Expat Life

EX Pats - Have you registered to vote in the General Election

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There is still time for UK citizens overseas to register to vote in the General Election

 With the registration deadline of Monday 20 April just one week away, the UK Electoral Commission has urged UK citizens who are living overseas to register to vote in the UK General Election.

Temporary passport extension stamp ends

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Provisional measure to help British passport holders abroad ends as turnaround times improve.

British citizens living abroad will need to apply to renew their passports in the standard way, as one of the contingency measures brought in to cope with the exceptional demand last year comes to an end.

The Home Secretary announced the introduction of the 12 month extension stamp for overseas customers in June last year. More than 20,000 customers benefited from the contingency measure, which was brought in to prevent the disruption of travel plans.

Shopping on Fuerteventura

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Having lived on the island for many years felt it would be good to tell folk where all the food bargains are! Mercadona has taken over in Corralejo from the smaller chains, however I have found that many supermarkets offer different cuisine.

No madam, we can’t find a chef to make you haggis

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Foreign & Commonwealth Office reminds travellers what it can do to help

British nationals overseas

Can you recommend a Scottish chef in Brussels who can make haggis? How do I set my antennae to receive English TV channels in Italy? Can you find me cheap flights to New Zealand? These are just some of the recent enquires the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has received from around the world.

British Consulate Meeting in Caleta de Fuste

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British residents in the Canary Islands urged to register for healthcare and

social services for future peace of mind

British Consulate and Spain Healthcare Team to host four free information events this month

Some 45,000 British nationals are believed to live in the Canary Islands but only 32,000* are registered with their local authorities. That means one in three Brits risk missing out on basic social services when in future they need it most.

UK expats – Don’t miss out, you may be able to vote in the General Election

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This week the UK Electoral Commission has launched a dedicated overseas voter registration campaign. The campaign aims to encourage British citizens living overseas to register to vote ahead of the UK Parliamentary General Election, due to take place on Thursday 7 May 2015.

To mark the start of the campaign, the elections watchdog is hosting Overseas Voter Registration Day on Thursday 5 February 2015 in a bid to boost the numbers of UK residents overseas on the UK’s electoral registers.  

Merseyside Police Issue European Arrest Warrant

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MERSEYSIDE POLICE ISSUE EUROPEAN ARREST WARRANT FOR TIMMY O'SULLIVAN

FOLLOWING MURDER OF PC NEIL DOYLE

Merseyside Police is appealing for the public's help to trace a 30-year-old man who is wanted on a European Arrest Warrant for the murder of PC Neil Doyle.

Timmy Donovan, who is also known as Timmy O’Sullivan, is originally from the Huyton area and has connections with Childwall in Liverpool. He is understood to have left the country at about 8.30pm on Friday, 19 December, through the Eurotunnel and officers believe he was driving a five door grey Mercedes A180 (registration YE62 NWG).

Ralph Smith, MBE

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British lawyer Ralph Smith, international counsel at Gomez Acebo & Pombo law firm in Madrid, has been honoured with a Member of the British Empire (MBE) award for his services to the British Embassy and voluntary work on behalf of the British community in Spain.

Calls to benefit fraud hotline double, thanks to honest Brits

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Calls to the benefit fraud hotline in Spain have doubled since the British Government launched a major advertising campaign during the last week of October to encourage the public to call the hotline if they suspect benefit fraud, and to urge claimants to report changes in their circumstances.