The post-Brexit 90-day rule is continuing to be a major problem for Britons while also raising concerns for the European Union.
Now, the European Commission has proposed starting negotiations with the United Kingdom to allow young people to move freely, work and study in both regions after Brexit.
According to the EU, the withdrawal of the UK from the EU following a referendum in 2016 has damaged mobility between the two areas.
“This situation has particularly affected the opportunities for young people to experience life on the other side of the Channel and to benefit from youth, cultural, educational, research and training exchanges,” the Commission said.
When the UK was still a member of the economic and political bloc, its nationals had the right to live and work freely in the EU, with reciprocity for EU nationals in the UK. Under the agreement proposed by the EU’s executive arm, EU and UK citizens between 18 and 30 years old would be eligible to stay up to four years in the destination country.
However, since the UK left the EU, Britons are considered third party nationals and therefore can only spend a maximum period of 90 in the EU at any one time.
This has not only complicated life for second homes owners, or would be investors, but also young people who used to enjoy seasonal jobs in resorts, be they in the sun or in the snow.
And this in turn has made it difficult for tour operators to employ British nationals to work the holiday seasons in EU resorts.
However, Rishi Sunak has rejected an EU offer to strike a post-Brexit deal to allow young Britons to live, study or work in the bloc for up to four years, but it may not be his decision to make in the end.