Property Guides

High Court ruling says no to expat vote on UK EU Referendum

The High Court ruling today confirmed that any British expats who have been living away from the UK for over 15 years are unable to vote on whether the UK should stay or leave the EU. The case was spearheaded by a 94 year old veteran of World War II, Harry Shindler, who is resident in Italy, and a lawyer, Jacquelyn MacLennan. Their case was based on the argument that by denying them the right to vote on whether the UK should stay in or leave the EU, their right to freedom of movement under EU law was restricted, stating that their lives will be directly affected by the outcome of the referendu

EU tells Spain to ban mortgages with “abusive” contracts

The EU is threatening Spain with action unless it improves protection for the public when taking out a mortgage with a Spanish bank. In a formal notice sent out last week, the European Commission said it “is requesting Spain to bring its national laws on civil procedure regulating mortgage enforcement and payment orders in line with EU consumer law… to ensure that consumers are fully protected against unfair contract terms.” The Commission says that Spain has two months to reply to the notice.

Changes to notaire fees

New discounts have been introduced that apply to the work the notaire performs as part of the purchasing process in France. The main role of the notaire is to uphold French law throughout any property transaction, and as such he works for neither the buyer nor the seller; the notaire is there to make sure the legal process of buying in France is carried out properly. You will usually only need one notaire, but you are at liberty to choose a separate one if you wish – the fees will be no higher, but rather split between the two of them.

Hope for British citizens in Europe

A British citizen living in Italy has challenged the British government over his right to vote in the EU Referendum, denied to him because he has lived away from Britain for more than 15 years. There are two million British citizens living in Europe who have no right to vote in any United Kingdom election, including the upcoming EU Referendum – thanks to a rule which denies this human right to those who have lived outside Britain for more than an arbitrary 15 years.

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