A new Appendix EU has been added to the Immigration Rules, to deal with the roll out of the Government’s new EU Settlement Scheme. This reflects the draft rules discussed in our last update.

NHS employees, university staff and students in the North West of England will be taking part in a private pilot of the new application process. Approximately 4,000 EU citizens will be invited to make real applications for settled status through the new digital process as part of a managed live trial. The pilot is due to begin on 28 August 2018 and will allow those working on the scheme to test the system using real applicants ahead of the launch of the scheme’s phased rollout later this year. Those who go through the process will be granted indefinite leave to remain, assuming they are eligible.

Meanwhile the Home Office has launched a toolkit to help employers, industry groups and community groups in the UK to communicate the EU Settlement Scheme to their staff. The toolkit can be accessed here.