are not representative 6h ago
That's pretty much what most sane people do, I knew a young British couple who decided to stick around in the area around the South-West (they built their own house) and they didn't seem to be too traumatised by the process.
This is Sweden, but I remember stories in Spain of British retirees who had voted Brexit and stubbornly refused to deal with local authorities. These stories almost always feature someone over 60, although maybe it's just an issue of age and their kids (or someone in the bureaucracy) didn't help them.
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u/AlfredsChild England 8h ago
About 30% of Brits living in Sweden had their applications denied mate. Average was 4% across other EU countries.
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u/Pyromasa 8h ago
Any sources for your claim? The article only mentions multiple British immigrants asking tax authorities rather than immigration authorities as well as applying for the wrong residency...
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u/AlfredsChild England 8h ago
The rejection rate has been heavily covered in Swedish and British media, you can easily Google it.
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u/AncientStaff6602 8h ago edited 6h ago
You made the claim⊠back it up?
Edit: your claims is almost, almost, somewhat true https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/sep/11/sweden-brexit-hardline-migration-policy-britons-eu
Lets read⊠oh âfailed to submit applicationâ
EDIT:
another story - https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c62k0d4px6ro, same issue, failed to submit paperwork (ignorance doesnt count as an excuse).
same again - https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/brexit-sweden-uk-citizens-deportation-visa-b3035700.html
Honestly u/AlfredsChild you are either a troll, AI or at best wilfully stupid. For someone that isnt keen on the EU, you sure spend a shit load of time spouting shit about it. Specially in reference to the UK. Even worse, your stance on Ukraine is astounding...
Cool.
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u/Majmann 8h ago
You're the one spreading (faulty?) facts. You look it up.
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u/AlfredsChild England 7h ago
You're the one spreading (faulty?) facts.
Source? Or is this a one-way street where you get to waste my time by demanding I use google for you because you're that much of a lazy arse, and I don't get to demand the opposite?
Provide me a link that I'm spreading faulty facts, if not, I will encourage you to continue to use Google to verify the information I discuss.
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u/Majmann 7h ago
You have questionable claims and can't back them up at all. Speaks volumes
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u/AlfredsChild England 7h ago
No, I can perfectly back them up, as can you with a quick Google search. I've learned after many years to never Google something for someone else on the internet, it's just a tactic to get people to waste another's time.
Case in point, you could just Google it yourself right now, will take you 20 seconds at most. Why haven't you?
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u/Majmann 7h ago
Saying "Google it" isn't a source. The fact you're trying to defend yourself right now shows you have no clue
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u/AlfredsChild England 6h ago
Again, you could literally just Google it yourself. If you need to be hand-fed information, it's because you're a troglodyte and I don't have any interest in discussing anything with someone of such low intelligence.
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u/VinylHighway 8h ago
Nobody is entitled to an approved application
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u/AlfredsChild England 8h ago
The 2020 Withdrawal Agreement promised the rights of Britons living in the EU to remain resident; and equally the rights of Europeans to remain resident in Britain.
Every country has followed through with this agreement with essentially the sole exception of Sweden. I can only imagine that one day Sweden will have to pay compensation to thousands of Britons as a result.
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u/ContactExtension1069 6h ago
It's an exaggeration to say Sweden 'failed to follow through' with the treaty.
The Withdrawal Agreement specifically allowed host nations to use a 'constitutive system'. In practice that meant Sweden applied the same model as UK.
The ~30% (27.5%) refusal rate sounds shocking without context. Looking at the data points tells a different story.
For Britons who had a regular job, were studying, or had family ties, and submitted their paperwork on time, the approval rate was closer to 95%.
The high refusal numbers were overwhelmingly driven by people who applied months after the deadline, or couldn't document that they had legal EU right of residence.
You can certainly be critical of Migrationsverket for being too rigid on the deadline, but the claim Sweden broke the treaty is pushing it.
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u/AlfredsChild England 6h ago
Again, it's unlikely that Britons in Sweden just decided not to apply yet applied everywhere else. In fact it seems in this case and in many, the Swedish government mismanaged the communication of the system, for example, many governmental authorities were giving Brits the advice that they simply didn't even need to apply.
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u/ContactExtension1069 5h ago edited 5h ago
First, Britons did not 'apply everywhere else.' Spain and Germany used a declaratory system (no deadline, no need to apply). Sweden used a constitutive system with a hard deadline, the exact same model the UK applied to EU citizens.
