Waiting game for EU citizens living in Jersey

Monday 27 June 2016

The status of EU residents living in Jersey following the UK’s decision to leave the Union probably won't be clear for at least two years.

The Portuguese, Polish and German consuls in the Island say it’s a waiting game. Although none of them has yet been contacted by their respective citizens alarmed by the UK’s decision to quit the EU, the advice they would give them is not to panic. Nothing is likely to change for a long time. And at the moment any possible changes would be pure speculation.

German Consul Ken Soar said that the country's UK embassy had issued a press release saying “the decision has no immediate affect. There are no initial changes in travel or trade”. He said at the moment he would advise people to go on as normal. He also believed it will be a long time before the situation is clear. “There’s a lot of negotiations to be had by the various parties, and that’s not likely to happen in a matter of days or months," he said.

According to Portuguese Consul Carlos Costa, there are an estimated 20,000 first or second generation Portuguese citizens living in the island. He described the UK’s decision to leave the Union as coming “out of the blue” and said “nobody knows what is going on”. He expected the situation to become clearer as the dust settles and politicians have had time to draw up agreements.

Polish Consul Magda Chmielewska also believed it is too early to say with any certainty what is going to happen. Like the representative of other EU nationalities living in the island she stressed that people shouldn’t get worried. “There’s nothing going to happen straight away," she said.

Jersey is, of course, outside of the European Union - however, its relationship to it is defined by Protocol 3 of the UK's 1972 Treaty of Accession. This, in turn, meant that when the UK joined the European Economic Area in 1994, which introduced free movement between Member States, Jersey was included. The future status of the UK's inclusion in the EEA is unclear.