Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

UK’s residence scheme for EU nationals ruled ‘unlawful’

UK’s residence scheme for EU nationals ruled ‘unlawful’

High Court judges Britain’s requirement that some EU citizens in the UK make two applications to stay after Brexit is unlawful.
The U.K.’s Home Office is acting unlawfully by removing residence rights from EU nationals if they fail to apply twice for the right to stay in the U.K. after Brexit, a senior judge ruled.

The High Court of England and Wales ruled Wednesday that an EU citizen who lived in Britain before Brexit can lose their right of residence only in very specific circumstances, which are clearly defined in the EU-U.K. Withdrawal Agreement. These should not include failure to upgrade from so-called “pre-settled” to “settled status.”

Under the U.K.’s current system, citizens from the bloc who settled in Britain before Brexit for less than five years can apply for “pre-settled status,” allowing them to preserve their right to live, work and access U.K. public services such as education.

The government then requires these people to make a second application within five years of being granted this “pre-settled status,” either for full, so-called “settled status” or for a further period of pre-settled status. If they fail to apply for either, the Home Office will consider them to be unlawfully present in the U.K. and no longer entitled to exercise their residence rights such as access to healthcare or the right to work.

A year ago, the Independent Monitoring Authority (IMA), Britain’s watchdog for the rights of EU citizens in the U.K. and Britons in the EU, launched judicial review proceedings against the Home Office’s policy, arguing it failed to uphold the rights of EU nationals who lived in Britain for less than five years before Brexit.

Lord Justice Lane found that the Home Office was acting unlawfully by imposing a requirement to upgrade residence status, and said that those granted pre-settled status are entitled to reside permanently in the U.K. once they have lived in the country for the required five-year period.

This policy has been a source of bad blood between the U.K. government and the European Commission, which last February accused the U.K. of splitting EU citizens into two cohorts and being less generous with them than the Brexit divorce deal requires.

Over 2 million nationals from EU and European Economic Area countries have been granted pre-settled status. Unless the policy is changed, they will be at risk of losing their rights from August 2023, when the first pre-settled statuses are set to expire.

But if the ruling is confirmed, the government could be forced to change to its EU Settlement Scheme in order to prevent that scenario.

Home Office Minister Simon Murray said the department was “disappointed by this judgment,” and intends to appeal.

“EU citizens are our friends and neighbors, and we take our obligations to securing their rights in the U.K. very seriously. The EU Settlement Scheme goes above and beyond our obligations under the Withdrawal Agreement, protecting EU citizens’ rights and giving them a route to settlement in the U.K.,” he said.

Monique Hawkins, policy and research officer at the3million group, which campaigns for the rights of EU nationals in the U.K., welcomed the judgment.

She said the ruling “stands to protect vulnerable citizens who are granted pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme, and who could lose their right to work, rent, travel, benefits, healthcare and more — just for not making a further application in the years ahead.”
AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
JD Vance Warns Europe Faces “Civilizational Suicide” Over Open Borders and Speech Limits
Germany Enters Fiscal Crisis as Cabinet Approves €174 Billion in New Debt
Trump Administration Finalizes Broad Tariff Increases on Global Trade Partners
JD.com Launches €2.2 Billion Bid for German Electronics Retailer Ceconomy
Azerbaijan Proceeds with Plan to Legalise Casinos on Artificial Islands
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
House Republicans Move to Defund OECD Over Global Tax Dispute
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
Trump Steamrolls EU in Landmark Trade Win: US–EU Trade Deal Imposes 15% Tariff on European Imports
ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman says people share personal info with ChatGPT but don’t know chats can be used as court evidence in legal cases.
Intel Reports Revenue Beats but Sees 81% Rise in Losses
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
Tulsi Gabbard Unveils Evidence Alleging Political Manipulation of Intelligence During Trump Administration
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Trump Announces Coca-Cola to Shift to Cane Sugar in U.S. Production
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
Moonshot AI Unveils Kimi K2: A New Open-Source AI Model
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
EU Delays Retaliatory Tariffs Amid New U.S. Threats on Imports
Trump Proposes Supplying Arms to Ukraine Through NATO Allies
US Opens First Rare Earth Mine in Over 70 Years in Wyoming
Bitcoin Reaches New Milestone of $116,000
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
Western Europe Records Hottest June on Record
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
France Requests Airlines to Cut Flights at Paris Airports Amid Planned Air Traffic Controller Strike
×