More than 300,000 people are still awaiting confirmation from the Home Office they will be allowed to remain in the UK following Brexit – including up to 13,000 people in Scotland.
EU citizens – uncertain they will be allowed to continue living in Scotland due to a failure to process 315,000 EU Settlement Scheme applications – told The Ferret they are “riddled with anxiety” and in “utter confusion”.
Without settled status, people risk losing the right to work, the ability to claim benefits, or receive secondary care — the right to see a specialist clinician — at NHS hospitals.
Some people affected told The Ferret they have been unable to visit their families, move home or get jobs.
The Home Office said it would take five days to process applications, but campaign groups point out the deadline for settled status was seven months ago. They claim it could take another 24 months to clear the backlog.
They are urging the Home Office to update its information on waiting times — because the crucial guidance listed on its website has unchanged for nearly two years.
Without a “realistic timescale” for the process, applicants worry their case has been delayed as “there is a specific reason why their case might be in danger,” a support group said.
People’s lives have been put on hold because the Government failed to anticipate the consequences and the resources needed to roll out a migration scheme that affects millions.
Noelia Martinez, Citizens Rights’ Project
Others have turned to the scheme’s over subscribed helpline, where less than half of the calls got through to a caseworker in the last year.
“I’ve lost count of the times I’ve called the application helpline,” one Spanish national living in Edinburgh, who asked to remain anonymous, told The Ferret. “There is an email to contact, but the replies are generic and evasive.”
“My passport was retained for six months when I submitted a paper application to the scheme because the digital one wouldn’t work, and even then I struggled to contact someone to help me.
“I honestly think my passport was only returned because the Spanish embassy took interest in my case and contacted the Home Office directly.
The woman said not having settled status has “really complicated my life.”
“I’m want to visit my mother in Spain. I cannot leave it for another year, she’s 85 years old,” she added.
One Hungarian-Romanian national living in Falkirk, who asked to remain anonymous, said he hasn’t received an update on his case since last July.
“I was told they will let me know the decision or if they need more information from me, but I haven’t heard anything since,” he told The Ferret.
“I am planning to move house and this will be difficult without proof of settled status.
“I would expect the Home Office to carry out their duties responsibly. Instead, they leave applicants’ in utter confusion, and this is unacceptable,” he added.
Linda Okhuoya and her husband Philip could not reach the Home Office when they were stranded in a Polish airport on New Year’s Eve.
“We were told my husband needed to obtain a card to prove my husband had settled status as he is a Ugandan national. We never knew it existed,” she said.
“It took us three weeks to get back to the UK by car and ferry. At one point we thought we might have to give up and move to Germany, because we didn’t have a clue how to get in.
“The Home Office needs to step up their game informing citizens, their officials and other countries what to do,” she added.
Luke Piper, head of policy and advocacy at the3million is “urging the government to do the right thing and accurately inform EU citizens to alleviate unnecessary concerns”.
He said: “People are experiencing serious consequences due to delays with their EU Settlement Scheme applications. These go beyond anxiety and being held in limbo.
“EU citizens’ jobs are at risk, rental opportunities are lost and travel is fraught with difficulties. Often people submit their passports with their applications and they find themselves afraid or unable to travel, separated from their families for long periods of time.”
Noelia Martinez, project coordinator at the Citizens Rights’ Project, a programme helping EU nationals in Scotland, said: ”People’s lives have been put on hold because the Government failed to anticipate the consequences and the resources needed to roll out a migration scheme that affects millions.
“Unfortunately, citizens’ rights issues related to Brexit and the EU Settlement Scheme will stay with us for many years.”
The Scottish Government said it is “very concerned” that “so many people experience delays” when applying to the scheme.
“Vulnerable citizens are particularly disadvantaged by Home Office delays,” a spokesperson said.
“Together with the Welsh and Northern Irish governments, we continue to urge the Home office to offer EU citizens in the UK with a physical document to prove their immigration status”.
A Home Office spokesperson said: “We are proud that by the end of September 2021 more than 274 thousand eligible people who live in Scotland have secured the status they need through the hugely successful EU Settlement Scheme. For those who applied before the deadline, for late applicants and joining family members, their rights are protected pending the outcome of their application.
They added: “EU citizens and their family members who were resident in the UK by 31 December 2020, and who have a pending valid application to the EUSS, will continue to be able to travel in and out of the UK whilst their application remains pending provided they possess the required documents.”
Photo Credit: Linda Okhuoya
