London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Sunday, May 11, 2025

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.”
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Trump's Upcoming Visit to Gulf Nations: Investment and Security at the Forefront
Rodrigo Duterte Awaits Trial at The Hague. Next week he might be elected mayor of his hometown
Trump fires director of U.S. Copyright Office, sources say
Retired British police officer arrested over ‘thought crime’ tweet
Cardinal Robert Prevost Elected as Pope Leo XIV, Marking a Historic Papacy
Newark Mayor Ras Baraka Arrested at ICE Facility Amid Congressional Visit
India-Pakistan conflict may be first test for Chinese military tech
Bill Gates Announces Plan to Wind Down Philanthropic Foundation and Disperse Wealth
Historic Papal Conclave Set to Commence in Rome
Huge Copper, Gold, and Silver Discovery in Argentina and Chile — But the Profits Go Abroad
Prince Harry is pleading for reconciliation — but the royals are just as sick of his victimhood as everyone else
The Road to Freedom: She Protested Putin, Escaped House Arrest, and Survived a 2,800-Kilometer Journey
OpenAI's Flip-Flop: No Longer Going Commercial, Back to Nonprofit, After Musk Lawsuit and Backlash
“Trump Supporter” Aims to Bring a MAGA-Style Shift to Romania
First From China: Zhao Xintong Wins the Snooker World Championship
Nvidia Faces Billion-Dollar Losses – Warns: China Is on Its Way to Becoming an AI Superpower
Trump Rules Out Third Term, Names JD Vance and Marco Rubio as Potential Successors
Mexico Says ‘No’ to U.S. Troops: President Sheinbaum Rejects Trump’s Offer to Fight Cartels
Nigel Farage’s Reform UK Storms the Map, Wrecking the Two-Party Monopoly
DOGE: Reimagining Government Operations with AI
Common Sense Returns to Britain's Legal System: UK Supreme Court Declares a Woman Is… a Woman
Beijing Says U.S. Is ‘Reaching Out’ for Tariff Talks Amid Soaring Trade Tensions
U.K. Court Rejects Prince Harry’s Final Appeal Over Police Security
Prince Harry’s Heartfelt Outburst Rocks the Royal Family
Trump Shares AI-Generated Image of Himself as… Pope, Prompting Outrage Reaction
Transgender Swimmer Secures Five Gold Medals at U.S. Masters Championship
Prince Harry: “I Want Reconciliation with My Family”
Germany's Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) party has now been officially labeled “right-wing extremist” by the federal office for the so-called “protection of the constitution.”
Amazon Launches Satellite Internet Service Amidst Competition with SpaceX
Transformative Changes in Women's Wrestling: The Rise of WWE Superstars
The Rush to the White Gold: Global Investment Surge in Natural Hydrogen Exploration
This is a day in Spain without electricity and internet
Reform UK Surprises in British Elections, Challenging Traditional Two-Party System
180-Year-Old Christian University in South Carolina Announces Closure Due to Unmet $6 Million Fundraising Goal
Brazilian Woman Jailed for Fourteen Years for Writing “You Lost, Idiot” on Statue During Protest
Trump Administration Removes National Security Adviser Mike Waltz Amid Signal Chat Controversy
Dutch Politician Eva Vlaardingerbroek Receives Spyware Threat Alert from Apple
Paramount Board Considers Settlement in Trump’s $20 Billion Lawsuit Over "60 Minutes" Interview
U.S. Economy Shrink in Trump’s First Quarter as Tariff Policy Raises Questions
Deadline Looms for RTS Meter Replacement: Hundreds of Thousands at Risk of Heating Disruption
Sweden Grapples with Deadly Gun Violence: Suspect Arrested After Three Young Men Killed in Uppsala Hair Salon
Walz Reveals Why Harris Chose Him as Her Running Mate and Reflects on Democratic Losses
Spain Restores Power After Unprecedented Nationwide Blackout
Carney Secures Liberal Mandate in Canada’s Federal Election
Death Penalty Sought as Luigi Manion Pleads Not Guilty in CEO Murder Case
President Trump contacts Jeff Bezos after reports of Amazon considering listing tariff surcharges; company clarifies no such plan for main platform
Spain and Portugal Recover from Massive Blackout
Liverpool Clinches Record-Equalling 20th English League Title Under Arne Slot
Singapore Politicians Warn Against Foreign Interference in Election
Driver Ploughs into Vancouver Festival Crowd, Killing Nine
×