Brexit - Residence document for UK citizen as a self-employed person

If you have reasonable grounds for submitting the application late, you are still able to submit an application for a new residence document based on the Withdrawal Agreement even though the deadline has passed.

There are many different reasons that can be taken into consideration as reasonable grounds for the application being submitted late. 

The assessment SIRI will do, will always be a total and specific assessment of your personal situation including circumstances and reasons for not meeting the deadline.

If it is SIRI’s assessment that you have had reasonable reasons for not meeting the deadline for submitting the application, we will process your application.

When you apply you must therefore submit documentation for the reason that you have not met the application deadline.

You must complete the information form concerning the reason why you have submitted your application late.

Download the information form concerning the reason for late submission of an application (PDF)

If you do not wish to complete and attach to your online application the information form concerning the reason for late submission of an application, you can instead write in the comment section of the online application form why you have submitted your application late.

If there are no reasonable grounds why you have submitted your application after the submission deadline, we will evaluate whether there are any special circumstances that allow SIRI still to process your application.

Therefore, you must also complete the information form concerning your personal matters.

Download the information form concerning your personal matters (PDF)

The information form concerning your personal matters must always be completed and attached to your online application, when you submit your application late.

Even if you have submitted your application after the deadline and a decision has not yet been made in your case, including whether you have had reasonable grounds for submitting your application late, you will continue to have rights based on the Withdrawal Agreement.

This means that you can continue to live and work in Denmark as you have done so far. As documentation of your rights while you wait for our decision, you can use the receipt issued to you when you have submitted the application form BR1 or you can show a copy of your previously issued EU residence document.

If you need to re-enter Denmark, as a citizen of the United Kingdom you are visa exempt in Denmark for up to 90 days within a 180 days period. You therefore do not need to apply for a re-entry permit in order to be able to enter Denmark.

If it is our assessment that there are no reasonable grounds why you have submitted your application after the submission deadline, the consequence will be that you lose your rights based on the Withdrawal Agreement and that these rights cannot be reinstated.

This means that your application for residence based on the Withdrawal Agreement will not be processed and that you do not have the right to reside in Denmark.

If you continue to wish to live and work in Denmark, you must apply for a residence and work permit under the Danish Aliens Act.

You can read more about the different rules regarding residence and work permits under the Danish Aliens Act here on newtodenmark.dk:

Read more about applying for a residence and work permit

Read more about applying as an accompanying family member

Read more about applying for family reunification

You must have taken legal residence in Denmark – based on EU regulations on free movement – before the end of the transition period on 31 December 2020.

To have taken legal residence in Denmark means that you as a UK citizen continue to meet the conditions for residence based on the EU regulations on free movement, i.e. that you continue to meet the conditions for being a self-employed person.

As a UK citizen, in order for you to be granted a residence document based on the Withdrawal Agreement and reside in Denmark after the end of the transition period, you must meet the conditions as a self-employed person under EU regulations.

In the ‘How to apply’ tab to the right you can, amongst other things, see a number of examples of documents that may be relevant to submit together with the application form.

You are a UK citizen and have taken legal residence in Denmark – based on EU regulations on free movement – before the end of the transition period on 31 December 2020 and you have changed your status to self-employed person at the time you submit your application for a new residence document based on the Withdrawal Agreement.

You must continue to meet the conditions for a self-employed person under EU regulations.

Read more about being a self-employed person below.

You must run your own business and bear the financial risk associated with it. The purpose of the business must be financial gain.

This means that you must be the founder or co-founder of the business and be the one who runs the business on a daily basis.

In addition, the business must be established and registered in Denmark.

The business must be actual and real. This means that actual and real work is carried out under the auspices of the business to a not insignificant extent.

It does not matter what legal status the company has.

SIRI will make a concrete assessment of the information and documents you submit in your application.

Below are a number of examples of factors that can be included in the assessment of whether you can be registered as a self-employed person:

• registration in the CVR register as a self-employed person
• the size of the turnover
• the business is active roughly regularly and for not a very short period
• information about VAT payments
• excise duties levied quarterly
• invoices
• information about inventory
• accounts
• annual statements
• lease or other indication of where the business is to be operated from

In the ‘How to apply’ tab to the right you can, amongst other things, see a number of examples of documents that may be relevant to submit together with the application form.

If your business in Denmark is not yet fully established and functioning, it may be difficult in some situations to provide sufficient documentation to make it possible for you to be granted residence as a self-employed person.

In that situation, you can choose to apply on other grounds, such as, for example, as a person with sufficient funds (self-supporting). 

Read more about self-supporting persons here

You are covered by the Withdrawal Agreement as long as you meet the conditions for at least one of the categories. You can therefore change your status between, for example, student, employee, self-employed person or person with sufficient funds for self-support.

You will continue to have the opportunity to exercise your rights, which derive from EU law in Denmark. This means that you can continue to live and work in Denmark on the same terms as before.

When you meet the conditions for a self-employed person, you will, for a temporary stay, be issued a residence card, which is valid for 5 years. The new residence document will be issued in accordance with the Withdrawal Agreement.

If you are a UK citizen and no longer runs your own business, you have normally lost your grounds for residence as a self-employed person.

If you meet the conditions for other grounds for residence than as a self-employed person such as, for example, a person with sufficient funds, you do not lose your grounds for residence. You are covered by the Withdrawal Agreement as long as you meet the conditions for at least one of the bases for residence. You can therefore change your status between, for example, student, employee, self-employed person or person with sufficient funds for self-support.

Before SIRI makes a new decision about your grounds for residence, we will send you a consultation letter (a hearing), i.e. we will give you the opportunity to provide your comments and submit additional documentation before we reach a decision.