UK NATIONALS - THE UK HAS LEFT THE EU BUILDING

 Cyprus Mail 15 October 2020 - by Kyriacos Nicolaou

As you are all aware, the UK has left the EU and is now in a transition period. To that end, the UK government is working with organisations to help and assist UK Nationals living in EU countries who need residency advice and support.

One of those organisations is the Cyprus Residency Planning Group (CRPG) whose remit is to help UK Nationals who may find it hard to complete all the paperwork, particularly pensioners and disabled; those living in remote areas or with mobility difficulties and those needing assistance with language translation or interpretation and who, for whatever reason, cannot respond and help themselves.

In other words, people deemed at risk.

CRPG officially opened for business in April 2020, when the Help Desk sprang into action and began the process of taking calls from people seeking advice on whether to apply for an MEU1 or an MEU3 – and what the difference is.

There still seems to be some misinformation and confusion out there.

So, in a nutshell – if you have lived in Cyprus for more than 90 days BUT less than 5 years, you need to apply for an MEU1 and if you have lived in Cyprus for 5 years or more, you need to apply for an MEU3.

All old-style residency documents such as the blue form, pink slip, alien registration book or a stamp in your passport are no longer valid and MUST be replaced.

Please visit the CRPG website for more information and for those of you who are considering residency and who might be new to Cyprus please also look at the GOV. UK information site Living in Cyprus Guide

If you would like to chat about your own situation – or you know of someone who needs our help – please contact the Help Desk on 99826087 or email contactus@cyprus-crpg.org.

We look forward to hearing from you.

PS: We are also looking for more volunteers to work as Case Workers, to help us manage individual cases. Volunteers are trained in Safe Guarding, Data Protection and will also be required to apply for CRO clearance. There is remuneration for mileage and an hourly rate – plus Case Workers are provided with a CRPG branded brief case and business card. It’s a great way to help your local community.