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Going Abroad this Spring


StuartO

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I have just commited to crossing to France in mid March, to head for warmer climes in Spain and Portugal before Brexit.

 

My thinking is that although there may still be continuing uncertainty by then, we will still be members of the EU so there shouldn't be any major holdups at Dover and our EU dog passports will still work to enter France at that stage and we should be able to re-enter UK a couple of months later with the same Pet Passports, even if by then they would no longer allow us to cross the other way. I will also be replacing the EU-style number plates with plain UK ones and putting an old fashioned GB sticker on to the MH, to deny the French Police any reason to nit pick. Likewise I will take the trouble, which I don't usually, to reset the headlamps for LHD. As well as booking the ferry crossing I have booked the night before at the Canterbury C&CC Site, so we can have a painless drive from East Anglia to the Dover area the day before.

 

I have also just switched our mobiles to fresh 12 month SIM-only contracts which say we can use them abroad using our allowance of calls and data, which will suffice. Likewise I have renewed our travel insurance, updated for our latest set of ailments. We'll take the EU Health Cards, as our insurance requires, even though they might become invalid, Breakdown cover is also still valid. In essence we have decided to cut and run a bit earlier than usual, to get ourselves into the chosen touring area ahead of any Brexit chaos and worry about getting home as and when we need to.

 

All the hardstanding pitches at the Canterbury Site had gone so we're on grass; maybe that means that others are doing similar!

 

Have I missed anything important?

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Our Vet is offering to do "worst case scenario" re-vaccination and testing for rabies (at some considerable cost) but since UK is rabies-free (and France isn't) and UK has no reason to up the game, it's only if the EU decide to impose stricter conditions when there would be no scientific or health reason to do so, that entry into the EU from UK would be affected. I can't see any difficullty bringing pets back into UK, even in a No Deal scenario - hence my decision to cross outbound in mid-March.
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Stuart - there is another thread running at the moment about the possible need for an International Driving Permit - you need to make your own mind up on that. The only other thing I would do is just check with your vehicle insurer that nothing changes after Brexit. Maybe over-cautious, but I think you are doing the right thing in taking precautions. Of course, your passport will still say 'EU Citizen' after Brexit, but there's not a lot you can do about that at the moment !

 

Regards

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I'd be getting the IDP for sure. AA and RAC will be doing them until the end of January and some post offices do them as well, with more coming on stream soon apparently. Also (and I'm sure you have)check you have 6 months left on your passports, not the usual 3 months. We were going to go for a couple of weeks at Easter but I'm going to wait until the dust settles and go in summer. Hopefully the impending mess will be sorted one way or another by then. or not.

 

In terms of phones, the networks seem to have gone quiet on roaming charges. The EU's ban on mobile roaming charges was great but the House of Commons EU Scrutiny Committee said in a report that this is unlikely to remain in place for the UK following withdrawal. Read into that what you will. Probably won't affect your trip, but if there is no deal anything could happen!

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Billggski - 2019-01-08 5:01 PM

 

The dog passports aren't checked on the way out, but on returning to the UK. My question is whether the systems will be in place to process the vetenary forms that will be required to return after brexit as my vet, for one, has no idea what will happen.

 

This is one of the things which might change if Brexit actually happens on 29/3/19 and the EU (or the French) decide to be awkward. If the EU decides to treat UK as a Third Country, a more stringent set of anti-rabies requirements kick in, effectively requiring revaccination and then testing for successful vaccination, which was not previously required. UK isn't likely to make any changes to the requirements for re-entry to UK.

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It's a rare thing for us to book up much in advance, and this year we certainly aren't going to until the dust settles. I suspect that length of stay aside the rules will eventually pan out much as they are now, the only question being how long it takes to sort out.
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Just thought of another thing to button up: I currently have EU style number plates, which French Police might conceivably be awkward about, if UK leave the EU. The legal requirement after we leave the EU willbe for plain number plates and a "GB" sticker so I am ordering some of them.
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StuartO - 2019-01-09 11:16 AM

 

Just thought of another thing to button up: I currently have EU style number plates, which French Police might conceivably be awkward about, if UK leave the EU. The legal requirement after we leave the EU willbe for plain number plates and a "GB" sticker so I am ordering some of them.

