1. University of Portsmouth
Brexit staff briefing
University of Portsmouth
14 March 2018
Alex Russell

2. Agenda for today What we know today New settled status
Permanent residence
British citizenship
Questions!

3. New settled status

4. So where do we stand? Current status of EEA nationals
Difference between EEA and EU nationals
Norway, Lichtenstein, Iceland, Switzerland

5. Relevant documents UK / EU Joint Report
Policy paper Safeguarding the Position of EU Citizens Living in the UK and UK nationals Living in the EU
Technical Paper
Draft Withdrawal Agreement

6. Key eligibility points
For EU citizens residents in the UK before the specified date (expected to be 29 March 2019)
Resident in UK for five years on specified date
Eligible to apply for settled status
Resident but not for five years on specified date
Can apply for temporary residence status with path to settled status (circa 2 year transitional period)

7. Transitional period To be at least two years
Blanket permission to remain
Application to be lodged within this period

8. Settled status rights
Reside in UK in any capacity and undertake any lawful activity
Access to healthcare, benefits, pension, social security on same basis as British nationals
Similar to Indefinite Leave to Remain for non EEA nationals

9. Who will need to apply and when
All EU nationals
But ‘light touch’ process for EU nationals with permanent residence documents
Irish nationals

10. Qualifying criteria (1)
Full details not known at this stage
5 years of continuous and lawful residence
Worker
Self employed
Student
Self sufficient

11. Qualifying criteria (2)
No CSI requirement
No ‘genuine worker’ test
Criminality and security check
Travel log not required
Amount of time spent in UK in 5 year period?
Status lost if outside UK for more than 5 continuous years

12. Application process Streamlined digital online application
Limited documents and cross departmental checks
Opportunity to provide supplementary evidence
Low cost – no more than British passport
Application portal likely to open before UK leaves EU

13. Family members Family members on date UK leaves the EU
Lifetime rights
Not family members on date UK leaves the EU
No lifetime rights

14. Other points
Different rules for those who enter UK after specified date
Details unclear
Freedom of movement / limited restrictions?
Different path to settlement

15. Actions to consider now
EEA nationals should consider
Permanent residence
British citizenship
Ensure residing legally
Retain key documents
Watch developments

16. Permanent residence

17. Why bother applying? Sensible to have documents evidencing status
Streamlined no cost application for settled status
Necessary for citizenship application
Enhanced rights?

18. Permanent residence
Relevant for EEA nationals and third country nationals
Acquired automatically on meeting relevant conditions
PR application confirms (rather than grants) status

19. Permanent residence – acquisition
EEA nationals acquire PR after ‘residing legally’ in the UK for continuous period of 5 years
Residing legally
Continuous residence
Qualifying person

20. Continuous residence
Continuity broken by periods of absence from UK exceeding 6 months in total in any year
But continuity not broken by
Periods of absence from the UK on military service
Any one absence not exceeding 12 months for important reason such as pregnancy/childbirth, serious illness, study or vocational training, overseas posting, or other ‘important reasons’

21. Qualifying person
EEA nationals have initial right of residence for 3 months
Right of residence beyond 3 months if ‘qualified person’
Worker
Jobseekers
Self-employed
Student
Self-sufficient person

22. Common difficulties
Potential difficulties with qualifying person criteria
Students and Comprehensive Sickness Insurance (CSI)
Self sufficiency and CSI

23. Comprehensive sickness insurance
Medical cover
Requires
Comprehensive medical insurance, or
EHIC (issued by another member state), or
Forms for reimbursement of medical treatment for certain individuals (eg, S1, S2 or S3)

24. How to apply Online form for most applications
Travel log not required
List of required documents generated
European passport return service
Guidance notes for alternative documents
Which 5 year period to rely upon

25. Application process £65 fee for each person included in application
Timeframe
6 months for Residence Cards
ASAP for documents certifying permanent residence
Currently around 2 to 3 months
No Premium Service option

26. Relevance for citizenship
Rules changed on 12 November 2015
PR card / certification of PR must be submitted for naturalisation applications
Note that naturalisation absence thresholds different from permanent residence absence thresholds

27. Citizenship

28. Naturalisation Consider, but…..
Dual nationality not permitted by all countries
Some countries have procedural requirements
Can result in applicant or family members losing citizenship of other countries
Impact on free movement rights
May also affect tax position and pension eligibility

29. Naturalisation - routes
Two main categories depending on whether applicant is spouse of partner of a British citizen
No British citizen spouse – 6 year route
British citizen spouse – 5 year route
Different requirements apply to each route

30. Naturalisation – main requirements
Residence
Future intentions
Good character
Knowledge of language and life in the UK
Fairly straightforward

31. Further guidance Forms and guidance notes Modernised Guidance (PR)
EEA(PR)
Form AN, Guide AN, Booklet AN
Modernised Guidance (PR)
Nationality Instructions (Citizenship)
Nationality Checking Service (Citizenship)

32. Questions