Survey: about a third of Brit expats seeking host country residency and citizenship over Brexit

AROUND one in every three British expatriates, including those in Spain, are looking to get citizenship or permanent residency in their host countries because of Brexit, a survey shows.

CurrencyFair’s survey of 664 expatriates showed they tended to be more worried about Brexit than those in Britain.

A total of 42 per cent of expatriates said they were concerned about Brexit’s impact on debt versus 20 per cent of British residents.

More than half of expatriates said they were worried about Brexit’s impact on their retirement plans compared to 34 per cent in Britain.

CurrencyFair CEO Paul Byrne said expatriates were looking to avoid possible negative economic consequences.

“Our research indicates that Brexit may be forcing the hand of expats to seek citizenship they might not otherwise seek,” he said.

A total of 52 per cent of expatriates said they think Brexit will push up living costs compared to 41 per cent of in Britain.

A total of 34 per cent of expatriates said they were currently looking at becoming residents and citizens and a further five per cent said they would get it in the event of a hard Brexit.