Less than 100 days remain to apply for the EU Settlement Scheme

There are now less than 100 days for EU, EEA and Swiss citizens who were resident in the UK by 31 December 2020 to apply to the settlement scheme to continue living in the country after 30 June.

The UK Home Office has announced that so far over 5.1 million have applied to the scheme, with 4.8 million applications concluded.

A range of support is available to those that need help to apply via the government website.

Those who have successfully applied to the EU Settlement Scheme can access their pre-settled or settled status online

If you apply to the EU Settlement Scheme successfully, you’ll be given either settled status or pre-settled status. Which status you get depends on how long you’ve been living in the UK when you apply.

Settled status

Applicants will usually get settled status if they have lived in the UK for a continuous 5-year period (known as ‘continuous residence’) and will be able to stay as long as they like and, if eligible, may also be able to apply for British citizenship. Five years’ continuous residence means that for 5 years in a row you’ve been in the UK, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man for at least 6 months in any 12 month period.

Pre-settled status

If you do not have 5 years’ continuous residence when you apply, you’ll usually get pre-settled status. You must have started living in the UK by 31 December 2020 unless you are applying as the existing close family member of an EU, EEA or Swiss citizen who started living here by then. You can stay in the UK for a further 5 years from the date you get pre-settled status. You can then apply to change this to settled status once you’ve got 5 years’ continuous residence. You must do this before your pre-settled status expires. If you reach 5 years’ continuous residence at some point by 30 June 2021, you can choose to wait to apply until you reach 5 years’ continuous residence. This means that if your application is successful, you’ll get settled status without having to apply for pre-settled status first.

Your rights with settled or pre-settled status

You’ll be able to:

work in the UK
use the NHS for free, if you can at the moment
enrol in education or study in the UK
access public funds such as benefits and pensions, if you’re eligible for them
travel in and out of the UK

You’ll have different rights if you get settled or pre-settled status because you’ve applied to join your EU, EEA or Swiss family member and you arrived in the UK after 31 December 2020. For example, you will not be able to bring your own family members under the EU Settlement Scheme.

If you have settled status, you can spend up to 5 years in a row outside the UK without losing your status.

If you’re a Swiss citizen, you and your family members can spend up to 4 years in a row outside the UK without losing your settled status.

If you have pre-settled status, you can spend up to 2 years in a row outside the UK without losing your status. You will need to maintain your continuous residence if you want to qualify for settled status.

If you get settled status, any children born in the UK while you’re living here will automatically be British citizens.

If you get pre-settled status, any children born in the UK will be automatically eligible for pre-settled status. They will only be a British citizen if they qualify for it through their other parent.

If you’re a citizen of the EU, EEA or Switzerland, your close family members can join you if all of the following apply:

you were resident in the UK by 31 December 2020
your relationship with them began before 31 December 2020 (unless they’re a child born or adopted after that date)
the relationship still exists when they apply to join you

If your family member is from the EU, EEA or Switzerland, they can apply to the EU Settlement Scheme from outside the UK if they hold either a valid passport or identity card with a biometric chip.

If your family member is not from the EU, EEA or Switzerland, they can apply to the EU Settlement Scheme from outside the UK. They must hold a relevant UK document, for example:

a residence card
a permanent residence card
a derivative residence card

Otherwise, they will need to apply for an EU Settlement Scheme family permit to come to the UK. Once they’re in the UK they can apply to the EU Settlement Scheme.

If your family member joins you on or after 1 April 2021, they must apply to the EU Settlement Scheme within 3 months of the date they arrived in the UK. For example if they arrived on 15 June 2021, they must apply by 15 September 2021.

If you cannot bring your family member under the EU Settlement Scheme, they may still be able to come here in a different way, for example on a family visa.