Spanish officials have responded to reports of the British and other European media regarding the rule of British nationals having to present proof of sufficient means of subsistence for their planned stay in the country when showing up at any of Spain’s ports of entry.
According to the director of the Spanish Tourist Office for the United Kingdom, Manuel Butler, the requirement is not new and is not systematic, as not every traveller is asked to present such proof.
“The requirement for UK travellers to be able to illustrate sufficient means for the duration of their stay and the return is established in the Schengen Borders Code and is not a Spain-specific requirement. This is not a new requirement and has been in place for some time for visitors from outside of the European Union or Schengen area,” Butler said.
He further noted that a similar requirement is also in place for travellers coming to the UK from Spain and other European countries, based on which these travellers may be asked to present proof that they have the financial means to support themselves during their planned stay in the UK.
The issue has also been commented on by the chief executive of Advantage Travel Partnership, Julia Lo Bue-Said, who pointed out that British nationals have been subject to the requirement since January 1.
“Spain £85 news hits headlines, but this has been an entry requirement into Spain since January 1 for all nationals from outside the Schengen area. If required to do so, anyone entering must prove they have the economic means to support themselves,” Bue-Said tweeted in this regard.
SchengenVisaInfo.com had reminded travellers of Spain’s €100 per day travel requirement (£85) in early April this year, after Spain started gradually reopening its borders for travellers from third countries and abolishing additional COVID-19 entry requirements like testing and vaccination.
“… foreigners who intend to enter the national territory must continue to prove that they have a minimum amount of €100 per person per day, those they intend to stay in Spain with a minimum of €900 or its legal equivalent in foreign currency,” reads a statement published at the time by the official EULaw database & home of the EU Official Journal, shortly known as EUR-Lex.
The same points out that travellers will need to present such proof only in case they are required by the officials in charge of carrying out the control of those entering into Spanish territory and under the terms established in the aforementioned Order.
The other Schengen Area countries also have such a requirement in place though the amount changes from one country to another. In France, the minimum required daily amount of money for entry is €120 if the traveller holds no proof of accommodation paid in advance, whereas in cases when the accommodation has been previously paid, the required amount drops to €65 per day.
If travellers fail to prove it, they may be rejected entry into the territory of the country they intend to enter.
Data show that over 135,000 third-country nationals were refused entry at EU external borders in 2020, whereas in 2019, the EU Member States refused entry to 670,795 non-EU nationals.
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What is the point to write in The MDB? If anyone in UK need to know it's better the information is picked up there before they arrive. Totally pointless to report about it here, or is the point, let's have a chip on our shoulder and feel miserable?
Look, all sarcasm aside, you have to give him credit for publishing it. Surely he knew it would draw out the sarcastic commentaries. Give him some courage points for that. It's like those stories about how Mallorca tourism is suffering (because Brits aren't booking). Then next day, it's booming (because of Brits). Then... bookings are down... Then, it's the biggest year in history. Then not. But anybody who lives here knows it's been an extraordinary year for tourism, and for the first time ever, Mallorca is really becoming a "go to" destination globally. No one nationality can really stake claim to it anymore. That's actually a *good* thing. Everybody wins. The subject of UK driving licences still needs to face reality, but I suspect that's coming soon. And I'm sure Humphrey will publish that reality as well.
And yes, we are good at sarcasm too.
Sounds like MDB retracting there own poor reporting on the issue. Maybe get the facts before you start the scaremongering. You reporters are all the same.
SaraAgreed, Sara. But it's not really Humphrey's fault. He's just calling it like he sees it. He may well be completely oblivious that it's ergregiously one sided, sensationalist, and borderlining on disinformation (as this is quite normal in British media), and it certainly won't win a Pulitzer, but it does attract clicks and newsstand sales. And from the view from his desk, perhaps that's a priority. Or perhaps he's just still living in that stereotypical alternate reality where unsophisticated foreigners consistently attack innocent Brits (for no identifiable reason, though it does tend to elevate one's self importance to believe they're "all out to get you"). Only he knows for sure. And he may not even be aware of that. The subconscious is pretty powerful. So, give him a break. It's not his fault. He's English, entitled, and that's the British way. The rest of the world just hasn't caught up yet.
The british gutter press, and the mdb at times, don't like to let facts get in the way of a good story. Especially when it's about nasty 'foreigners' being horrible to the English.
Just like I and others have kept saying, Humphrey Carter. Maybe you will now refrain from all the scaremongering and scathing remarks on the issue and put your mind to more positive Mallorcan topics?