Children born in the UK to parents who are ‘settled’ (i.e. have indefinite leave to remain) are automatically British from birth. EU citizens and their family members who had lived in the UK for at least five years were able to apply for indefinite leave to remain (‘settled status’) under the EU Settlement Scheme. The deadline to apply was 30 June 2021. But what is the situation for children born in the UK after 30 June 2021 where the parents had a pending application for settled status at the time of their birth? Equally, what if the parents applied after the deadline but were eventually granted settled status?

As of 1 July 2021, there have been changes to the British Nationality Act 1981 to deal with this situation.

British Nationality Act 1981 (Immigration Rules Appendix EU) (Amendment) Regulations 2021 has provided for children to automatically acquire British citizenship from the date that their parent is granted indefinite leave to remain (“settled status”) under the EU Settlement Scheme. For children born on or after 1 July 2021, the legislation will operate under the following circumstances

• Where a parent has submitted an application under the EU Settlement Scheme by 30 June 2021 deadline, but the application was yet to be resolved at the point the child was born
• For applicants who make a late application under the EU Settlement Scheme (i.e. after 30 June) if they can show that they had reasonable grounds for missing the deadline and the application was unresolved before the child was born. In this situation the applicant would need to show that:
• they met the eligibility requirements by 30 June deadline; and
• had the reasonable grounds for delay not intervened and they applied in time under the EU Settlement Scheme.

Under the above circumstances, the child in question will not have to register as a British citizen for a fee of £1031.20 (although the lawfulness of this fee is currently being challenged by PRCBC. They will automatically be born British citizens and they will be able to proceed with a British passport application straight away.

The changes are a welcome development in ensuring that children of individuals who applied late under the Scheme or those whose applications remain pending due to the decision-making backlog are not deprived of British citizenship.

If you would like more information or advice on how this may affect you or your children, we can help. Please contact us on 020 7401 6887 or by email at contact@gryklaw.com.

The simple answer to that is “now”. 

The deadline for most EU/EEA and Swiss citizens and their family members to apply for the EU Settlement Scheme is 30 June 2021.  It is important to understand that most EU/EEA and Swiss citizens and their family members need to make an application to ensure they secure their existing rights beyond 30 June 2021.  This includes people who hold a permanent residence document or an EEA biometric residence card.

Who does not need to apply?

People who have obtained indefinite leave to remain in the past do not need to apply under the EU Settlement Scheme but may decide that they want to as it will allow them to be registered with the Home Office and given a mechanism to prove their immigration status digitally, which may be useful in the future.

Equally, Irish citizens do not need to apply but may do so if they wish.  Irish citizens are allowed to live and work in the United Kingdom going forward purely on the basis of their Irish nationality.

What happens if you miss the deadline?

First and foremost try not to.  Remember that an application is submitted on the day that it is triggered on-line, that is to say the day that you press the button on the on-line form to send it to the Home Office.  If you need to upload documents after this date that is still possible and the date of application will still be the date that you triggered the application.

However, if you do miss the date, the Home Office has now provided guidance which will allow you to explain why you missed the date and a caseworker can exercise discretion to still grant an application.  The best advice is to apply as quickly as possible, with evidence as to why the application is late.  The evidence could for example include proof of a medical reason why the application has been delayed.

Applications which can still be made

Although the EU Settlement Scheme deadline is 30 June 2021, there are still plenty of applications that can be made after this date.  These include from spouses where the couple were married before 30 December 2020 and from children.  Applications can be made for these family members to join an EU/EEA or Swiss citizen in the United Kingdom.  The procedures will vary depending on whether the applicant is in the United Kingdom or abroad.

The application

Most applications are straightforward and can be done with the EU Exit app on a smartphone and by completing the on-line form.  If you do though need advice, either guiding you through the application, or with questions about applications for family members, please do not hesitate to contact us on contact@gryklaw.com or by telephone 020 7401 6887.

 

In these troubling and uncertain times, it is with mixed emotions that we announce the retirement of our Senior Partner and namesake, Wesley Gryk.

After 25 years at the helm, and in celebration of his 71^st birthday on 12 May 2020, Wesley will be retiring as Senior Partner at Wesley Gryk Solicitors LLP.  Fortunately, he will continue to share with us his wisdom on an ongoing basis as an unpaid Consultant.

12 May 2020 will, undoubtedly, be a bittersweet day for the firm as we celebrate the achievements of our founder, who built the firm from scratch into the leading law firm that we are today (see here for a memoir of the early days).

In the past 25 years, Wesley has assisted numerous individual migrant and refugee families from across the world to navigate the bureaucracy of the UK’s immigration system, while more widely championing and promoting the rights of migrants in the UK.  His legacy lies not only in the clients he has advised, but also in the generations of immigration solicitors / barristers he has trained along the way and who continue to uphold his exceptional standards of legal advocacy across the field of immigration law. In this period of state overreach, it is more pertinent than ever that we uphold this legacy in striving to maintain the rule of law, civil liberties and human rights.

Wesley’s achievements have been well documented by the Law Society in its recent Minority Report. Wesley is known for his exceptional commitment to his clients, his formidable knowledge across the broad spectrum of immigration law, and for his compassion.  In particular, Wesley should be proud of his achievement with respect to the rights of LGBT+ migrants and the role he played in achieving recognition of same-sex relationships in immigration law.

We are not just Wesley’s firm, but also his ‘family’.  And like many families right now, we are separated – unable to mark this momentous occasion together with the grandeur it so demands.  And with the same commitment that Wesley has shown over the last 25 years to ensure our clients can be together in safety with their families, we will keep battling on remotely as his legacy and in anticipation of coming together again later this year (or perhaps more realistically early next year!) to give Wesley the send off he so truly deserves.

Thank you, Wes.

The Home Office at the end of last week unveiled a promotional brochure aimed at employers seeking to sponsor migrant workers for the first time. This comes against the backdrop of the government’s intention to end the free movement of EU nationals by 31 December 2020, and in its own words, implement a new points-based immigration system for foreign workers from 1 January 2021.  As EU nationals arriving in the UK as of 1 January 2021 will fall within the scope of this new system, many employers may soon need to understand how to sponsor foreign workers when previously there may not have been a need for them to do so.

The brochure briefly summarises some of the key features of the government’s policy statement outlining the new points-based immigration system, which we covered in a previous blog. These include the skill, salary and language requirements for foreign workers applying after 1 January 2021 to come to work in the UK, as well as how points are ‘awarded’ to a migrant in order for them to make a successful visa application. The brochure likewise adds that EU nationals will, as of January 2021, be able to apply for the Global Talent route and that an unsponsored route for highly skilled workers, together with other initiatives for scientists, graduates (including a new Graduate Immigration Route for international students completing a degree in the UK as of the summer of 2021) and NHS workers, will be rolled out too. At a time, however, when the key role of ‘lower-skilled’ workers is underscored like rarely before, the Home Office’s insistence in this brochure, as on previous occasions, that there will not be a an immigration route for those who do not meet the skills or salary threshold for the skilled worker route, is at the very least poorly timed.

The brochure further encourages employers who do not currently have a sponsor licence to consider applying for one now if they believe they will want to sponsor eligible foreign workers, including ones from the EU, as of early 2021, as well as briefly mentioning some of the current requirements and procedures employers will need to satisfy in order to become sponsors. As the government intensifies its preparations for a much-changed immigration system, further information on changes to these requirements and procedures are likely to be made known in the coming months.

If you require advice as either a worker, or an employer wishing to become a sponsor, please contact us on contact@gryklaw.com or on +44 20 7401 6887.