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<p>The Withdrawal Agreement includes protections for the rights of citizens including
UK nationals currently living in the EU, which will allow them to continue living
their lives broadly as they do now in the countries where they currently live.</p><p>The
Government has been clear that we do not want or expect a no deal scenario. However,
we will continue to do the responsible thing and prepare for all eventualities. This
includes the potential impact of a no deal scenario on UK nationals currently resident
in the EU.</p><p>The Office for National Statistics calculates there are approximately
780,000 UK nationals who currently live in the EU, excluding Ireland. Some of them
could decide to return to the UK depending on a range of factors including action
by EU member states and personal circumstances.</p><p>On 19 December, the European
Commission reconfirmed their commitment to putting citizens’ rights first and called
on Member States to take a generous approach to the rights of UK nationals in the
EU. The majority of Member States, including France, Spain and the Netherlands, have
set out their no deal plans and provided reassurances that the rights of UK nationals
will be protected. The Government hopes that other Member States will set out the
detail of their plans to protect the rights of UK nationals, in line with our assurances
to EU citizens living in the UK, so there should be no need for them to leave.</p><p>
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