Brexit WA residency card renewals simplified in some departments of France

Around 20 French prefectures are now offering a simple process for Brexit WA card renewals via the website Démarches simplifiées, as requested by the interior ministry.

It comes as the first cards are up for renewal, with some 40,000 five-year cards in total expiring before the end of next year.

Applications in ‘DS’ areas (such as Lot, Marne, Alpes-Maritimes, Dordogne, Mayenne, Var…) must be made by attaching scans/photos of supporting documents including a valid British passport, proof of residency (such as utility bill) less than six months old and the old residency card.

Once they have been checked by officials, residents will be offered an in-person appointment to which they should bring paper copies of their supporting documents and three passport photographs. 

Readers Anne and Mark Griffiths from Vendée emailed about the “seamless and straightforward” process in Vendée via DS. They had quickly received an in-person appointment which took “less than five minutes” and the cards were available shortly afterward to collect. 

Some other departments are skipping straight to the appointment stage, asking residents to book directly, for example Ardennes, Charente-Maritime, Maine-et-Loire, Nord and Hautes-Pyrénées. Some are allocating specific ‘Brexit renewal’ slots for this.

Others say residents should apply by post. These include Drôme, Charente, Loiret and Lot-et-Garonne.

Documents required

We have collated specific department information. We note some departments are still asking for attachment of a pledge to respect the values of the Republic. 

For information, this is not an obligation for receiving WA cards.

One reader, who asked not to be named, wrote that he is worried as his card is set to expire this month in Morbihan. 

The prefecture states on its site Britons there should wait for a dedicated appointments booking service to be set up. It did not respond to a request for clarification.

He has tried to book a standard appointment, for which he said new slots are released on Mondays, however “I have not been able to snag one; they go faster than tickets for a Taylor Swift concert”, adding: “I’m worried about my legal status now.”

In the first instance in such cases we would advise a paper application via lettre recommandée avec avis de réception. 

Sources of help

Further sources of help include contacting the Défenseur des droits, which has delegates you can meet locally, the British consular service, or an immigration avocat (lawyers).

However, Britons’ rights under the WA are legally considered secure after five years of settled residency, as you can read in the European Commission’s note on ‘permanent residence’.

It states that their permanent rights begin “by automatic operation of the WA once they meet the relevant conditions […] with effect from the moment when the WA confers it, not the moment when they are issued with a residence document, which may be later.”

The notes can be downloaded and printed out in French, if required to show your prefecture.

A reader in Vaucluse reports contacting the prefecture and being given an appointment on a ‘take it or leave it’ basis, which he said was stressful as it was not convenient. However, he was given another after repeated contact attempts.

Retired railway station supervisor Peter Skelton, in Charente, reports a positive experience after emailing the prefecture for advice – he was told to return a simple form with supporting documents.

“The day after they received it, I received an email with an appointment two days later, to attend with my passport and residency card and to have my fingerprints taken. 

"It took less than 20 minutes and I left with my récépissé extending the validity of my existing card by six months from its expiry date while they issue the new card.”

Out of 20 UK families in his village, he thinks he is the first to have carried out a swap.

A reader in Allier attended an appointment and received a récépissé valid three months from the card’s expiry, being told he would receive a text message when his card was ready to collect.

Some readers report uncertainty over when to apply, given that several sites use the wording titres arrivant à expiration dans les deux mois (residency cards coming up for expiry in two months).

Lack of clarity

The Interior Ministry told us prior to launch of the DS process, that applying no later than two months before expiry was advised, to allow processing time, with about three months before being ideal. We have flagged this up to the ministry.

Some readers also note a lack of clarity over procedures for upgrading to a 10-year card if the five-year card is not yet expiring. 

Many DS sites include wording confirming the right to a 10-year card on the basis of ancienneté de résidence en France pendant cinq années (a record of residency in France for five years), though they do not explicitly state they should be used to apply in this case.

Information previously received from the ministry was that it was possible to apply on this basis via the DS process and we have asked again for confirmation.

However, we consider that if you wish to obtain the 10-year card despite the card not imminently expiring there is nothing to be lost in applying, on the basis that the prefecture should have received your original date d’installation (date of moving to France) when you applied for the five-year card.

The 10-year card attests to having obtained ‘permanent’ rights to stay which can only be lost after five years away from French soil.