And now, Philippe Lottiaux (Rassemblement National) is calling for action to help the homeowners in view of the fact that an article creating an automatic long-stay visa right for UK-resident Britons with French second homes was passed by both houses of parliament last year after winning wide cross-party support from French MPs and senators. It was later removed on a technicality.
The ‘automatic visa’ idea aimed to allow these Britons to spend up to half of the year with minimal or no formalities. It originated from an amendment by Senator Martine Berthet (Les Républicains, Savoie), who proposed the Britons should be able to come and go at the border by showing proof of nationality and home ownership, or by obtaining a simple document to show their status, valid for several years or indefinitely.
Berthet told the Bulletin that in response to testimonies sent to her by a number of her fellow British citizens and feedback from the field in her own department of Savoie, she first asked the Minister for the Interior to work together on this issue. “The aim was to come up with a win-win solution: making it easier for British owners of second homes to come here and increasing visitor numbers in the towns concerned by combating the phenomenon of ‘cold beds’, she said.
“My proposal is first and foremost focused on British landlords wishing to visit France more and for longer. It offers them an entry procedure that is more suited to their style of stay than the current rule of 90 days in 180 days or the long-stay visa procedure,” she added. If this latest French move proves successful will Spain follow suit, despite its threat to hike taxes on foreigners buying properties.
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“ The ‘automatic visa’ idea aimed to allow these Britons to spend up to half of the year with minimal or no formalities.” So, exactly as it already is.