A British man is being deported from Denmark because he did not know post- Brexit you have to apply to stay in the country.
Will Hill, 37, is heartbroken to be leaving behind his cybersecurity career and his fiancee, Ida Bøgelund Larsen.
They had planned to get married in the country in January but now their plans hang in the balance, as Ms Larsen said to the Guardian she is “worried and confused and nervous”.
Mr Hill was ordered to leave by Sunday as his application to stay was made three weeks late and therefore rejected.
He said to the Guardian: “This wouldn’t be happening to me if it wasn’t for Brexit, because I would be treated as an EU citizen.”
The news comes 10 days after another British man living in Denmark, Philip Russell, was deported back to the UK away from his fiancee as he was four days late with his post-Brexit application.
A Danish MP, Mads Fuglede, is fighting to stop the deportation as he believes it is a breach of the spirit of the withdrawal agreement to protect EU citizens’ rights.
Mr Fuglede has taken on his case and written to the former interior minister to urge a change in the law to allow late applications to be considered, as they are in the UK.
However, he is worried that help may not come in time as the government hangs in balance following recent elections.
Mr Russell said he has been through 11 months of hell with no end in sight apart from being deported.
“Beyond me being in a coma and saying I wasn’t aware that I needed to do this, there doesn’t seem to be any way around this,” said Mr Hill.
He feels like they do not care he works and pays taxes in the country.
Mr Hill, who reportedly voted to remain in the Brexit referendum, said he had no choice but to return to his parent's home in Surrey.
He plans to apply for a visa under family reunion rules and hopes he will not miss his wedding.
SIRI said it had received 290 late applications, suggesting that many British nationals now face deportation.
