Question to the Home Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to protect the rights of EU Citizens resident in the UK who have not yet been granted settled or pre-settled status (1) between now and 31 December, and (2) between 1 January and 30 June 2021.

The UK left the EU on 31 January on the basis of the EU Withdrawal Agreement reached in October 2019. The protections for resident EU citizens provided in the Withdrawal Agreement are now underpinned by the European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020 and by the EU Settlement Scheme.

There will be no change to the current rights of resident EU citizens until the end of the transition period on 31 December 2020, at which point free movement law will, subject to its parliamentary passage, be repealed by the Immigration and Social Security Co-ordination (EU Withdrawal) Bill.

In line with the Withdrawal Agreement, EU citizens resident in the UK by 31 December 2020 are eligible to apply for UK immigration status under the EU Settlement Scheme. The Government will bring forward secondary legislation under the EU (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020 to protect relevant residence rights under EU law during the grace period which will apply from 1 January 2021 until the application deadline of 30 June 2021. Provided an application to the EU Settlement Scheme is made by 30 June 2021, these rights will continue until the application is finally determined, including pending the outcome of an appeal against any decision to refuse status under the EU Settlement Scheme.