EU SETTLEMENT STATUS
IF YOU DID NOT APPLY FOR STATUS UNDER THE EU SETTLEMENT SCHEME BY 30th JUNE 2021 AND NEED HELP TO MAKE A LATE APPLICATION PLEASE CONTACT A HOME OFFICE GRANT FUNDED
Such as:
Migrant Help
Telephone: 07483 090 721
Email: euss@migranthelpuk.org
The AIRE Centre
Telephone: 0207 831 4276
Email: info@airecentre.org
All EU, EEA and Swiss citizens and their family members who were resident in the UK by 31 December 2020 and wanted to continue to remain here were advised to apply for Settled Status/Pre-Settled Status under the EU Settlement Scheme.
- Deadline for applications was 30th June 2021
- Unless exceptional circumstances applied, EU/EEA and Swiss citizens risked becoming overstayers
- Having Settled or Pre-Settled status allows EU/EEA and Swiss citizens who had been living here as at 31st December 2020 to exercise their right to work, study, and access free healthcare and benefits in the UK after 30 June 2021
If you were unable to make an application and need help with making a late application you can find details of other funded organisations by following the link
If you would like information about legal aid providers in the local area please contact us or visit our useful resources page https://ealinglawcentre.org.uk/useful-resources/
The current advice from the Home Office about the EUSS Scheme is:
If you’re from the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein, you and your family might be able to apply to the EU Settlement Scheme to continue living in the UK. You might also be able to apply if you’re the family member of an eligible person of Northern Ireland.
The deadline for most people to apply to the EU Settlement Scheme was 30 June 2021. This deadline does not apply if you already have pre-settled status and you’re applying for settled status.
If you or your family are from the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein, you can still apply if you or a family member were living in the UK by 31 December 2020. You must also either:
- meet one of the criteria for a later deadline to apply
- have ‘reasonable grounds’ for why you’re applying now, and not by the deadline or in the time since the deadline passed
You may be able to stay in the UK without applying – for example, if you’re an Irish citizen, or you already have indefinite leave to enter or remain.
If your application is successful, you’ll get either settled or pre-settled status.
If you already have pre-settled status
If you have pre-settled status, you can usually apply for settled status once you’ve lived in the UK for 5 years in a row. It’s free to apply.
You’ll need to make a new application to the scheme to switch from pre-settled status to settled status.
Settled status gives you proof that you have the right to live in the UK permanently. You can usually apply for British citizenship once you’ve had settled status for 12 months.
Check what you’ll need to do to apply for settled status
If you’re coming to the UK from Ukraine
If you have a family member living in the UK, you may be eligible to apply for a Ukraine Family Scheme visa.
Both the Ukraine Family Scheme and the EU Settlement Scheme will allow you to work and study in the UK.
You can choose which scheme to apply to, but if you apply both to the Ukraine Family Scheme and for an EU Settlement Scheme, it may cause a delay in getting your decision.
If you apply to the Ukraine Family Scheme, you’ll still be able to apply to the EU Settlement Scheme, if you’re eligible, once you’re in the UK.
Criteria for later deadlines and reasonable grounds for the delay in applying
In some cases, you can still apply after 30 June 2021.
For example, if you’re joining a family member who was living in the UK by 31 December 2020, your deadline will be based on when you arrive in the UK, as long as:
- you were their family member by 31 December 2020 (this does not apply to children born or adopted after this date)
- the family relationship still exists when you apply
You can also still apply if you’re eligible and can show ‘reasonable grounds’ for why you could not apply by the deadline or in the time since the deadline passed.
You must give evidence of your reasonable grounds, which both:
- explains the reason or reasons you could not apply
- covers the whole period since the deadline passed, as well as why you could not apply by the deadline
Check who can still apply to the EU Settlement Scheme, including examples of what may count as reasonable grounds for the delay in applying.
If you have not yet applied to the EU Settlement Scheme
Your rights in the UK are not protected unless you have applied to the EU Settlement Scheme and received a certificate of application.
This means you cannot:
- access benefits and services (including free NHS healthcare)
- work or study in the UK
- rent a property in England
How to protect your rights by applying
Once you’ve applied and received your certificate of application to the EU Settlement Scheme, your rights are protected.
This protection will last until you get a decision on your application or the outcome of an administrative review or appeal.
You can use your certificate of application to prove your rights in the UK, for example the right to work, rent, claim benefits or use NHS services.
You can view your certificate online. You will also receive a copy of your certificate in the post or by email, depending on how you applied.
If you’re a joining family member
If you are a joining family member, your rights will automatically be protected for 90 days from the date of your arrival in the UK.
After 90 days, your automatic temporary protection will end. You’ll need to prove that you’ve submitted an application to continue to access your rights in the UK.
