Joyce Thomas Faces Deportation After 22 Years in Sweden as Opposition Vows to Let Brexit-Affected Britons Stay

At 78, Joyce Thomas is facing removal from Sweden after 22 years in the country. On Tuesday, the Värmland resident is due to leave, unless a lawyer can secure a last-minute legal block.

Thomas’s application to remain after Britain left the European Union was rejected by the Swedish Migration Agency. She and her husband, who has since died, searched online for information before Brexit. They understood that they did not need to take any action, according to their friend Felix Andler.

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When we soon take office, we need to quickly correct a number of serious shortcomings that lead to unreasonable deportations. This is one of them.

She learned that an application was required when she returned from a trip in 2022. She submitted one then, but it was rejected. Thomas is a retired nurse and has children and grandchildren in Sweden. Her husband is also buried there.

“We who are close to her think this is terrible. Her life is at stake. She sees no future in another country,” Andler said. He said a lawyer was trying to obtain a legal suspension of the removal, calling it their last hope.

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We who are close to her think this is terrible. Her life is at stake. She sees no future in another country.

The case has drawn support from opposition politicians. Håkan Svenneling of the Left Party has raised the situation of Britons affected by Brexit in written questions to Migration Minister Johan Forssell and Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard. He said these people had strong ties to Sweden and were suffering the consequences of Brexit and decisions by Swedish authorities.

Green Party lawmaker Annika Hirvonen said a future opposition government would quickly address “serious shortcomings” leading to “unreasonable deportations.” She said some affected Britons might previously have qualified for residence permits on particularly compelling grounds, but the government removed that option in 2023. Centre Party lawmaker Niels Paarup-Petersen also said he could support temporary legislation similar to measures Denmark introduced for Brexit-affected Britons.

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It is so clear that these people have strong ties to Sweden. They are affected by decisions made by Swedish authorities as a consequence of the British decision on Brexit.