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Jun 22, 2021 - Lengthy absences from the UK can put EU settled status at risk: understanding the immigration rules

For most people, the EU Settlement Scheme has largely lived up to its government billing as generous and straightforward, but confusion over permitted absences is likely to cause some European residents trouble down the line.

People with pre-settled status, in particular, need to be aware of the absence rules. If they have been outside the UK for more than six months in any 12-month period, they will now only be able to upgrade to settled status if they returned to the UK before 31 December 2020.  

People who already have settled status, or have clocked up the necessary five years and intend t...

Jun 22, 2021 - Government borrowing eases in May

Government borrowing fell in May compared with the same month last year, with the economy in recovery mode after lockdown measures eased.

Borrowing - the difference between spending and tax income - was £24.3bn, official figures show, which was £19.4bn lower than May last year.

However, the figure was the second highest for May since records began.

Borrowing has been hitting record levels, with billions being spent on measures such as furlough payments.

The huge amount of borrowing over the past year has now pushed government debt up to nearly £2.2 trillion, or about 99.2% of GDP - a rate not ...

Jun 21, 2021 - Latest on Zambrano carers and the EU Settlement Scheme

On 9 June 2021, in the case of Akinsanya, the High Court found that the definition of Zambrano carers in the rules for the EU Settlement Scheme was wrong, insofar as it prevented those with permission to remain under another part of the Immigration Rules from applying.

With the deadline to apply under the EU Settlement Scheme around the corner, on 30 June 2021, potential Zambrano carers are in a difficult position. Ms Akinsanya did ask the High Court to order an extension to the deadline so that people affected by this ruling have more time to work out what to do. The result is a consent order...

Jun 18, 2021 - Should people displaced by climate change be considered refugees?

No matter how devastating may be epidemic, natural disaster or famine, a person fleeing them is not a refugee within the terms of the Convention.

The case is – A v Minister for Immigration & Ethnic Affairs [1997] HCA 4 (Aus HC).

As the High Court of Australia highlights in the quote above, there are many, many people around the world in dire need of help who do not fall within the legal definition of a refugee under the 1951 UN Refugee Convention. A quarter of a century on, we might add victims of climate change to the long list of the excluded. So-called “climate refugees” are barely mentione...

Jun 17, 2021 - How do Covid-related absences from the UK affect EU pre-settled status?

On 15 December 2020 the Home Office published a short guidance document covering absences from the UK connected to COVID-19. It applies to EEA citizens and their family members who have settled or pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme, or those who are eligible but haven’t applied yet. That guidance was updated on 10 June 2021, and we’ve updated this article in line with those very significant changes.

The guidance is important because many EEA citizens have been forced to leave the UK for an extended period due to the pandemic. Such absences don’t really matter to anyone who has s...

Jun 17, 2021 - Dual EU/UK nationals can sponsor family members under the EU Settlement Scheme

In case C-165/16 Lounes, the Court of Justice of the European Union found that EU citizens who moved to the UK to exercise free movement rights and later naturalised as British (while also keeping their EU nationality) retain their free movement rights, even after naturalisation. This is particularly helpful for sponsoring non-EU family members.

Lounes applicants (family members of dual British / EU nationals who fall within the ruling) are covered by the EU Settlement Scheme — but it can be difficult to work out the mechanics of actually making an application. This article provides a guide to...

Jun 16, 2021 - Eviction ban on firms behind on rent is extended by nine months

A ban on landlords evicting firms for unpaid commercial rent is being extended for another nine months.

The ban, which stops landlords taking tenants to court for non-payment, was due to end on 30 June.

Treasury Secretary Stephen Barclay said the delay in easing lockdown restrictions, announced on Monday, "present additional challenges" to business.

It is estimated that firms in retail and hospitality are £5bn in rent debt.

"Existing measures will remain in place, including extending the current moratorium to protect commercial tenants from eviction to March 25, 2022," Mr Barclay told the Comm...

Jun 16, 2021 - Getting permission to remain in the UK as an adult dependent relative

Since the introduction of highly restrictive rules for adult dependent relatives there have been numerous stories, all desperately sad, of parents trying and failing to join or remain with their children in the UK. Mobeen v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2021] EWCA Civ 886 is yet another example. 

Pakistani widow refused family reunion

Ms Mobeen is 66 years old and widowed; her husband died 15 years ago. Her three children are British citizens and all live in the UK. Ms Mobeen was a very regular visitor; in fact she only spent about 12 months in Pakistan after 2011 with the rest o...

Jun 16, 2021 - UK inflation jumps to 2.1% in May as clothes and fuel prices rise

UK inflation jumped to 2.1% in the year to May, the highest for almost two years, as the easing of lockdown sparked a rise in consumer spending.

The Consumer Prices Index measure of inflation rose from 1.5% in April, according to the Office for National Statistics, driven by the rising cost of fuel and clothing.

The rate is now above the Bank of England's 2% target for inflation.

That will fuel the debate about whether it's time to raise interest rates.

May's reading was above most economists' forecasts of an increase of about 1.8%.

ONS chief economist Grant Fitzner said: "The rate of inflatio...

Jun 15, 2021 - UK jobs market showing signs of recovery

The jobs market is "showing signs of recovery", official figures suggest, with the unemployment rate falling and the number of job vacancies rising.

Unemployment stood at 4.7% in the three months to April, down from 4.8% previously, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said.

The number of job vacancies in March to May was 758,000 - just 27,000 below pre-pandemic levels.

However, unemployment among the young and those in hospitality remains high.

Sam Beckett, ONS head of economic statistics, said: "The number of employees on payroll grew strongly in May, up by almost 200,000, although it is...

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