2m EU citizens get right to stay in UK
MORE than two million Europeans have been given the right to live and work in the UK when freedom of movement ends, latest figures show.
EU citizens in Britain have until next June to apply for settled status after Brexit transition rules end this year.
Around 3.8 million applications were made by July 31 and 3.5 million have been processed, the Home Office said.
Some 2,041,200 people have been granted settled status so far and 1,475,500 have been given pre-settled status, which means they can apply for permanent residence once they have spent five years living in the country.
Just 0.1 per cent – 4,600 – of applications to the EU Settlement Scheme were refused, 36,500 were withdrawn and 34,900 were from people who were not eligible to apply or were unable to prove they have been living here.
After a drop in the number of applications during the peak of the pandemic, the Home Office said it received 92,000 in July and dealt with 133,100.
Immigration Minister Kevin Foster said EU citizens were an “integral part of UK society”. He added: “There’s plenty of time to apply and a range of support is available online, over the telephone and in person if you need it.”
A points-based system that treats EU citizens like those from the rest of the world starts on January 1.
Separate figures show 28 per cent of under-18s – 3.8 million – have at least one parent who was born abroad.
Oxford University’s Migration Observatory says six per cent (896,000) were born abroad and eight per cent (1,082,000) were not UK or Irish citizens.