She Lived In Sweden For 22 Years, Now A Missed Brexit Deadline Could Force Her To Leave

(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) After more than two decades of calling Sweden home, a 78-year-old British widow is facing the possibility of being forced to leave the country over a missed post-Brexit residency deadline.

Joyce Thomas, a retired nurse, has lived in Sweden for around 22 years. Her life is there including her son, grandchildren, friends and the grave of her husband, Gwynne, who died from cancer in 2023.

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But a missed application following Britain's departure from the European Union has left her future in the country uncertain.

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According to reports, Thomas had been preparing to leave Sweden this week after being given a deadline to depart voluntarily. However, a last-minute legal application temporarily halted her removal while her case is reviewed.

How did she end up facing deportation?

After Brexit, British citizens living in Sweden were required to formally apply for a new residence status if they wanted to remain under the UK-EU Withdrawal Agreement.

The deadline was December 31, 2021.

Thomas and her husband did not submit an application by the deadline. She said they did not know they were required to do so and believed there was nothing further they needed to complete.

It was during a trip to Britain in 2022 that the couple discovered they should have applied. Thomas later submitted an application in 2023, but Swedish authorities rejected it because it was late and determined that not knowing about the requirement was not sufficient justification for missing the deadline.

Her attempts to remain in the country through subsequent applications and appeals were unsuccessful.

A life built in Sweden

For Thomas, leaving would mean much more than moving to another country.

She has spent more than two decades building her life in Sweden and would be separated from her son, grandchildren, friends, church community and her husband's grave.

Speaking about the uncertainty surrounding her future, Thomas said she simply wants the ordeal to end and to return to a normal life.

Her case has also attracted political attention in both Sweden and Britain, with critics questioning whether long-term residents should face removal because they failed to complete a post-Brexit administrative requirement.

She is not the only one

Thomas's case is part of a wider dispute over how Sweden has handled the residency rights of British nationals following Brexit.

According to Eurostat figures cited in reports, 2,490 UK nationals were ordered to leave Sweden between 2021 and 2025. Swedish authorities have also confirmed that 458 British citizens have been deported or forcibly removed since Brexit.

Sweden was among the EU countries that adopted what is known as a constitutive system, meaning British residents had to formally apply for their right to remain rather than simply register their existing status.

Swedish authorities maintain that they have applied the rules under the Withdrawal Agreement, which allows late applications when applicants can demonstrate reasonable grounds for missing the deadline.

What happens to her now?

For the moment, Thomas remains in Sweden. A late request by a lawyer for a review of her removal order has temporarily stopped the process, but it has not given her a permanent right to stay.

Her case therefore remains unresolved, leaving the 78-year-old waiting to learn whether she will be allowed to remain in the country she has called home for more than two decades.

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