Visas and Immigration for EEA Nationals 

 

The definition of ‘dependent relative’ under Appendix EU is amended to provide for the adult child of a durable partner. They will now continue to qualify if previously granted leave in this capacity when under 18.

The final change to EU Settlement Scheme is to close the Surinder Singh and Zambrano routes to new applicants from 8 August 2023.

Since May 2024, new changes are introduced for holders of Pre-Settled status:

• persons with Pre-Settled status, issued in accordance with the EU Settlement Scheme, will automatically have their status extended for 5 years, if they have not yet received Settled status by that time. Previously, the initial Pre-Settled status granted for five years could be automatically extended for another 2 years;
• the Home Office have also removed the pre-settled status expiry date from the digital profiles shown to third parties in the online checking services for Right to Work, Right to Rent and View and Prove. Preivously, when shown in the digital profiles, the expiry date was clearly provided and stipulated;
• holders of pre-settled status will no longer lose their status because of residence abroad for two years, as it was the case before. Instead, the period will be the same as for holders of settled status: five years normally, and four years for Swiss nationals and their family members.

This will ensure that nobody loses their immigration status if they do not apply to switch from pre-settled to settled status.
 

EU citizens and members of their families (including un-married partners), who were permanently settled in the UK for five years by the 31st of December 2020, are eligible for ‘settled status’ (indefinite leave to remain in the UK). Those who lived in the UK for less than 5 years by the 31st of December 2020, are able to obtain a ‘pre-settled status’ (five years’ limited leave to remain in the UK). Once they reach 5 years threshold they will be able to apply for “settled status”. To be eligible for settled status, applicants usually need to have lived in the UK for at least 6 months in any 12 month period for 5 years in a row. They will need to provide documentary proof of this when they apply.

After 31st of December 2020, close family members of an EU citizen (spouse, civil partner, long-term partner, dependent child or grandchild, dependent parent or dependent grandparent) residing abroad can join the main applicant in the UK. They will need to prove that their relationship existed on the 31st of December 2020 and continues to exist while the person moves to the UK. 

If EU citizens temporarily come to the UK for the purposes of employment, a special visa category called "Frontier Worker Permit" has been recently introduced for them in this regard.

FAQs: EEA-related issues

A. What happens to EU citizens who missed the settled status deadline?

The obligation to demonstrate reasonable grounds for applying after the deadline (30 June 2021). This means that where the Secretary of State considers there are no reasonable grounds for the delay, the application will be rejected with no right of appeal or administrative review.

The first thing to say is that they can still apply. The Withdrawal Agreement states as follows:

where the deadline for submitting the application… is not respected by the persons concerned, the competent authorities shall assess all the circumstances and reasons for not respecting the deadline and shall allow those persons to submit an application within a reasonable further period of time if there are reasonable grounds for the failure to respect the deadline…

B. Absences and the EU Settlement Scheme

The starting point is that EU citizens and their family members will qualify for settled status after completing “a continuous qualifying period of five years of residence” in the UK. Those living in the UK for less than five years qualify for pre-settled status instead, and can upgrade to settled status once they reach five years.

A “continuous qualifying period” is defined in Appendix EU of the Immigration Rules (the domestic legal source of the Settlement Scheme) as being a period of residence that began before 11pm on 31 December 2020 and which has not been broken by one of the following:

1. Absence(s) from the UK exceeding a total of six months in any 12-month period, subject to some exceptions discussed below
2. A prison sentence
3. A deportation, exclusion or removal decision or order (in very general terms)

C. Exceptions to the six-month rule

There is some allowance for periods longer than six months in very narrowly defined circumstances. These include periods of absence for any length of time on compulsory military service, a Crown service posting (or as a partner or child accompanying such a person) or time “spent working in the UK marine area”.

In addition, applicants are permitted “a single period of absence” that does not exceed 12 months and which is “for an important reason, such as pregnancy, childbirth, serious illness, study, vocational training or an overseas posting”. These are examples only. This means other situations may also qualify as an “important reason”: for example, caring for a terminally ill parent.

The Home Office has issued guidance on whether COVID-19 is an “important reason”. Unfortunately, according to this guidance the pandemic will only justify an absence of up to 12 months if the person is forced to remain outside the UK due to travel restrictions, quarantine or COVID-19 related health complications; or if they are enrolled at British university and are being allowed to study remotely. If someone has made a conscious decision to remain abroad – e.g. for economic reasons, because they want to be closer to their family members or because they consider the risk to their health to be greater in the UK than in another country – the guidance implies that this won’t count.

D. EU Settlement Scheme appeal rights introduced

The Immigration (Citizens’ Rights Appeals) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 came into force on the Brexit day — 31 January 2020.

They create a right of appeal to the immigration tribunal for people refused pre-settled or settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme.

Note that this only applies to applications “on or after exit day”, which is 31 January 2020, but does allow people to appeal a grant of pre-settled status up to full settled status.

There are also appeal rights for various scenarios where settled status is being cancelled or revoked.

Appeals go to the First-tier Tribunal, unless certified as a national security issue for the Special Immigration Appeals Commission.

E. EEA Regulations & British Nationality

If you are a national or a family member of a national of a country of the European Union or the European Economic Area, then when applying for British citizenship, it is sufficient for you to provide proof of your permanent residence status in the United Kingdom (also known as the Settled Status) obtained under the EU Settlement Scheme.

When applying for British citizenship, the above-mentioned applicants no longer need to provide proof of what they were doing in the UK before applying for citizenship (whether they were working, or engaged in their business or in any other forms of economic activity).

This also means that nationals of the European Union or the European Economic Area, as well as their family members, no longer need to provide documents on the availability of comprehensive medical insurance (also known as the comprehensive sickness insurance).

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