Moving to a new country and understanding
different laws can be a tricky process, as each country has its own
processes for immigrants.
Find out which laws apply to you before you leave your home country, as
preparation will make life substantially easier once you arrive.
Residence
In
most countries, residence (for tax purposes at least) is defined as
spending more than 183 days per year there.
To apply for a residence
permit, you will be required to meet a set of criteria, which vary
around the world. Details can be found on the specific country pages on
this site.
Alternatively, contact the appropriate embassy or consulate
about the requirements. You will need to prove your identity and may
have to go through a lengthy evaluation process to qualify for
residential status.
Immigration
Things are much easier if you plan and prepare all necessary
documents well in advance. However, even between EU countries,
officials can come down heavy-handed on foreigners immigrating to their
country.
To smooth the passage, read as much as you can about
immigration into the country of your choice. Select the country you are
interested in from the pages on this site for more information.
Make
sure you have as much documentation as necessary, and more. It is
better to have too much information with you than to be turned away for
lack of it.
You might well find the process frustrating and protracted.
Until you have permanent residency agreed, your rights are not the same
as those of the country's citizens.
Be patient and polite, and answer
questions openly and honestly. The less hassle you cause the
immigration officers, the easier the process is likely to be for you.
Application procedure
Apply
for your permanent residency as soon as possible after you arrive, and
make sure you are within the time limit allowed on a tourist visa.
This
is different for each country, but rarely exceeds three months. Expect it to take a while for the system to produce your official residency documents.
In the meantime, you may be issued with a form of identification which
can be presented to police or other officials when required.
Take
official documentation with you when you go to register, such as
passport, birth and marriage certificates. Check whether or not
translations are required, or if the original will suffice.
Passport
photos are useful for all administrative tasks abroad, so take plenty
with you. You might also have to prove that you have a certain amount
of money in your bank account, and that you have health insurance.
Some
countries demand a letter from your home police force stating that youare a law abiding person, while finger printing is also common.
Rights and obligations of residents with foreign nationality
Once
you have been granted permanent residency, you should have
almost the same rights as any other resident of that country.
However,
you will not be able to obtain a passport or voting rights for your new
country until you have become an official citizen, which you are
usually eligible for after a set period of time.
You will
retain European voting rights if you are a registered voter moving from
one EU country to another, and will still be able to vote in your home
country's general elections.
Consult your electoral registration office before
you go, or the local embassy or consulate for more information. You
cannot vote in local elections in your home country as a resident
abroad.
Registering with local authorities
As
soon as possible after your arrival, register with the local
authorities and apply for your residence permit. You should then be
entitled to use the welfare system in your new country.
Registering with your embassy or consulate
You
are not usually obliged to register with your embassy or consulate
abroad, although it is a good idea if you are living in a dangerous
area.
Your consulate will be able to help you with obtaining new
passports, registering as an overseas voter and offering information on
local services.
Family law
A sympathetic
lawyer, who you can communicate with in the same language, can be very
useful in your new country. They will be able to help you through the
new legal system you are faced with.
Seek legal advice if you are unsure
of any sections of the law that affect your life. English-speaking
lawyers are available in many countries and may be the best way to
explain the technicalities of the law to you. The following sections
outline the rights you have abroad.
Birth
A
child born abroad must be registered there within the required time
period if the parents are residents.
He or she can also be registered
at the consulate of the parents’ country. This is not obligatory, but
you may find it useful to have the birth recorded in your home country
and to receive a birth certificate from that country too.
You will need
to provide your own form of ID, such as a passport or your own birth
certificate, if you are the parent registering your child.
Children
born abroad may be given nationality of that country depending on how
long one or both of the parents have been residents there.
Marriage
If
you get married abroad, the legality of it will fall under local law,
and the certificate will be issued by that country. Whether your
marriage will be recognised in your original home country depends on
where you were married.
Consult a lawyer to find out more specific
details.
Death and funerals
What happens
after your death abroad depends on the circumstances surrounding it and
any existing arrangements.
If it is a natural death, you will either be
buried locally, or repatriated if you have made provision. Note that
some countries remove organs during a post mortem which are not
guaranteed to be buried with the body.
If your next of kin are in
another country, the consulate will tell their office in your family's
country, who will in turn be informed by local police.
Making a will is
extremely important. Not only can you specify where you wish to be
buried and how, but you can ensure that you have made insurance cover
or financial arrangements for the burial. Failure to do so will mean
the costs pass to your next of kin.
You may need to make separate wills
for your adopted country and assets in your home country. Dying
intestate could also have serious financial consequences for your
heirs, as much of your estate may pass to the local authorities.
See our
Finance article for more details on the reasons for making a will and the implications of not having one.
Nationality
Due
to local law differing from country to country, the requirements for
nationalisation depend on where you live.
You will need to have been
living as a resident in your new country for a number of years
consecutively, often between three and ten. See the 'Nationality'
section of your chosen country on this site for more details.
To become
a national, you will normally need to apply to the local authority with
the correct documentation, and pay a fee.
You might be required -
or choose - to undergo a patriation ceremony, possibly including
swearing oaths of allegiance to your new country.
You will be expected
to have no criminal record (although minor offences can often be worked
around), be self-sufficient and not a drain on the welfare state, and
to have a good command of that country's official language.
Unmarried partners
The
rights of unmarried partners, from immigration through to inheritance,
is a tricky area.
In the eyes of the law, you do not have the same
rights as a married couple in most places. It is also difficult to
prove that you have been a couple for a prerequisite length of time,
normally at least two years.
You will need to show documentation, such
as utility bills in joint names. Any previous relationship must be
demonstrably over, whether marriage or otherwise.
It is likely that you
will have to show you are both self-sufficient financially and that you
intend to continue living together in your new country.
Of course, you
have rights as an individual and can apply for citizenship after the
allotted amount of time as a resident there. This will give you the
same rights as any other unmarried couple in that country, but takes a
long time to establish.
Same sex couples may have less rights
than a heterosexual couple, and are illegal in some countries,
particularly Muslim areas. In extreme cases, the price for
homosexuality is the death penalty.
Inheritance rules for unmarried
couples also vary between countries, but a partner probably has no
rights to inheritance if unmarried, where there is no will.
The surviving partner's
entitlement is purely to the assets they have brought to the
relationship and any specifically noted shared items.
You can specify
your partner as inheritor in your will, but pre-existing spouses and
children may also be entitled to a share of your estate.
Divorce
Divorce
can usually be arranged in the country (jurisdiction) you are living.
Your circumstances will have to conform to local laws for it to go
ahead. As long as it is valid there, it should also be recognised by
your home country.
You may also be able to seek a divorce in an
entirely different country, depending on your circumstances. Consult a
solicitor to see if it is possible.
Note that the first partner to
issue proceedings chooses where they take place. This could save - or
cost - you a lot of money, depending on local laws. For example, in
Spain, capital payments do not include pre-marital assets, whereas
other countries entitle the divorcee to half of the total assets at the
time of divorce.
If you begin divorce proceedings, you and your spouse
should make a list of your relevant assets, distinguishing those that
were from before the marriage.
This will help you reach a financial
settlement, formalised in a Separation Agreement. This document will
also cover arrangements for children. Do not sign it until you have
consulted a lawyer.