Frequently Asked Questions
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Applying for pre-settled or settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme
EU Settlement Scheme FAQs - Disclaimer
These answers are for guidance only. Please consult official sources and seek legal advice to discuss personal circumstances. The3million is not OISC accredited and is unable to advise on personal circumstances.
See here for more detail and some useful contacts.
If you want to learn more about the Settlement Scheme, the difference between Pre-Settled and Settled Status and your rights under this Scheme, please consult this document.
Other resources
Useful resources:
Your Europe: EU Nationals in the UK (contains lots of links to other guidance and q&a documents from the European Commission)
UK Government: ask a question about the EU Settlement Scheme
Do you need Comprehensive Sickness Insurance (CSI) for settled status?
No. The CSI requirement was scrapped for EU Settlement Scheme applications.
To apply for pre-settled or settled status, you do not need to evidence that you were in one of the ‘qualified person’ categories (worker, self-employed, jobseeker, self-sufficient with CSI or student with CSI).
The EU Settlement Scheme checks for your residence in the UK.
To be eligible for settled status, you normally need to evidence you have been living in the UK for at least 6 months out of every 12 months for a continuous period of 5 years.
Does pre-settled status automatically convert to settled status?
No. And it is very important you renew your status before it expires.
Pre-settled status is limited leave to remain under the EU Settlement Scheme. It allows you to continue living and working in the UK for 5 years, after which it expires.
When you receive your decision email from the Home Office, the PDF attached to the email will explicitly mention which status you have. If you have pre-settled status, it will indicate the day your status expires.
You absolutely must re-apply before your status expires.
If you have 5 years before it expires, you can apply for settled status before. For example, if you have been in the UK since 2017 and you received pre-settled status in 2019, then if you live continuously in the UK until 2022 you will be able to apply for settled status before your pre-settled status expires in 2024.
Can you continue to work in the UK indefinitely with settled status without applying for citizenship?
Yes. Settled status is a form of Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR).
The difference is what happens if you leave the UK for an extended period. If you have settled status, but later decide to work in another country, you will lose your settled status if you are abroad for 5 years without returning to the UK.
What are the consequences of not applying for settled or pre-settled status?
The deadline to apply to the EU Settlement Scheme is 30 June 2021, but you need to prove you lived in the UK before 31 December 2020. If you do not apply by the deadline, your residence in the UK will become unlawful. You will face the hostile environment policies and find it increasingly more difficult or impossible to rent a property, access work, welfare or other services.
How secure is settled status?
We heard many EU citizens applying for British citizenship for the reason they do not feel secure with settled status, or because they do not receive physical proof of their settled status. There can be changes to the legislation underpinning the EU Settlement Scheme, although these should not remove rights guaranteed by the Withdrawal Agreement. Settled status can also be lost if you are abroad for more than 5 years, for example.
What work is left to lobby on the EU Settlement Scheme?
Currently, the3million is focussing on campaigning for a legal safety bridge between the end of freedom of movement and the UK’s future immigration system. We are seeking clarification about what will happen to the EU citizens whom the Home Office will fail to reach by the deadline. We are campaigning to get physical proof of status. We are also seeking to keep our existing political rights to vote and stand as candidate in local elections. You can read more about our campaign goals here: https://www.the3million.org.uk/goals
I have pre-settled status but cannot return to the UK due to the pandemic. Will this have an impact on my status?
With pre-settled status, you lose your status if you leave the UK for a period of 2 consecutive years, whereas with settled status you can be away for 5 years.
However, your ‘continuous residence’ will reset to 0 if you are away for more than 6 months in any 12 month period with pre-settled status.
This means that you will only be eligible for settled status five years after you re-enter the country ( provided that you re-enter the UK before 31 December and re-apply for pre-settled status - to ensure that your pre-settled status will still be valid when you reach five years' continuous residence).
More information about this is available here.
What is the EU Settlement Scheme and what is the difference between settled and pre-settled status?
The EU Settlement Scheme is to be used by EU, non-EU EEA, Swiss citizens, and their eligible family members living in the UK to formalise their immigration rights in the UK after the transition period of the UK exit from the EU ends. At that point, EU free movement rights will no longer apply in the UK. The Settlement Scheme offers the opportunity to protect their residence and rights in the UK.
In short, settled status is an immigration status granted under the EU settlement scheme which allows individuals who have been in the UK for more than five years to remain in the country indefinitely. Those who have not been in the UK for five years can apply for pre-settled status.
Pre-settled status is an immigration status granted under the EU settlement scheme which allows individuals who qualify to remain in the UK for a period of 5 years after it is granted. Before the 5 years elapse, you need to apply for settled status (when you qualify for it) to be able to stay in the country. To be granted and keep your status, you need to be eligible and satisfy certain conditions, stipulated on the Government’s website.
For a detailed comparison between the two, eligibility and conditions, have a look at this document put together by the3million.
I have been unable to return to the UK due to COVID-19 related travel restrictions, will I lose my pre-Settled Status?
The Government has not issued any official guidance on this topic yet. However, the immigration organisation Settled has published a response from the Home Office Resolution Centre that might be helpful if you have been affected.