In September 2025 BOVF held its first European meeting, in Milan — a milestone for a forum whose activity had until then been concentrated in Asia and the Commonwealth.
The same month we launched branches for Italy, Australia and New Zealand.
Why Europe changes the mix
BOVF's early growth came from Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Japan, Taiwan, South Korea and Indonesia, and the issues raised there reflected it: frozen pensions above all, then bank account closures and university fee status.
European members bring a different emphasis. Post-Brexit status, the loss of free movement, and the question of who actually represents a British citizen in Milan or Rotterdam come up first. The overseas constituencies question is more prominent here than anywhere else — unsurprisingly, given that Italian citizens abroad elect 12 deputies and 6 senators of their own, a comparison our Italian members make early and often.
Clarissa Killwick coordinates our Italy branch; Jo Darrington covers the Netherlands.
Australia and New Zealand
The Australian and New Zealand branches came from the opposite direction. Australia has one of the largest populations of frozen-pension recipients anywhere, and the branch was effectively created by demand — people finding BOVF while searching for information about why their pension had not moved in a decade.
Graeme Lamb coordinates our Australia branch.
The pattern we are following
Branches begin where someone volunteers to start one. That is the honest description of a volunteer-run organisation's growth strategy, and it has taken us to fourteen countries in under three years.
If there is no branch where you live and you would consider starting one, get in touch. The commitment is smaller than people expect.
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