EEA nationals and the Brexit countdown.
It is a common theme of conversations I have had with clients and acquaintances of late that long term European residents are not aware that with Brexit comes changes in the law regarding their status in the UK. Even people who have been resident in the UK since the inception of European Union, must still register under the new Rules which have taken been put in place.
If you are a British national, this doesn’t apply to you and you don’t have to do anything, but European Nationals residing in the UK, need to register.
European nationals, may, for future ease, wish to begin the route to become British nationals, despite the bitter taste this may leave in your mouth, it is likely to make future travel to the UK easier. So what are your options? If you have resided in the UK for at least five years, you can apply for settled status in the UK. The Home Office will trace your National Insurance Number and may confirm by email within a few days that you have settled status. The system is not perfect. In many instances the Home Office cannot confirm a persons presence in the UK despite having a National Insurance Number and despite having worked in the UK. In these instances, you would need to provide some documentation to prove your residence. An easy choice is often council tax bills, they are considered to be strong evidence by the Home Office and are often relatively easy to obtain copies, if you are in significant majority of people that don’t retain household bills for five years (!).
Once obtaining settled status, you will need to wait for a year before applying for British Nationality. If you already have Permanent Residence under the old Immigration (European Economic Area) Regulations 2016 then you may be able to apply for British Citizenship straight-away. There are still instances when it would be better for you to apply under the ‘old’ Regulations, which are still in force. It may lead to faster route to British nationality naturalisation than applying under the Settled Status rules.
What if you’ve not resided in the UK for five years? You have a options open to you. It may be best to apply for ‘pre-settled’ status now, alternatively, it may be best for you to wait and apply for settled status at a later point. This could reduce the number of applications you ultimately have to make. Contact Immigration Joss for more information.