Last year, the UK Foreign office announced that in the event of a no deal after 29 March 2019, a UK passport holder would be considered a third country national in accordance with the Schengen Border Regulation, (EU) 2016/399 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 March 2016 on a Union Code on the rules governing the movement of persons, like citizens of other countries which do not belong to the EU or the European Economic Area (Australia, Canada and the USA).
While Theresa May’s government seems to be prolonging its stay in the European Union, it appears that British passports are not following the same track.
A British citizen has published a photo of her new passport without the words “European Union” on the front cover, Euronews reported. But the Schengen Code is strict: “If your passport does not meet these criteria, you may be denied entry to any of the Schengen area countries,” a new series of technical notices for British citizens by the UK government has warned.
At the present, UK does not form part of the Schengen agreement, but its citizens are free to enter the zone without pursuing a visa beforehand.
The British Home Office stated in a notice, that without a clear Brexit deal in place before 29 March 2019, Britons will be entitled as “third nationals” and as such will have to stay aligned with certain regulations if planning to enter the Schengen zone.
In 2017, the UK government decided to change the colour of British passports from burgundy red to dark blue. According to the government, new blue passports will be issued from in late 2019. The United Kingdom earlier had blue passports until 1988, when the government decided to change the colour to the EU’s burgundy red.
“After 29 March 2019, if you’re a British passport holder (including passports issued by the Crown Dependencies and Gibraltar), you’ll be considered a third country national — under the Schengen Border Code and will therefore need to comply with different rules to enter and travel around the Schengen area”, the UK Foreign Office stated in September 2018.
British citizens must have a passport which is valid for at least the six months, and UK citizens will no longer be eligible to use express queues in European airports.
“If your passport does not meet these criteria, you may be denied entry to any of the Schengen area countries, and you should renew your passport before you travel,” the Home Office notice reads.
Also, EU citizens may undergo certain immigration regulations in UK as regular foreigners following the final deadline for UK’s departure.