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Belgium longer term residency for EU nation
Hi everybody!
I'm married for 10 years with a Belgian and we have a son and own our house in BE. I am British.
However for the past 12 years we've lived outside of Belgium, and for the last year I've had to live in the Netherlands with them in Belgium.
Thankfully I will start a new job in Belgium in November 2014, but am concerned that I have no residency rights there, and was wondering if anybody knew of processes that would allow me more than an initial 3 month permit? I think the 3 month will automatically turn into a yearly permit, but this does not fill me with any form of rights or permanence.
Any ideas, because all documentation I've found refers to non-EU long term residency and visas. I feel like I stand in a gray no-mans land.
Really hoping for some help.
Kind regards, Si
""Indeed, but you do have to not be dependant on state benefits, so you do have to be either working or have enough income or capital to live on. Or be the dependant of someone who has.""
I know a UK citizen who has lived in Belgium for over 18 years. He has paid not ONE CENT of employment taxes to this Country in that entire time. About 6 years back, he was encouraged to pop along and see about getting some employment, and was then encouraged to apply for unemployment benefit based on his previous employment in the UK.
To his own astonishment, he has been in receipt of around 1200 Euro per month ever since. The only "telling off" he got was to have been so stupid as to take so long to apply for unemployment benefits. Only in very exceptional circumstances will Belgians try to evict EU citizens, but I would not be surprised to see them crossing the line.
The point in the last case is that the Briton concerned had been allowed to reside in Belgium for 18 (i.e. more than 5) years and had thus acquired permanent residence rights. Indeed, under the old rules he could have become a Belgian citizen after 7 years residence.
Now you cannot become a Belgian citizen unless you have at least 5 years continuous registered residence in Belgium and can meet certain other criteria - having a Belgian spouse being a sufficient one.
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