Immigration: EU Nationals

(asked on 27th May 2021) - View Source

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether an employer could be subject to a criminal penalty for failing to dismiss an EU national if that employee started a period of employment after 1 July 2021 and the employer knows or has reasonable cause to believe that the employee has not yet applied for EU Settled Status.


Answered by
Kevin Foster Portrait
Kevin Foster
This question was answered on 11th June 2021

Right to work and rent checks for EEA citizens will change at the end of the grace period – which ends on 30 June 2021.

Employers and landlords will maintain a continuous statutory excuse against liability for a civil penalty if the initial checks were undertaken in line with legislation and published guidance at the time. Employers and landlords will not be required to conduct retrospective checks on existing employees and tenants if the initial check was undertaken on or before 30 June 2021.

From 1 July, EEA citizens and their family members will require an immigration status in the UK, in the same way as other foreign nationals. They can no longer rely on an EU passport or national identity card to prove their right to work or rent.

Those with an outstanding application to the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) will be able to rely on their Certificate of Application as proof of eligibility to access their right to work or rent when this is verified by the Home Office checking services.

The Department for Work and Pensions and HMRC will also be able to determine an individual’s status using existing services with the Home Office. Consistent with the Citizens’ Rights Agreements, the rights of someone who has made an application to the EUSS by the 30 June 2021 deadline will be protected while the outcome of the application (and of any appeal against the decision) is pending.

We will be updating our guidance and communicating with employers and landlords in the coming weeks to set out the support available, and ensure they are clear on the steps they should take from 1 July.

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