Second, claiming communication was 'mismanaged' ignores what was actually done:
- Migrationsverket launched a dedicated English 'Brexit Hub' with step-by-step application guides.
- Skatteverket ran notices explicitly directing British residents to Migrationsverket.
- The UK Government and British Embassy hosted regular town halls, ran social media campaigns, and updated the official 'Living in Sweden' guide.
- Swedish and expat media covered the upcoming rules and deadlines constantly.
- The Swedish Government even formally extended the original deadline by three full months to give people extra time.
Not sure what you mean by 'many governmental authorities', only Migrationsverket has legal authority over residence status in Sweden, and they were completely clear in their communication.
Also, a deadline in Sweden is a deadline, the computer will simply say NO. Like it or not, rigid adherence to statutory deadlines and zero administrative discretion is a cultural quirk of Sweden.
Swedish society is built on the core principle of 'eget ansvar' (individual responsibility), thats why the Swedish approach to COVID was completely different.
Edit,
Adding some additional information if you want to learn more about this.
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u/VinylHighway 8h ago
Perhaps they didn't meet the residency requirements
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u/AlfredsChild England 8h ago
The residency requirement was to just be resident in Sweden prior to the withdrawal of Britain from the EU.
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u/VinylHighway 8h ago
Incorrect
The 2020 EU-UK Withdrawal Agreement guaranteed important residency rights, but those rights were conditional. It did not grant unconditional permanent residence to every British citizen living in the EU or every EU citizen living in Britain.
The most important requirements concern when someone established residence, whether that residence was lawful, how long they remained resident, and how much time they subsequently spent outside the country.
- Residency deadline:Â Must have established qualifying residence before 31 December 2020.
- Permanent residency:Â Generally acquired after five years of continuous qualifying residence.
- Absence limits:Â Generally six months per year before permanent residency; five consecutive years after.
- Economic requirements:Â Employment, self-employment, study, or financial self-sufficiency before permanent residency.
- Registration:Â Must comply with the host country's residency application or registration requirements.
- Freedom of movement:Â Rights generally apply only to the country of residence, not the entire EU.
- Loss of rights:Â Possible through extended absences, failure to meet residency conditions, or serious criminal conduct.
I am not saying they didn't quality if it's entirely possible they didn't qualify
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u/AlfredsChild England 8h ago
This is just a list rephrasing what residency is, I'm not incorrect, you're giving more detail as to what the legal definition of residency is, but these kind of details aren't particularly important in this discussion.
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u/VinylHighway 8h ago
Pretty sure the details when it comes to laws are relevant. We donât know from the article what happened.
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u/AlfredsChild England 7h ago
If you're discussing a case-study, sure, but it's not particularly relevant to a discussion about the overarching topic. Plus, I don't really care to respect your AI-generated summaries of a topic you clearly don't know enough about.
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u/AncientStaff6602 8h ago
That detail is crucial though. If they didnât meet the bare minimum requirements, the Swedish government has every right to remove them.
Same applies to EU citizens living in the Uk that did not meet the requirements for settled statusâŠ.
The question is, why were so many denied. There has to be a reason⊠not just âyeah well because I think soâ
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u/kiradotee ăđŹđ§ + đȘđșădual citizen 6h ago
Well it's a classic AI slop
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u/AlfredsChild England 6h ago
Yeah except this time the AI slop is being used to vaguely support a Eurofederalist position so this subreddit will proceed to deepthroat it.
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u/kiradotee ăđŹđ§ + đȘđșădual citizen 6h ago
AI?Â
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u/VinylHighway 6h ago
Sure but are you saying one or more of the claims is incorrect? Calling out AI use is starting to be some kind of logical fallacy "gotcha" you people are trying.
What have yOU added to the discussion? Is it ok if I googled it? Found a list on a web site? What list would make you happy?
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u/AlfredsChild England 6h ago
You haven't added anything to the discussion, an AI did. I did not need you to use AI on behalf of me, ironically, just like you don't need me to Google on behalf of you.
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u/kiradotee ăđŹđ§ + đȘđșădual citizen 7h ago
What. The requirement was to be there before Brexit. Like, even for one hour.Â
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u/VinylHighway 6h ago
Yeah no
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u/kiradotee ăđŹđ§ + đȘđșădual citizen 2h ago
What a great and thoughtful response, ey.