If you enter the UK illegally your application will be rejected.
If you’re waiting for a decision
After you’ve applied, the Home Office will check your application.
They’ll check if your application meets validity requirements, including:
- your proof of identity
- your biometrics
- entitlement to apply from outside the UK (if applicable)
- if you’ve entered the UK illegally (if you’re a joining family member)
- your reasonable grounds for the delay in applying (if applicable)
If the information you provide is correct and your reasonable grounds are approved, you’ll get a certificate of application.
The certificate will explain what you can use it for while you’re waiting for a decision – for example, to prove your right to work, rent, claim certain benefits or use NHS services in the UK.
Check what you’ll need to do once you’ve got a decision on your application
Fees
It’s free to apply to the EU Settlement Scheme.
Guidance about applying can be found on https://www.gov.uk/settled-status-eu-citizens-families/eligibility
Information for Pre-Settled Status Holders under the EU Settled Status Scheme
If you have Pre-Settled Status- the latest information from the Home Office is –
Pre-settled status will be automatically extended by 2 years before it is due to expire
The Home Office is making new arrangements where a person who holds pre-settled status is approaching the current expiry date of that status. This will not impact you if you already have settled status or have since become a British citizen.
From September 2023, pre-settled status holders who have not yet obtained settled status and are approaching the current expiry date of their pre-settled status will have that status automatically extended by 2 years. This will ensure that no current pre-settled status holder will lose their immigration status because they have not made a second application to the EUSS. They will also retain their pre-settled status beyond its current expiry date where they have made a second application to the EUSS and are awaiting its outcome.
Pre-settled status holders will be automatically granted this 2-year extension before their status was originally due to expire if they have not yet obtained settled status. They do not need to contact the Home Office about this extension. It will be automatically reflected in their digital status and they will be notified once it has been applied.
If you hold pre-settled status and have now been living continuously in the UK for at least 5 years, then this change does not stop you making a further EUSS application to switch to settled status, and we would encourage you to do so as soon as you are eligible. You can apply for settled status at any time, for free, at https://www.gov.uk/eusettlementscheme.
Settled status is the easiest way to demonstrate the right to live in the UK indefinitely. You can find out more about applying it at https://www.gov.uk/settled-status-eu-citizens-families/switch-from-presettled-status-to-settled-status.
Plans for pre-settled status holders to have their status switched to settled status automatically, where the Home Office holds the information to do this
In addition to the automatic 2-year extension of pre-settled status, the Home Office also plans to take steps during 2024 to start to automatically switch as many eligible pre-settled status holders as possible to settled status without them needing to make an application. Automated checks of pre-settled status holders against government-held information would check for example their ongoing continuous residence in the UK.
A further, more detailed update will be provided before this process is launched. This will not affect you if you already hold settled status or have since become a British citizen.
In the meantime, whether you have pre-settled or settled status, you should continue to use the view and prove service to demonstrate your rights. You can access this at https://www.gov.uk/view-prove-immigration-status.
If you hold pre-settled status and have been living continuously in the UK for at least 5 years, then you do not need to wait for updates on automation. Eligible pre-settled status holders can apply for settled status at any time, for free, at https://www.gov.uk/eusettlementscheme.
Home Office recommends that you keep your contact and document details up to date
If you hold pre-settled or settled status, it is extremely important that you keep your contact information, such as your email address, up to date, to ensure you receive any updates or information on your EUSS status. You can do this quickly and easily:
- By using the ‘Update your UK Visas and Immigration account details’ service at https://www.gov.uk/update-uk-visas-immigration-account-details or
- By signing in and using the ‘update details’ function of the View and Prove service at https://www.gov.uk/view-prove-immigration-status.Updating the Home Office when you are issued a new passport or (for EU, other EEA or Swiss citizens) national identity card through the same links will also help you to avoid unnecessary delays at the border when travelling internationally.
Travelling to or from the UK
When travelling to or from the UK, we recommend you travel using the document you used to apply to the EUSS. Before you travel on a different document, you should update your UKVI account to add that document at https://www.gov.uk/update-uk-visas-immigration-account-details. For example, if you applied using your passport and you are planning to travel using your national identity card, you should ensure that both documents are linked to your account. If you have not received confirmation before you travel that details of your new document have been successfully updated, you should, where possible, also carry the document with which you applied to the EUSS, to avoid unnecessary delays at the border.
Visa nationals with pre-settled or settled status should always continue to travel with their in-date biometric residence card.
If you have become a British citizen since you were granted settled status, you must use either a valid British passport, or a certificate of entitlement to the right of abode which can be placed in a valid foreign passport, when re-entering the UK following overseas travel.
Further information and support
You can find further information on the EUSS, including the support available in applying to switch to settled status, at https://www.gov.uk/eusettlementscheme.