This my first post so please bear with me if I ramble a bit
I’m a semi retired ex farm manager who moved with my wife to Bulgaria in September. We have pre-Brexit residency, so also the right to live and work in Bulgaria. I’m presently back in the UK and doing some HGV2 work with an agency to earn a bit whilst staying with one of our grown up children for Christmas. We’re staying until the end of January then going back. Sadly, I’m not rich enough to actually retire, so do need to work. The plan was to either find work in BG (poorly paid) work online (no luck so far) or pop back to the UK every so often (one months UK wages will keep us for three or four in BG). Driving with an agency is handy as it’s quick and easy to pick up short term work … However! … Here come the questions
I will have to swap my UK licence for a BG one as we will soon be approaching the six month requirement in BG to do so. I can do that bit ok, but I’m not sure how that then leaves my CPC and tacho? I do have a UK address (with my daughter) and a car in the UK, but obviously the cards are linked to my licence. If that changes to a BG one, do I loose my CPC and tacho card or can they be swapped as well? Can they be kept separately? Can I drive professionally in the UK for a month or two at a time with a BG licence?
Sorry if this has been covered elsewhere but I’m struggling to find any info on anything other than licence exchange or swapping EU licence and cards to UK ones.
I am France based.Your cards, should be good to the dates of validity as far as I am aware.
You should clarify this with Bulgarian authority to be certain. Barrykam is a member in Poland and may be able to quantify this.
You are correct about the 6 months to change your licence though,which becomes a problem if your expiry dates are approaching.
As you say, wages are low there and the plan to train up thousands of Uzbekistan people to fill vacancies in Europe is not going to help.
If you are a full time tax resident in Bulgaria you will need to consider that when working outside the EU. Tax really is taxing and is a complicated issue that even in a lax country like Bulgaria needs a careful approach.
Stupid Brexit
Yep, as Owenmoney said 'you’re good with mixed UK/EU cards as long as they are valid. I drove for atleast a year with a Polish licence and a UK tacho card and CPC. One thing you will need to ensure is that your CPC and Tacho card were issued BEFORE Brexit and they have the EU flag on them. (a friend of mine moved to Poland having just renewed his CPC and found it WASN’T valid as it was issued AFTER Brexit and did not carry the EU flag.
My advice would be check with your local authorities in BG and if possible get it in writing (or atleast a website) you can show the 1st police officer who stops you and will be convinced that you are driving illegally!!
Whatever might be technically permissible, you may very well find it hard to get work in the UK once your licence is a Bulgarian one (not such a problem with the DQC or tacho card).
If my TM client wanted to employ someone with an overseas licence, I’d first have to contact our DVLA-approved licence checking facility to see if they had the ability to check that licence.
Also, your right to work in the UK would need to be confirmed, since Brexit I’m not sure what the rules are, so the wages department would probably need to check that with HMRC
TBH, as the TM, I personally wouldn’t take the chance unless there were exceptionally good reasons to do so.
Ivan,perhaps think about working part time in another EU country,such as Holland,Scandinavia,etc where they also have shortages & the paperwork& language would not be a problem. Being a fluent English speaker puts you ahead of many EE’s.
Zac_A:
Whatever might be technically permissible, you may very well find it hard to get work in the UK once your licence is a Bulgarian one (not such a problem with the DQC or tacho card).
If my TM client wanted to employ someone with an overseas licence, I’d first have to contact our DVLA-approved licence checking facility to see if they had the ability to check that licence.
Also, your right to work in the UK would need to be confirmed, since Brexit I’m not sure what the rules are, so the wages department would probably need to check that with HMRC
TBH, as the TM, I personally wouldn’t take the chance unless there were exceptionally good reasons to do so.
That seems a fair assesment to me.
In fact I’m wonder if it is even legal for you to work in the UK now?
You’ll ‘get away with it’ for now, British accent and documentation. You just give them your N.I. number and off you go. Nobody would think twice.
But is it actually straight up legal?
I don’t know the answer to that, so I’m asking.
You have pre-Brexit residency in Bulgaria, so I’d guess you’ve had it in mind for a good length of time.
