Why Gibraltar is soaring in popularity for British expats - and it's not for low taxes

Gibraltar could become a highly desirable place for British expats wanting Schengen rights without Spanish residency. The European Union finally reached a deal with the UK, Spain and Gibraltar in June, almost a decade after the Brexit referendum.

Although details of the agreement are not fully known yet, it will ease border flows and eliminate goods checks. There will also be a dual "Eurostar-style" border control to ensure smooth and efficient frontier crossings. Gibraltar's Chief Minister Fabian Picardo believes that UK citizens might try to use the new deal as a way to get around Schengen rules restricting the amount of time non-EU nationals can stay in Europe.

Currently Brits can only spend 90 days within any 180-day period inside the Schengen Zone that includes countries like Spain, Italy and France.

However, Mr Picardo noted that if UK citizens acquire residency rights on The Rock, then "they are not going to have the 90-day check every 180 days."

The politician also pointed out that an influx of Brits looking to make Gibraltar their home could see accommodation prices explode.

"We have to look at how the price of land can go up, because Gibraltar is going to become a very attractive place, particularly for British people who want to be in the European Union," he said.

Brits do not need a visa to relocate to Gibraltar, but if they want to stay long-term, then they will need to apply for residency.

There are a number of ways a UK citizen can get residency on The Rock. The first is the so-called "Self-Sufficiency" Residency path. According to Fiduciary Wealth Management Ltd, the Gibraltar Self-Sufficiency Residency programme offers British nationals "three key pathways to establish residency through employment, self-employment, and retirement."

The other option is known as Category 2 residency and is a more tax-based scheme that is orientated towards wealthy people.

According to the Gibraltar based Form-A-Co firm, it involves a commitment to buy or rent a "prestige" property for a year where the "value that has been pre-approved by the Finance Centre as suitable for this type of status applicant (ie. not typically available for purchase by the local tax-payer)."

This option "is available to all non-Gibraltarian individuals who establish a residential address in Gibraltar, have not been ordinarily resident in Gibraltar during the preceding 5 years, and do not derive any income from Gibraltar sources other than from Gibraltar Tax Exempt Status companies."