Thousands of EU citizens apply to remain in London after end of year
TENS of thousands of EU citizens living in West London have already applied to stay in the country after Brexit.
Residents from the continent, excluding Irish citizens, need to have secured Settled Status in the UK by December 31, 2020.
By that deadline, the country will have cut all ties to the European Union’s Single Market, meaning EU residents will start needing visas to live and work here.
The Home Office published new data on Thursday, February 6 showing the volume of Settled Status applications it received between August and December 31 last year, from every borough in the country. Data from January 1 has not yet been released.
Some 55,000 EU nationals live in the borough of Ealing, according to the local council. The Home Office data shows 54,150 Settled Status applications have already been sent by Europeans in the West London borough, which has a total population of 340,000.
About 156,000 people live in the affluent borough of Kensington and Chelsea – renowned for its French community. And 18,920 Settled Status applications have been sent from there by EU residents.
Nearly 28,000 Settled Status applications came from Westminster, which stretches from Pimlico to Paddington and Little Venice.
A spokesperson for Westminster Council said: “If you’re one of the 30,000 EU citizens living in Westminster or 55,000 businesses that could be affected by Brexit, we’re here to help.
“We value the contribution you make to your local communities. That’s why we’ve put in place support so you can continue to live, work and feel welcome in the city.”
The borough of Hammersmith and Fulham has a similar sized population of roughly 30,000 EU citizens. And the Home Office data showed that 24,460 applications were sent from there.
The data also showed which EU countries the applicants were originally from.
Among those who applied from Hammersmith and Fulham were
Banners encouraging EU citizens to stay in London were put up around Hammersmith and Fulham last year 5,240 Italians; 3,650 French and 3,340 Spanish. The next biggest groups were Portuguese (1,690) and Poles (1,560).
The biggest groups in Ealing were Poles (12,940), Italians (5,970) and Romanians (4,470).
Kensington and Chelsea’s biggest EU communities were the French (3,610) and Italians (4,110). Westminster’s biggest groups were Italians (5,580) and Spanish (3,150).
Residents with Irish citizenship do not have to apply for Settled Status to stay in the UK because both countries are part of the Common Travel Area.
The passing of “Brexit Day” on Friday February 1 heralded the socalled “Transition Period”, which lasts until December 31, 2020.
According to the Citizens Advice Bureau’s website, EU citizens who do not have Settled Status after December 31 will have difficulty using the NHS, renting a property or applying for a job.
For more information about applying for Settled Status, go to www.citizensadvice.org.uk/immigration/staying-in-the-uk-afterbrexit/preparing-to-apply-for-presettled-and-settled-status/.