Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the changes to the immigration rules of 24 August 2020, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of allowing non-EU citizens to prove their identity using a valid passport rather than an in-date biometric residence permit as part of their application to the EU Settlement Scheme.

Non-EU citizens applying to the EU Settlement Scheme in the UK can prove their identity using a valid passport, biometric residence card or biometric residence permit.

Where they are applying to the scheme online from outside the UK, they need to use a valid biometric residence card for this purpose, as this is compatible with the identity verification app available as part of the online application process. A non-EU citizen who is unable to apply to the scheme from outside the UK because they do not have a valid biometric residence card can apply for an EU Settlement Scheme family permit to travel to the UK and then apply to the scheme in-country.