I can legally work in both the UK and Bulgaria. I just have to do a self assessment return in the UK to show earnings abroad. It’s quite common for people to earn in more than one country, so there’s no issue there. Zac_A makes a good point about licence checks. I’m not sure how that works but I can see that it might get complicated. I haven’t exchanged my licence yet, but know I will need too. It’s annoying as pre Brexit, it was still a requirement, but not really enforced. So most Brits living abroad didn’t bother and it was never a problem. Now they are taking a harder stance, so I don’t think I’ll have a choice. It’s just frustrating as it’s handy to come over to visit our grown up kids, stay a month and earn whilst doing so. Agency work is easy to pick up and drop, so works well. Does anyone know agencies that are happy to use drivers with EU licences short term? It sounds like my CPC and tacho will still be valid (though I’m not sure how as I thought they were linked to the licence?)
hutpik:
Ivan,perhaps think about working part time in another EU country,such as Holland,Scandinavia,etc where they also have shortages & the paperwork& language would not be a problem. Being a fluent English speaker puts you ahead of many EE’s.
I believe since Brexit you only have the right to work in the country of your residence permit. I for example live in Poland, I legally lived in Poland before Brexit and therefore as part of the Withdrawal Aggreement I now have paperwork to show that I don’t need a working visa or visitors visa for my stay there. If I wanted to get a job in say Germany I would need to apply for a Work Visa for Germany. Correct me if Im wrong but that is how I understand the rules.
hutpik:
Ivan,perhaps think about working part time in another EU country,such as Holland,Scandinavia,etc where they also have shortages & the paperwork& language would not be a problem. Being a fluent English speaker puts you ahead of many EE’s.
An employer in another EU country would have to prove that a national of that country could not be found for the vacancy, and a work visa would have to be got. All time and expense. I don’t think that he could be in Schengen 90/180 and work without a visa.
Things are not that easy for British to work in Europe…now.
Stupid Brexit
OwenMoney: An employer in another EU country would have to prove that a national of that country could not be found for the vacancy, and a work visa would have to be got.
Things are not that easy for British to work in Europe…now.
Stupid Brexit
Really ?
For British to work in the EU, a Work Visa is fair enough. We’re no longer EU.
That a citizen of an EU country needs a Work Visa to work in another EU country is a surprise. That is what I thought was a major plus of being IN the EU, no need for Work Visa’s.
But the employer having to prove that a national of that country couldn’t be found for the vacancy. That’s **shocking**.[/u]
OwenMoney: An employer in another EU country would have to prove that a national of that country could not be found for the vacancy, and a work visa would have to be got.
Things are not that easy for British to work in Europe…now.
Stupid Brexit
Really ?
For British to work in the EU, a Work Visa is fair enough. We’re no longer EU.
That a citizen of an EU country needs a Work Visa to work in another EU country is a surprise. That is what I thought was a major plus of being IN the EU, no need for Work Visa’s.
But the employer having to prove that a national of that country couldn’t be found for the vacancy. That’s **shocking**.[/u] [/quote] The O/P is a British passport holder with Bulgarian residency. He can work in Bulgaria or UK. My son, with a British passport and French residency, works in Austria and had to get a visa from the Austrian embassy in Munich - outside Austria before being allowed to start. A three week turn around for a visa, so two long trips for him. I work for the French part of a big Spanish group. I cannot move to work for the same group in Italy or Spain without the company proving there are no nationals or EU citizens available before employing a third world national. I can work for another French company in France. That’s the fact of Stupid Brexit Simon.
Apply for “replacement” CPC, drivers card and driving licence, so you have 2 of everything, exchange 1 set for a Bulgarian set, you can continue to drive in England on English or Bulgarian tickets pay tax if you wish to, go SE for 6-12mths then go back to BG,… The possiblity s are endless with 2 sets of license.
Depends how creative you wish to be
OwenMoney: An employer in another EU country would have to prove that a national of that country could not be found for the vacancy, and a work visa would have to be got.
Things are not that easy for British to work in Europe…now.
Stupid Brexit
Really ?
For British to work in the EU, a Work Visa is fair enough. We’re no longer EU.
That a citizen of an EU country needs a Work Visa to work in another EU country is a surprise. That is what I thought was a major plus of being IN the EU, no need for Work Visa’s.
But the employer having to prove that a national of that country couldn’t be found for the vacancy. That’s **shocking**.[/u] [/quote] The O/P is a British passport holder with Bulgarian residency. He can work in Bulgaria or UK. My son, with a British passport and French residency, works in Austria and had to get a visa from the Austrian embassy in Munich - outside Austria before being allowed to start. A three week turn around for a visa, so two long trips for him. I work for the French part of a big Spanish group. I cannot move to work for the same group in Italy or Spain without the company proving there are no nationals or EU citizens available before employing a third world national. I can work for another French company in France. That’s the fact of Stupid Brexit Simon. [/quote] Ah! OK! Got you now.
