Spanish Petition for Special Visa for Non EEA Holiday Home Owners

I wish it luck but fear it's going to take rather more than 1500 signatures from cheesed off Brits for the Schengen rules to get changed.

I wonder how many of those will be from genuine property owners as opposed to friends or family signing in support or from others sympathetic to the cause?

UK voluntarily left the club so have no claim for preferential treatment over other non EU nationals.

Some point to France which has introduced a visa for stays between 3 months and 1 year but it's a presupposition for residency not a 'wink wink' workaround for the 90 day rule so highly probable it would work just the once.

Spain could introduce a longer stay holiday visa anytime it wishes to do so, however, it requires a change in Spain's national laws.  As the vast majority of Spanish voters are not affected in any way by the desire of a few (certainly not anywhere near all) of British second home owners to be exempted from Schengen rules for third country nationals, and as such a visa would need to be open to all nationalities, I can't see it being included in any of the main party's manifestoes for the national elections, as not a high priority or big vote winner.  We never could (legally) stay indefinitely, the max under Spain's own laws is no single stay over 3 months and pay tax is 183 days or more spent in a calendar year even for everyone, even EU nationals - the fact that it has been poorly enforced in the past for EU nationals doesn't mean the laws doesn't exist or that it wont be enforced in the future.  The change of the status of Brits is down solely to the the dreaded B word, a decision made in the UK by the British government, not by Spain, so I can't see Spain even considering changing its laws to suit Brits who are disgruntled by their own government's actions.  

Hello

Well explained and so accurate Dave.   Even now, a few years on, there's always someone looking to blame Spain for a decision,  solely taken in the UK & by the British people & it's a decision ,that  doesn't affect the majority of Spanish people or the Brits who already live here!

Cheers

Elinspain

What you say is true for ordinary Spaniards. However there are  powerful lobbies in the building industry who are the people that will have the clout to bring about changes if they find it is adversely affecting their businesses.  

Bee

You think?

Spain is going to change a National law affecting all 3rd countries to suit Britain?

Where I live there's an upsurge of French Belgian and Scandinavian buyers replacing any Brits lost to the housing market.

Steve

Agree, the developers do have clout but they can also target other markets, which is what they are doing. The hotel lobby have massive influence and not in their interests to promote a long term second home owners visa. It is the ordinary Spaniards who vote so policies that attract their vote will be the priority.

 I don't see that anyone is looking to blame Spain, the petition is to ask Spain to consider extending the period that home owners can stay in the country. Maybe look on it as a silver visa! cheaper than the euro500k that you need for a gold visa. However whilst the sales market is so buoyant I doubt there will be any real incentive to change anything.  Might be different when the market starts to slow down again, as it no doubt will when the cost of the Ukraine war starts to bite..

 When I last looked there were less that 1500 signatures, so out of 68 million UK citizens it works our to .002% of the UK population, so not a big issue in the UK either. 

 Personally I would rather that there was more flexibility with the 180 in 360 days that non-residents are allowed in to stay in the EU, but it is what it is.

Aitch.

The chances of this petition producing a favourable result are remarkably slim, but it costs nothing for those concerned to sign it so why not if it makes them feel better.

I suspect that the Spanish authorities will actually be quite pleased that the 90 out of 180 day rule will help to get rid of some Brits who had previously been either living in Spain illegally or overstaying to the point that they should have been paying Spanish taxes but were evading doing so.

The UK allows Spanish citizens 180 days so surely it would only be a reciprocal arrangement not affecting any other 3rd country. 

Bee