“I was quite surprised to discover that the green certificate is no longer valid…”
18-01-2022MIKE BLAKE
A warning. A national police officer at Madrid airport told me bluntly that the green residence card is no longer valid. I had been led to believe that the “green certificate” would still be valid even if it was marked “citizen of the European Union”. The officer told me that I should apply for the new TIE residence card which has been introduced by the Spanish government for Brexit Brits.
I was even reprimanded for not doing it, because there was a “12 month change over period”. “With this document, I shouldn’t really let you into Spain,” she told me. At the end she whined and I was allowed to pass, but I wondered if that would have happened if I had didn’t speak spanish. To be honest, that makes sense. As the policeman pointed out to me, my “green certificate” indicates that I am a citizen of the European Union…which I am no longer.
It was my first time traveling long distances since Brexit and of course things changed. British citizens must use airports in the “rest of the world section”. An airport official told me that “we were gone”. Travel with the additional documents The requirement because of Covid is not for the faint-hearted, not helped by the fact that the goal posts have now been moved as a result of Brexit.
To be honest, anyone without a Covid passport might as well forget to travel. You need it at Palma airport, not to mention Madrid. Don’t forget that if you are traveling, have your papers sorted!