Pre Settled Status is a form of immigration status granted to EU, EEA, and Swiss citizens and their family members who started living in the UK before December 31, 2020. It is part of the UK’s EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS), introduced following Brexit, to allow these individuals to continue living, working, and studying in the UK.
Need assistance with your Pre-Settled Status application or upgrading to Settled Status? Contact our expert immigration solicitors today at 02033939272 for personalised guidance and support.
All EU citizens and their families who were already residing in the UK before 31 December 2020 had until 30 June 2021 to apply to the EU settlement scheme (EUSS) in order to normalise their legal status in the UK after Brexit.
Successful applicants under the EU settlement system (EUSS) were granted settled status, which allows them to remain or enter indefinitely, or pre-settled status, which allows them to remain or enter with restricted restrictions based on the period of their UK presence.
There was a five-year continuous residency requirement for applicants seeking settled status in the UK. To meet the five-year continuous residence requirement, individuals must have resided in the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands, or the Isle of Man for a minimum of six months out of every twelve months.
Applicants without five years of UK residence were granted pre-settled status.
With pre-settled status, you can enter or reside in the UK for a limited period of five years. After 30 June 2021, those having pre-settled status will still be able to lawfully live, work, and study in the UK.
The Home Office used the applicant’s national insurance number and other supporting documents to decide the applicant’s status, rather than the applicant choosing their own status. This was done to authenticate the applicant’s UK residency.
At first, pre-settled status was thought to be temporary. It would allow the person to live in the UK for five years, after which they could apply for full settled status. This position was declared illegal in early 2023, as explained in detail below.
The applicant was given pre-settled status if they had not yet accrued the necessary term of continuous residence when they initially applied under the EU Settlement Scheme.
The original terms of the scheme stated that in order to remain in the UK with indefinite lawful status, pre settled status holders needed to apply for full-settled status after five years of UK residency. A person’s ability to work, study, rent a property, and access benefits and services in the UK would be immediately revoked if they did not submit a new application for leave before their pre-settled status expired. Since they would no longer be considered legitimately present, they would also be subject to removal from the UK.
People who have already settled under the EUSS should not be forced to apply again under the scheme or risk losing their rights, according to a judge’s ruling in The Independent Monitoring Authority for the Citizens Rights Agreements (IMA) v the Secretary of State for the Home Department [2022] of the High Court. Thus, the need for a second application was seen as illegal.
The court granted the IMA’s request for judicial review after ruling that it was wrong for people to lose their lawful UK status and all the rights that come with it under the Withdrawal Agreement, the EEA EFTA Separation Agreement, and the Swiss Citizens Rights Agreement if they didn’t apply for settled status or re-apply for pre-settled status before their current status expired.
As a result of this decision,
The Home Office has said that new legal measures would be implemented and that the necessity for pre-settled status holders to reapply for full settled status will be eliminated in response to the verdict. A second application to EUSS will not cause the right to remain in the UK based on pre-settled status, according to revised guidelines published by the Home Office in July 2023’s Statement of Changes.
A further announcement clarified that beginning in September 2023, all individuals with pre-settled status who have not yet achieved settled status will be automatically granted two-year extensions. Section 3(3)(a) of the Immigration Act 1971 gives the Secretary of State the power to make this happen. The individual will be notified directly and the extension will be instantly applied to their digital status before it expires.
Additionally, it was announced that the Home Office will begin automating the verification of continuous residence for pre-settled status holders by checking government data in 2024. Those who fulfil the criteria will be “upgraded” from pre-settled to full-settled status immediately, eliminating the need to submit a second application for the settlement system. The Home Office also recommended that measures be implemented to prevent the incorrect granting of settled status. This effectively eliminates the need for persons to submit a separate EUSS application by automatically converting their pre-settled status to full-settled status.
If someone has pre-settled status and is qualified, they should keep applying to change their status to full settled status before their current status expires until these new rules are put in place.
To qualify for Pre-Settled Status, you must meet the following criteria set by UK Visas & Immigration:
If you are a joining family member, you must also meet these conditions:
If the joining family member lives abroad, you may need to apply for an EU Settlement Scheme Family Permit first.
The specific requirements may differ depending on your situation. For tailored advice, it is recommended to consult an immigration lawyer.
Under the EU settlement plan, family members can apply for settled or pre-settled status regardless of their country of origin. This means that everyone in the globe, not just EU, EEA, or Swiss citizens, can qualify. These candidates are referred to as family members of non-EU citizens.
A Swiss citizen, a citizen of the European Economic Area, or a spouse or civil partner of a Swiss citizen can be considered a family member. If you are a dependent child, grandchild, parent, or relative of a citizen of the European Union, the European Economic Area, or Switzerland, or of their spouse or civil partner, you may also be eligible to apply.
A non-EU citizen may also be able to apply for settled status if they formerly had an EU, EEA, or Swiss family member living in the UK but have since separated or died.
You must provide evidence of continuous UK residency as of 31 December 2020 in order to apply for pre-settled status. This does not apply in the following cases:
Typically, you can submit your application online. However, there are a few exceptions, such as when applying for pre-settled or settled status with certain non-EU family members; in these circumstances, you’ll need to submit your application via paper and mail.
To submit an application, you must have:
As part of the application process, you’ll also have to upload a digital picture. A “selfie” can serve this purpose.
There is now no cost to apply for the EU settlement scheme. On the other hand, if the UK exits the EU without a deal, the deadline to apply is 31 December 2020; otherwise, the final date is 30 June 2021.
As long as you were a resident of the UK by 31 December 2020 (or the date the UK leaves the EU if there’s no deal), your rights as an EU, EEA, or Swiss citizen, or family member presently residing in the UK, will remain unchanged until then.
You may choose to wait to apply for established status until after you’ve reached the five-year continuous residency point, which is 30 December 2020, so that you can be given settled status if your application is successful.
If you are an Irish citizen or have indefinite leave to enter or reside in the UK, or if you are a dual citizen of the UK and Ireland, you are exempt from applying to the EU Settlement Scheme.
Those who are British nationals or who are exempt from immigration control cannot apply.
Additionally, if you are a “Frontier Worker” who works in the UK but does not reside here, you are exempt from applying to the EU Settlement Scheme. A Frontier Worker Permit might be a better option for you. Citizens of non-EEA countries who are dependent on Frontier Workers should submit an application to the EU Settlement Scheme.
There is no fee to apply for EU Settlement Scheme Pre-Settled Status with the Home Office. Anyone applying for Pre-Settled Status under the EU Settlement Scheme is also exempt from paying the Immigration Health Charge.
According to the Home Office, processing an EU Settlement Scheme application usually takes five working days, assuming that no extra information is needed. However, a decision may take up to a month. On the other hand, it can take a lot longer because of well-known delays in handling Scheme applications.
With pre-settled status, you can only remain in the UK for a maximum of five years. This will help you reach the five-year residency requirement for fully settled status.
A person can live, work, and study in the UK if they have either settled or pre-settled status. Although pre-settled status only lasts for five years, people with settled status can stay in the UK indefinitely and can become qualified for British citizenship. Furthermore, leaving the UK for more than five years might result in the loss of both pre-settled and full-settled status.
Yes, if you are gone from the UK for two consecutive years, you may lose your pre-settled status. Also, if you spend more than six months outside of the country in any 12-month time while you are pre-settled, your period of “continuous residence” starts over.
The time it takes to process an application can range from five business days to one month.
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