The Spanish National police are in the process of investigating four citizens of the United Kingdom who have reportedly counterfeited padron documents.
These four British citizens have counterfeited padron documents to be able to gain residency status in Spain after the exit of the UK from the European Union.
As per reports, via the Immigration Office of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, the police investigators of Spain have identified the possible fraud existence in some post-Brexit residence applications.
The investigators found out that at least four requests made for residency applications used fake documents. The fake documents claimed that these persons had been already registered at their padron, also known as local town halls before Brexit came into effect.
British nations who want to apply for a residency permit in Spain under the Withdrawal Agreement must prove that they have been living in Spain before the end of 2020. To prove this, they need to present their padron certificate or private medical insurance.
The same source reveals that the four British citizens that are being investigated are based in the Canary Islands. During the investigation, one of these people on the island had already been arrested. As for the other individuals, the Spanish authorities have not disclosed any information yet as the investigation process is still ongoing.
The Spanish authorities have previously reported similar other cases. It has been revealed that since the Brexit, the majority of residency applications made by UK nationals in Spain have been mainly rejected due to these persons being unable to prove that they have been residing in Spain before the end of 2020.
To avoid such cases from occurring again, the UK authorities have been advising their citizens to follow all the requirements.
Back in November 2021, the UK embassy said on its official Facebook account that the Spanish authorities had asked them (the UK authorities) to warn the nationals of the UK against submitting fake residency applications, either directly or through a third party.
Thus, in order to avoid such things from happening in the future, the authorities advised everyone to use the online database or ask for recommendations from trusted persons.
Apart from the above-mentioned, the UK authorities advised those submitting their application themselves to provide as much documentation as possible to avoid being turned down for lack of evidence.
