EU citizens and family members who wish to continue living in the UK after 31st December 2020 now need to apply to remain here. The Home Office has set up an application scheme called the EU Settlement Scheme to process applications. EU citizens and family members who are able to prove they have lived here for at least 5 years will be granted settled status; those living in the UK for less time will be given pre-settled status.
The basic terms of the Settlement Scheme:
- EU citizens and non-EU family members who arrived here before 31st December 2020, and have been resident for 5 years will be eligible for settled status and can then stay indefinitely.
- EU citizens and family members who arrived before 31st December 2020, but have not been continuously resident in the UK for five years at the time of their application, can get “pre-settled status” which allows them to stay until the five-year threshold is reached, before applying for settled status.
- EU citizens and family members who have settled or pre-settled status have the same access as now to UK healthcare, pensions and other benefits.
- Close family members overseas can join their EU citizen sponsor after 31st December 2020, so long as the relationship existed on that date.
The vital thing to remember for the 3.5 million EU citizens in Britain is that they are not automatically protected: they must make an application to the Home Office. Failing to apply online means they will end up with no legal right to live or work in the UK.
The deadline to apply is 30th June 2021, but it is recommended that anyone affected applies by 31 December 2020, to make it easier to show they lived in the UK before that critical date.
Scarsdale Solicitors – Manchester, Rochdale and Oldham
For advice on immigration issues, call Scarsdale Solicitors Rochdale, Scarsdale Solicitors Oldham and Scarsdale Solicitors Manchester. If you need the help of Rochdale Immigration solicitors, Oldham immigration solicitors of Rochdale immigration solicitors, Oldham immigration solicitors and Manchester Immigration solicitors, call today on 0161 660 6050.
