For decades, a Briton moving to Germany simply... moved. Free movement meant no visa, no permit, no permission, you arrived, registered, and got on with it. Brexit ended that, and it did so unevenly: Britons already living in Germany kept their rights, while everyone arriving after found themselves reclassified overnight as non-EU nationals needing a visa like anyone else. If you are British and Germany is in your future, the first question is which side of that line you fall on.
This guide covers both: the protected status of pre-Brexit residents, and the visa routes new arrivals now need. The shift is real but navigable, Germany still wants skilled Britons, and the post-Brexit routes plus the new dual-citizenship rules make settling entirely achievable. Here is where you stand.
Two groups: the Brexit dividing line
The single most important question is when you became resident, because Brexit split Britons into two groups:
- Pre-Brexit residents: Britons who were lawfully resident before the end of the transition period generally have protected residence rights under the Withdrawal Agreement, they keep the right to live and work.
- New arrivals (post-Brexit): Britons arriving after are treated as non-EU (third-country) nationals and need an appropriate visa or residence permit, like other non-EU citizens.
Everything else flows from this. If you were here before Brexit, your situation is about documenting and maintaining protected status. If you are coming now, it is about choosing and applying for a route. Identify your group first; the rest of this guide addresses both.
If you were resident before Brexit
Britons lawfully resident before the end of the transition generally retain residence rights under the Withdrawal Agreement, including living and working in Germany.
The key practical step: ensure your status is documented with the authorities, you should hold the residence document confirming your protected status. If you were resident pre-Brexit but never formalised the post-Brexit documentation, sort that with your local Ausländerbehörde, because the protection is valuable and you want it clearly on record.
With documented protected status, much of your German life continues as before, and you progress toward permanent residence and (now) citizenship on favourable footing. The main risk is failing to document the status, not the status itself.
If you are arriving now: the visa routes
New British arrivals are non-EU nationals, so free movement is gone and you pick a route like any other third-country citizen:
- Work visa / EU Blue Card: for skilled employment with a qualifying job offer
- Chancenkarte: the points-based job-seeker route to come and find work (see Chancenkarte vs Blue Card)
- Student visa: for study
- Family reunion: to join a spouse or family member
This is the big change: where you once just relocated, you now apply for a route via the visa decision tree and the standard processes. The upside is that Britons are well-positioned for skilled routes, English-speaking, often well-qualified, and English-friendly German employers are common. The Blue Card in particular suits many British professionals.
The 90/180 tourist rule
For short visits, UK passport holders now get the standard non-EU Schengen allowance: up to 90 days in any 180-day period, visa-free.
This 90/180 rule is for tourism and short stays only. It does not permit living, working, or studying, those require the appropriate residence permit. The common post-Brexit mistake is treating the 90-day allowance as a way to "try out" living in Germany or work informally, which it is not. If you intend to stay and work, you need a proper route, not repeated tourist visits (which also risk breaching the 90/180 limit).
So: visiting, the 90/180 rule covers you; living, you need a permit. Keep the two cleanly separate.
Citizenship: the new opportunity
Here is the genuinely good post-Brexit news for Britons: Germany's 2024 citizenship reform now broadly allows dual citizenship.
Before the reform, naturalising as German generally meant renouncing your British citizenship, a real deterrent. Now, Britons can naturalise as German while keeping their UK passport (subject to meeting the residence, language, civic-knowledge, and self-sufficiency requirements). The reform also shortened the timeline (standard 5 years, with a 3-year fast track).
For long-term British residents, especially those who lost EU free movement through Brexit, German citizenship is newly attractive: it restores EU rights (free movement, working across the EU) without giving up being British. The full picture is in our citizenship reform guide. Many Britons in Germany are pursuing exactly this, regaining EU access while keeping their UK identity.
So whether you are a protected pre-Brexit resident or a new arrival building toward settlement, the new dual-citizenship route is a major reason to think long-term. Brexit took away free movement; German citizenship can give it back.
What to do this week
- Determine your group: if resident before Brexit, ensure your protected status is documented with the Ausländerbehörde; if arriving now, choose a visa route.
- New arrivals: pick a skilled-worker, Blue Card, Chancenkarte, student, or family route, and remember the 90/180 tourist rule does not allow living or working.
- If you are settling long-term, look into German citizenship, the 2024 reform now lets you become German while keeping your UK passport and regaining EU rights.
Related guides
- Everything for expats from the United Kingdom: Visa routes, providers and paperwork for people moving from the United Kingdom
- Bringing Your Parents to Germany: Why bringing parents to live in Germany is hard, the narrow family-reunion rules for parents, the visitor visa alternative
