Five years ago, on 31 January 2020, it all changed overnight. Britain’s exit from the European Union meant UK nationals could now spend only 90 days out of 180 in the Schengen area, which includes 29 countries.
“I am fortunate enough to have two houses in Europe. In 1997, we bought a house in south-west France, near Cahors, which was really our home. The local mayor officiated at my daughter’s wedding, and we are a part of the community. In 2014, we bought an apartment in Marbella [in southern Spain],” Mr Watson said.
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Read MoreMr Watson, who is in his sixties and lives in Hertfordshire, said he did not apply for residency in Spain or France because he did want to move to either country permanently as he would miss his family in Britain.
To get around this rule, some people have tracked down ancestors from Ireland or other EU countries and applied for passports from those countries.
Andrew Hesselden is director of the 180 Days in Spain campaign, which aims to reverse the rule that limits Britons’ movement around the EU. He lives between London and Mallorca, in the Balearics, where he owns property.
Marbella on Spain’s Costa del Sol is a popular destination for Britons with second homes in Spain (Photo: Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)“Most people are astonished to learn that EU citizens can still visit the UK for six months per visit, even after Brexit. But I am hopeful this travel misery could soon come to an end for people. It is encouraging to see tentative moves between the UK and EU politicians to address these problems.”
In 2022, Spain’s then tourism minister said Madrid wanted to convince Brussels to overturn the 90-day rule in an exclusive interview with The i Paper, but nothing has changed since then.
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Read MorePatricia Mathieson, a retired music public relations worker from Cambridgeshire who has a home in Spain, also said she had been inconvenienced by the 90-day rule.
Ms Mathieson, who is in her sixties, has one brother who also lives on the Spanish island and another who lives in Geneva, Switzerland.
“I think the biggest issue is if I have used up my 90 days and I had a break-in or a flood at the flat [in Mallorca] or something happened to one of my siblings, I would not be able to go back,” Ms Mathieson said.
“The fact that there are no extenuating circumstances for people who own property out there and are treated like tourists. I rent out my flat, I employ local people and when I go out there, I am using the local restaurants. I pay a year’s worth of tax [on the property] but can only be there for half a year.”
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