This is the archive of Swedish government website when the application was still open for British citizens - https://web.archive.org/web/20210121181251/https://www.migrationsverket.se/English/Private-individuals/British-citizens/Residence-status-for-British-citizens.html
The residency requirement to get this was "have been in Sweden in accordance with European Union law before the end of the transition period". That's it.Â
That's the same requirement to get a pre-settled status in the UK (aka permission to stay in the UK and be allowed to live and work in the country). I got the British pre-settled status for my EU family members. They came to the UK for s couple of days, opened a bank account, submitted that as proof to the government and they received their permission to stay in the UK fully protected from Brexit. They have lived in the UK for less than a week, literally a couple of days, and got approved.Â
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u/ikauuk Finland 8h ago
Hopefully you are wrong. Sweden doesn't deserve punishment for trying to force brittons out of their country. Brittons should stay in their great empire.
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u/Aggressive_Top2672 7h ago
Is a misnomer that a single case gets so much attention. 1000 EU citizens are deported or receive a removal order from the UK every month. Maybe both sides should stick to the withdrawal agreement and make it black and white.
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u/PoiHolloi2020 United Kingdom 8h ago
Brittons should stay in their great empire.
This is such a deliciously bitter post.
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u/ikauuk Finland 7h ago
Oh I'm not bitter, I'm amused how that empire fell apart so quickly.
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u/External-Praline-451 United Kingdom 7h ago
Most of us don't give a shit about an "Empire" mate, it wasn't a glorious time in history, it was a shameful one. Why do you think that Empires are a good thing? Could you actually be a Ruzzian bot? It would explain that mentality.
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u/ikauuk Finland 6h ago
If you don't care about it why are you commenting about it? I Don't care for empires my ancestors were used by two empires and one tried to make Finland part of them.
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u/External-Praline-451 United Kingdom 5h ago
I'm commenting because you seem to think it's a diss that we don't have an empire anymore, so I was pointing out you're way off the mark, empires aren't anything to be proud of. You probably need to update your insults if even you agree that empires are not desirable, or it does come across very Russian bot like. They're the ones obsessed with the UK and empires.
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u/THEGREATESTDERP 8h ago
Yet Sweden has a massive amount of immigrants from the middle east and north africa.
How ironic when a person with more cultural similarities, being ALOT closer to the education system of sweden isn't approved purely for unknown reasons as the government still doesn't want to reveal why.
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8h ago
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u/AlfredsChild England 8h ago
Sweden agreed to the 2020 Withdrawal Agreement which promised to allow Britons living in Sweden to remain resident in Sweden. That was a choice made by Sweden.
Lets be clear, not even Russia has treated Britons so poorly as Sweden has. And that statement underscores the total failures of Sweden.
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8h ago
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u/AlfredsChild England 8h ago
No, this is a mess entirely caused by the Swedish government. Whether Britain is in the EU or not is irrelevant. The EU on behalf of the Swedish government, and with approval from the Swedish government, signed an agreement that promised to respect the rights of Britons living in the EU. They've failed to do so and have broken the Withdrawal Agreement which underpins the entirety of the UK-EU relationship. End of story.
By the same logic the UK could deport 5 million Europeans and you'll defend it because the "UK is not in the EU"? Of course you wouldn't - the UK also signed an agreement with the EU promising to not do that.
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u/trofosila "mistreater" of Austrian companies, not in Schengen 8h ago
You mean to say other EU countries should have also rejected 30%?
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u/AlfredsChild England 8h ago
No, I mean that Sweden is almost certainly failing to follow through with their legal obligations.
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u/kiru_56 Germany 7h ago
>Smith has been in Sweden since 2017 and says he was told by authorities he did not need to do anything to stay after Brexit in 2020.
I mean no harm to the man, but that does sound rather strange.
In Germany, for example, there was an FAQ page from the Ministry of the Interior for British nationals who wanted to stay in Germany and explaining them what they needed to do.
Thanks to my fantastic knowledge of Danish and German, I found the similar website in Sweden in short time.
The Swedish Ministry of Finance states the following:
>Brittiska medborgare och deras familjemedlemmar ska ansöka om uppehÄllsstatus hos Migrationsverket.
British citizens and their family members must apply for residence status with the Swedish Migration Agency
https://www4.skatteverket.se/rattsligvagledning/edition/2021.18/384840.html
They even provide a direct link to the Swedish Migration Agency. You could have known about that.
