Tens of thousands of EU citizens in Leeds apply to stay in UK

Tens of thousands of EU citizens in Leeds have applied to live and work in the UK after Brexit, according to the Home Office.
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The EU Settlement Scheme allows resident EU and Swiss citizens, plus those from the European Economic Area countries, to apply to continue living and working in the UK.

The government has hailed the process as a success, saying it has received more than three million applications so far.

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But EU citizens’ rights campaign group the3million says even a small percentage of individuals missing out means misery for thousands.

Thousands apply to the EU settlement schemeThousands apply to the EU settlement scheme
Thousands apply to the EU settlement scheme

Official figures show that 28,830 applications were made in Leeds up to the end of last year, of which 24,660 were finalised.

Of those, 13,810 applicants were granted settled status, meaning they have a permanent right to remain in the UK.

A further 10,720 were handed pre-settled status, which gives them permission to keep living in the country and the chance to reapply once they have done so for five years.

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The rest of the applications had other outcomes, such as being refused, withdrawn or void, or invalid.​

Nationally, more than 2.7 million have been granted permission to remain.

The national figures cover up to the end of January.

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But Maike Bohn, co-founder of the3million, said the figures do not shed light on those who don’t apply, are refused unlawfully or are discouraged from applying.

She added: “Just a small percentage of individuals falling through the cracks means misery for tens of thousands, perhaps even hundreds of thousands of people.

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“Those people will face the full force of the hostile environment and the government have so far avoided to say how it will handle those cases.”

In Leeds, Polish nationals made the most applications up to the end of December (5,460), followed by people from Romania (4,240) and Italy (3,330).

Portugal and Spain were also common places of origin for applicants, with 2,780 and 1,860 respectively.

Across the UK, Polish (512,310), Romanian (435,690) and Italian (290,990) nationals submitted the most applications.

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Relatives of EU, EEA and Swiss citizens who are not from any of those countries themselves but live in the UK under EU law are also allowed to apply.

Successful applicants can stay after the deadline on June 30 2021 once the Brexit transition period and freedom of movement end.

They can use the NHS, study and access public funds and benefits, as well as travel in and out of the country.

In Leeds, 19 per cent of applications were from under-18s, while just 1 per cent were from people aged 65 and over.

The figures for the age groups stood at 14 per cent and 2 per cent respectively across the UK, which Ms Bohn described as “worryingly low”.