Question to the Home Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the compliance with human rights legislation of the requirement in article 10(5) of the draft agreement on the withdrawal of the UK from the EU for a host state to undertake "an extensive examination of the personal circumstances" of a person who has applied for residence.

The requirement in Article 10(5) of the draft Withdrawal Agreement with the European Union to undertake “an extensive examination of the personal circumstances” applies to extended family members of EU citizens who have applied for residence in the UK. It is based on an identical requirement in Article 3(2) of the Free Movement Directive (2004/38/EC).

As this requirement is taken directly from existing EU law, we consider it to be compliant with the UK’s human rights obligations as set out in the European Convention on Human Rights and the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, which apply in all EU Member States.