The rights organisation working on behalf of British nationals living in Europe has urged Brits to update their post-Brexit residency cards where applicable, in order to gain the benefits of permanent residency.
It’s been five years since the end of the post-Brexit transition period and for many British citizens living in the EU – including France – this means 2026 will be the time to upgrade to a permanent residence card.
Jane Golding, co-founder of the British in Europe coalition which works on behalf of Brits living in Europe, recently wrote: “Don’t delay and don’t miss out on getting proof of permanent residence. There are benefits to upgrading to permanent residence and you are entitled to them.”
This is especially relevant in countries such as Germany, Italy and Spain, which at the time did not require British nationals to apply for a new post-Brexit status (the so-called ‘declaratory countries’).
At the latest meeting of the Specialised Committee on Citizens’ Rights, on December 18th 2025 in London, both UK and EU representatives raised the importance of “ensuring a successful transition to permanent residence for eligible UK nationals and EU citizens over the course of 2026″.
Permanent residence under the Withdrawal Agreement gives additional rights compared to ordinary residence, and also compared to residence cards issued under national law. A key benefit is about absences. Britons with temporary residence status can only leave the host country for up to six months per year without losing their rights (with some exceptions).
Permanent residence granted under the Withdrawal Agreement, instead, allows absences of up to five years (compared to two years under EU free movement rules). Permanent residence under the withdrawal agreement also ensures access to student grants and loans, as well as residence rights for economically inactive beneficiaries.
So what does this mean for Brits in France?
When it comes to Brexit residency, Brits in France fall into three groups; those who had lived here for more than five years by the end of 2020, those who had lived here for less than five years by the end of 2020 and those who moved after January 1st 2021.
That final group are, in most cases, not covered by the Withdrawal Agreement (unless they are the family member of a Withdrawal Agreement beneficiary) and must follow the standard immigration route for non-EU nationals.
This article is talking about the first two groups, who have the special post-Brexit residency card known as the Carte de séjour Article 50 TUE, also called the WARP card.
People who had lived in France for more than five years by December 31st 2020 – these people are already entitled to permanent residency and should have been given a 10 year carte de séjour.
This should have an expiry date of either 2030 or early 2031, meaning they don’t need to do anything right now.
People who had lived in France for less than five years by December 31st 2020 – these people will likely have the five-year carte de séjour Article 50 TUE, meaning that it will shortly be due for renewal.
The card does now renew automatically, you will have to apply to your local préfecture to renew it. You can find full details of how to apply, and when to make the application HERE.
The most obvious reason to renew is to ensure that you have a valid, up-to-date card, but there are other advantages to having the 10-year card, over the five-year one, since this is proof of your status as a permanent resident.
The 10-year v 5-year cards – the main benefit to having the 10-year is around absences from France. Brits with temporary residence status can only leave the host country for up to six months per year without losing their rights (with some exceptions).
Permanent residence granted under the Withdrawal Agreement, instead, allows absences of up to five years (compared to two years under EU free movement rules). This would allow, for example, someone to complete a university course in the UK while retaining rights to French residency.
The 10-year card gives ‘permanent residency’ status – this means that the person has the right to remain for the rest of their life (barring events like being convicted of a serious crime such as terror offences). Although the card itself must be renewed every 10 years, the right is permanent.
Article 50 carte de séjour v other types – Brits who benefit from the Withdrawal Agreement (which is basically people who were resident in France before the end of 2020, plus close family members) should make sure that they have the special post-Brexit card.
The card should say on the reverse side ‘Article 18 (1) Accord de retrait du royaume uni de l’UE’.
On the front it should say either ‘carte de séjour Article 50 TUE’ (for the five-year card) or ‘carte de séjour permanent Article 50 TUE’ (for the 10-year card).
Although all residency cards give the right to stay in France for the duration of the card, the Article 50 card gives extra rights – including exempting the holder from language tests or civics tests, or any other new laws that the French government may pass about carte de séjour renewals.
It also entitles the holder to a swifter renewal process with only minimal requirements for documents.
The card itself is free, and any renewals or replacements for lost or stolen cards should also be free.
It also acts as a handy shortcut to proof of being covered by the Withdrawal Agreements when it comes to other areas of family life such as healthcare and pensions.
What happens if the card expires?
In a note on the implementation of the Withdrawal Agreement, the European Commission is clear in saying that “the legal source of the new residence status and all connected rights is the Withdrawal Agreement itself, not a residence document.”
Therefore, people will not lose the right to reside in the host country just because they do not apply for a residence document before the expiry of their previous one.
Applicants “do not lose the right to reside in the host State just because they fail to apply for a residence document evidencing their right of permanent residence before expiry of their previous residence document,” the EU says.
Having said that, not having a valid residency permit will likely lead to a lot of administrative complications, so Brits in France are strongly urged to apply as soon as their permit reaches its expiry date.
If your card expires while your préfecture is still processing your application (not an uncommon event), you can request a récépissé to prove your legal residency status in France.
Having a valid residency card is important for a host of things from proving to your employer that you have the right to work to proving your right to healthcare and social benefits.
With the introduction of the EU’s new EES passport controls, it is also important to be able to prove residency and therefore exemption from the requirement to register with EES.
With reporting by Claudia Delpero, Europe Street.
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