London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Sunday, Aug 10, 2025

Home Office has backlog of 400,000 applications for EU settlement scheme

Home Office has backlog of 400,000 applications for EU settlement scheme

Home Office data suggests 2 million more EU citizens want to stay in UK than was estimated in 2016
The Home Office has a backlog of 400,000 applications from EU citizens and their family members to remain in the UK after Brexit, according to the latest government data.

The latest monthly statistics for the EU settlement scheme also reveal the total number of applications now at more than 6.2m. This includes as many as 172,000 applications made after the deadline of 30 June for settled status.

The Home Office says that about 472,000 of the total were repeat applications and the number made since 30 June includes family members of those with status already.

But it also includes applications from people moving from the pre-settled status granted to those in Britain for less than five years to settled status, which is granted to those in the country for longer than five years.

A number of applications may have been made by EU citizens who have left the country but want an insurance policy for a potential return after a family or career move abroad.

Even with the caveats, the data puts the number of EU citizens who potentially want to stay in the UK at 2 million more than original estimates in 2016.

The Home Office says the net figures show 5.55 million had applied for the scheme up to the 30 June deadline.

Of the 5.8m applications already examined and concluded, just over 3m have settled status and 2.4m have pre-settled status.

About 165,000 applications (3%) were refused and just under 100,000 withdrawn, and 89,000 considered invalid or not eligible for settled status in the first place.

The figures also show that 114,000 applications were concluded last month reducing further the backlog, which was close to 600,000 in June.

No figures have been issued for the number of EU citizens married to British citizens living in the EU before Brexit who are in the settlement process, but informed sources say there are between 4,000 and 5,000 applications in the system.

The Home Office has had complaints that it is taking up to six months or more to get a family permit, which is a prerequisite for an application for EU settled status for spouses or enduring partners of British citizens, before the deadline of 29 March.

These applicants, known as Surinder Singh cases after a legal precedent in 1992, are being handled by a separate team. The Home Office has said the length of time it is taking to process applications is caused by a combination of high volumes of applications and the complexity of the evidence gathering needed to establish that the British citizen was exercising their freedom of movement rights and had established a life in the EU in the first place.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Street justice isn’t pretty but how else do you deal with this kind of insanity? Sometimes someone needs to standup and say something
Armenia and Azerbaijan sign U.S.-brokered accord at White House outlining transit link via southern Armenia
Barcelona Resolves Captaincy Issue with Marc-André ter Stegen
US Justice Department Seeks Release of Epstein and Maxwell Grand Jury Exhibits Amid Legal and Victim Challenges
Trump Urges Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan to Resign Over Alleged Chinese Business Ties
Scotland’s First Minister Meets Trump Amid Visit Highlighting Whisky Tariffs, Gaza Crisis and Heritage Links
Trump Administration Increases Reward for Arrest of Venezuelan President Maduro to Fifty Million Dollars
Armenia and Azerbaijan to Sign US-Brokered Framework Agreement for Nakhchivan Corridor
British Labour Government Utilizes Counter-Terrorism Tools for Social Media Monitoring Against Legitimate Critics
OpenAI Launches GPT‑5, Its Most Advanced AI Model Yet
Embarrassment in Britain: Homelessness Minister Evicted Tenants and Forced to Resign
President Trump nominated Stephen Miran, his top economic adviser and a critic of the Federal Reserve, to temporarily fill an open Fed seat
The AI-Powered Education Revolution: Market Potential and Transformative Impact
Chikungunya Virus Outbreak in Southern China: Over 7,000 Hospitalized
French wine makers have seen catastrophic damage to vines that were almost ready to be harvested after the worst fires in more than 70 years burned through the south of the country
US Lawmaker Probes Intel CEO’s China Ties Amid National Security Concerns
Brazilian President Lula says he’ll contact the leaders of BRICS states to propose a unified response to U.S. tariffs
Trump Open to Meeting Putin as Soon as Next Week, with Possible Trilateral Summit Including Zelenskiy
Katy Perry and Justin Trudeau spark dating rumors, joining high stakes world of celeb-politician romances
US envoy Steve Witkoff arrived in Moscow to seek a breakthrough in the Ukraine war ahead of President Trump’s peace deadline
WhatsApp Deletes 6.8 Million Scam Accounts Amid Rising Global Fraud
Nine people have been hospitalized and dozens of salmonella cases have been reported after an outbreak of infections linked to certain brands of pistachios and pistachio-containing products, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada
Karol Nawrocki Inaugurated as Poland’s President, Setting Stage for Clash with Tusk Government
Trump Signals JD Vance as ‘Most Likely’ MAGA Successor for 2028
US Charges Two Chinese Nationals for Illegal Nvidia AI Chip Exports
Texas Residents Face Water Restrictions While AI Data Centers Consume Millions of Gallons
U.S. Tariff Policy Triggers Market Volatility Amid Growing Global Trade Tensions
Tariffs, AI, and the Shifting U.S. Macro Landscape: Navigating a New Economic Regime
Representative Greene Urges H-1B Visa Cuts Amid U.S.-India Trade Tensions
U.S. House Committee Subpoenas Clintons and Senior Officials in Epstein Investigation
Sydney Sweeney Registered as Republican as Controversial American Eagle Ad Sparks Debate
Trump Accuses Major Banks of Politically Motivated Account Denials and Prepares Executive Order
TikTok Removes Huda Kattan Video Over Anti-Israel Conspiracy Claims
Trump Threatens Tariffs on India Over Russian Oil Imports
German Finance Minister Criticizes Trump’s Attacks on Institutions
U.S. Proposes Visa Bond of Up to $15,000 for Some Applicants
U.S. Farmers Increase Lobbying Amid Immigration Crackdown
Elon Musk Receives $23.7 Billion Tesla Stock Award
Texas House Paralyzed After Democrats Walk Out Over Redistricting
Mexican Cartels Complicate Sheinbaum’s U.S. Security Talks
Mark Zuckerberg Declares War on the iPhone
India Rejects U.S. Tariff Threat, Defends Russian Oil Purchases
United States Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile
Thousands of Private ChatGPT Conversations Accidentally Indexed by Google
China Tightens Mineral Controls, Curtailing Critical Inputs for Western Defence Contractors
OpenAI’s Bold Bet: Teaching AI to Think, Not Just Chat
Tesla Seeks Shareholder Approval for $29 Billion Compensation Package for Elon Musk
Nvidia is cutting prices on its RTX 50-series graphics cards after sales slowed and inventories piled up
Ghislaine Maxwell Transferred to Minimum-Security Prison Amid Ongoing DOJ Discussions
U.S. Tariffs Surge to Highest Levels in Nearly a Century Under Second Trump Term
×