 

You had that in your OP! You obviously need less stress and more sunshine !! B-) :-D

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Billggski - 2019-01-09 12:18 PM

 

Not sure why you need to change your number plate, the eu symbol was optional so presumably you chose to have it on. The only requirement is a GB sign, which you already have.

https://www.gov.uk/displaying-number-plates/flags-symbols-and-identifiers

 

I think you are probably correct and an EU-type number plate might still be OK after Brexit but I shall be quite happy to leave and to advertise my Britishness by changing to non-EU plates anyway!

 

An EU-style registration plate was an EU invention and is legal within the EU but not outside, because the pre-existing, world-wide international convention continues to require separate "GB" (or other national code) stickers. Sadly for fanatic Scots, "Ecosse" or "SCO" sticker are not valid, no matter how aesthetically appealing they might be thought to be!

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An aside about number plates after Brexit: once the UK ;eaves the EU unless we make special dispensation, EU style number plates, on either UK or foreign registered vehicles, will be illegal, so I look forward to seeing our traffic police enforce that law, especially for vehicles of EU origin, unless they also bear a valid nationality indicating sticker! (lol)
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Your still talking as if the eu was seperate from the UK and imposed its rules on us, we were (and still are) part of the decision making process so the UK decided on the design of the symbol as much as France or Germany. Motorists are free to make their own choice, GB or GB in a circle of stars.

So you presumably chose to display the eu number plate when you didn't have to?

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Billggski - 2019-01-09 4:50 PM

 

Your still talking as if the eu was seperate from the UK and imposed its rules on us, we were (and still are) part of the decision making process so the UK decided on the design of the symbol as much as France or Germany. Motorists are free to make their own choice, GB or GB in a circle of stars.

So you presumably chose to display the eu number plate when you didn't have to?

 

The number plate was supplied with our new MH and I may well have chosen the style - EU number plates were the fashion then and there was no talk of us leaving. Now that we are leaving, and plain number plates and GB sticker are the correct international convention, I'm being both cautious in switching in order to deny a zealous French policeman reason to challenge me and happily taking the opportunity to wear the correct national identity!

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sshortcircuit - 2019-01-09 10:14 PM

 

For your overnight stay, prior to ferry, have you not considered Canterbury P&R? All hard standing with water and waste disposal, FREE bus trips into town and cheap as chips.

 

I have used the Canterbury P&R Aire a few times but its mostly been cheek-by-jowl crowded and the water point cum toilet drain point was pretty disgusting, so I prefer to spend a few pounds more for the peace and quiet of the C&C Club Site - which this time for some reason is only costing £11 something for one night (grass pitch, no electric). We're only using it as an overniht stop and last time I don't think we bothered to even get out of the MH. You can't leave the Site before 7am but that's not going to be a problem for our lunchtime crossing.

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It looks like the Post Offices which issue International Driving Permits are few and far between. In East Anglia there are only two - one in Norwich and one in Ipswitch. I've discovered that you have to take your passport along for ID as well as your UK driving licence, which seems a bit OTT since they use the same photo these days. It's only after 1st February that they will be able to issue the two different IDPs we will need for France and Spain, following their adoption of the different 1949 and the 1968 Conventions on the subject. Silly, is it not,that two adjacent EU Countroes cannot align themselves.
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StuartO - 2019-01-10 9:33 AM

Silly, is it not,that two adjacent EU Countroes cannot align themselves.

 

Not really, most cross boarder traffic is with other EU countries and for this the important driving legislation is aligned. The quantity of 3rd country traffic in either country is minimal so why go to the effort of changing legislation especially as it will not bring benefit to the host country?

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International driving permit May be needed. See DVLA UK. Obtainable easily before end Jan at post office. Need driving licence, passport and passport photo. At 1st Feb post office will do admin and send by post, could be 7 million applying, get it now. Got mine last week just in case!
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sandalwood - 2019-01-15 9:07 PM

 

International driving permit May be needed. See DVLA UK. Obtainable easily before end Jan at post office. Need driving licence, passport and passport photo. At 1st Feb post office will do admin and send by post, could be 7 million applying, get it now. Got mine last week just in case!

 

Unfortunately it's not as simple as this because there are three different Convention under which three different types of IDP are issued and France subscribes to a different one than Spain and some other EU Countries. So if you are heading for Spain your need two IDP (1949 Convention for Spain and 1968 Convention for France) and the Post Office will not be equipped to issue 1968 Convention IDPs (for France) until february 1st.

 

So you can get your 1949 version now, to beat the rush, but you'll have to be patient and if necessary join the queue after Feb 1st for the 1968 Convention version. That would appear to be the only way to be sure you can fend off an officious French policeman if we leave with No Deal on March 29th.

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