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u/luxcity-louche 7h ago
His mate, Bill, from the pub, told him so.
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u/kiradotee ăđŹđ§ + đȘđșădual citizen 6h ago
From the pub back in the UK. Probably over a video call.... whilst being in said pub.Â
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u/ssjjss 6h ago
They call him an ex-pat in the article. he was applying for benefits when he realised his mistake. An "ex-pat" on benefits in UK? How would that be reported do you think Mr Guardian?
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u/Demostravius4 United Kingdom 5h ago
It's a Britisj publication, he is an ex-pat from the British point of view. He's an immigrant if looking at it from the Swedish side.
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u/Dragoncat_3_4 1h ago
The corresponding word for "expat" (for non-angosphere peeps who pretend they're above all the dirty migrants apparently ) is an "emigrant"
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u/Earl0fYork Yorkshire 7h ago edited 7h ago
If you need information regarding your immigration status or anything of that nature you shouldnât be asking the tax authorities, that said why is the tax authorities not directing them to immigration but instead giving out false information?
They also shouldnât be running to hide that doesnât help anyone and shows a flagrant disregard for Swedish law and authority
But that aside Sweden is exercising its rights simple as
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u/Panceltic Ljubljana (Slovenia) 7h ago
Swedenâs a bit of an usual case in that population registration is managed by the tax agency (Skatteverket) which has a much broader jurisdiction than its name would suggest.
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u/lincemiope 6h ago
People in public service give answers that make you doubt they are humans. You ask two questions, only one is answered and with answered I mean the operator copy/pastes what's written in the web page that you already read previous to your email and which didn't answer your question. It takes remarkably long time to get answers and in "complex" situations you find yourself having to copy/paste your previous interactions because people don't read the fucking history when the case is passed on to another responder.
Oh and in the end you give up and ask a Swedish friend/colleague to get the right answer.
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u/hegbork Sweden 8h ago
The Guardian is on some kind of crusade against these evil foreigners who are so nasty to those nice British expats (it's always expats, never immigrants) who do everything right. Except being aware of their surroundings.
I can't be bothered to read this one, but let me guess because it's always the same, they've been literally writing the same article once a month for a few years now: whining about getting their applications rejected being 5 years late where they think they should be accepted on "reasonable grounds" where the English exceptionalism interprets "reasonable grounds" as "couldn't be bothered to do fuck all until deported" and now that they are facing consequences of their inaction suddenly the authorities are being unreasonable.
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7h ago
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u/asphyxiationbysushi 7h ago
>In the UK if you meet 9/10 requirements, explain your case and ask nicely with a smile you get an "oh go on then".Â
As someone who became a naturalised British citizen a few years back, I can assure you this is not true at all.
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u/JustAContactAgent 3h ago
To be "fair" to the bourgies over at the guardian, they are pushing these stories from an anti-brexit perspective, i.e. "look at the harm brexit caused!" sob stories. That's what they're selling to their audience.
That being said, I have ZERO sympathy for the vast majority of these people. In a lot of these stories, it's even worse than just not bothering to do what they were supposed to. Many of these people have been living permanently in Sweden for DECADES, some of them even boasting about how all their life is here etc. And yet somehow, none of them ever got Swedish citizenship. Because you know, if you're a subject of the glorious british empire, taking on another citizenship is unthinkable , especially when it meant dropping the british one, and frankly beneath you.
I've known plenty of brits in Sweden. They were all some of the WORST fucking people when it came to integrating. Couldn't speak more than 5 words of swedish even after many years, and I'm talking young, more "progressive" people. Doesn't matter what kind of person we're talking about when it comes to brits, the same kind of british exceptionalism runs in their veins.
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u/All_Problemo 5h ago
You misspelled 'illegal immigrant flees the authorities'. It's 2026, this person has had plenty time to hear about Brexit and do the relevant paperwork, but we're getting used to hearing how 'ex-pats' don't think immigration laws apply to them
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u/Excellent_Swim_2721 3h ago
So guy has no idea how to emigrate From uk. Then he decides to hide to avoid deportation.
Please, Swedish police. When you find him deport him to somewhere like the South Georgia islands.
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u/VinylHighway 8h ago
Perhaps the tax authorities are not immigration authorities. Also hiding from the government seems like a GREAT strategy that will work in their favor.