Government plans to end the freedom of movement of EU citizens immediately after a no-deal Brexit have caused a great deal of anxiety and confusion. In theory, EU citizens with permanent residence in the UK should not be affected, and they expected to continue to be allowed to apply for settled status until the end of December 2020. But the transition period promised by Theresa May has been torn up by Boris Johnson, according to a leaked internal government paper warning that the sharp cut off date could present “legitimate concerns of another Windrush”.

Application For Permanent Status by EU Nationals

A million EU nationals have successfully applied for settled status since March, granting them the right to live permanently in the UK after Brexit. But some EU nationals have not yet applied for settled status. One reason for this is that the digital application process does not work on iPhones, although this ought to be resolved before the end of the year. Large numbers of people who need to apply for settled status are unaware they need to do so according to campaign groups.

Some EU citizens are concerned about what will happen if they travel outside the UK and return after Brexit.The Home Office has urged EU nationals to apply for settled status and said that no one eligible would be barred from re-entering the UK when free movement ends should they travel outside of the country, but it is not clear how this will be done.