EU Settlement Scheme Family Permit
A family permit is a document that is permanently affixed to a blank page in your passport in order to assist you to enter the United Kingdom as a family member of a qualifying British Citizen, a Swiss citizen, a citizen of a contracting state to the European Economic Area agreement, or an eligible person of Northern Ireland.
Who is eligible to apply?
You may be eligible to apply for the EU Settlement Scheme Family Permit if you’re the close family member of an EEA or Swiss national. The EEA or Swiss National must usually have a ‘pre-settled’ or ‘settled’ status under the EU Settlement Scheme, and they must have been living in the UK on or before 31 December 2020. You can also apply if you’re the ‘close’ family member of an eligible person of Northern Ireland. Your family relationship to the person must have commenced on or before 31 December 2020, unless you are a child who was born or adopted on or after this date.
Please see the requirements for a family permit below:
You can apply for an EU Settlement Program Family Permit to come to the UK if:
- you’re a close family member of an EEA or Swiss citizen or an eligible person of Northern Ireland; and
- the person you’re joining must be already in the UK or travelling to the UK no later than 6 months from the date you submit your application.
The person you’re joining must also either be:
- an EEA or Swiss citizen with either ‘pre-settled’ status under the EU Settlement Scheme or ‘settled’ status, or be eligible if they were to apply for it;
- an eligible person of Northern Ireland;
- an Irish citizen;
- a British citizen who also has EEA or Swiss citizenship and who lived in the UK as an EEA or Swiss citizen before getting British citizenship; or
- a dual British and EU/EEA Citizen who settled in the UK on or before 16 July 2012 without using their free movement rights
To be an eligible person of Northern Ireland, the person you are joining must:
- Have been born in Northern Ireland
- Have a British, Irish or dual British and Irish citizenship
- have at least one parent who carried British, Irish, or dual citizenship (or without any restriction on their period of residence) at the time of their birth
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Qualifying as a ‘close’ family member
- You can apply as an unmarried partner if you can demonstrate that you were in a durable relationship similar to a marriage or civil partnership for at least two full years prior to 31 December 2020.
- If you do not qualify as an unmarried partner, you must evidence you are the person’s spouse or civil partner or related to them (or to their spouse or civil partner) as their child or grandchild under 21 years old, or dependent child or grandchild of any age.
- dependent parent or grandparent
Family permits are valid for a period of 6 months from the date the application is approved. It is free to apply for the permit.
You can re-enter the UK as many times as you need whilst your permit is valid.
You are permitted to work in the UK with a family permit.
You are allowed to remain in the UK after your family permit expires if you meet certain eligibility criteria:
- The person you’re joining must either:
- Be in the UK already; or
- Be travelling with you to the UK within 6 months of the date of your application.
- You must also apply for a status under the EU Settlement Scheme within 3 months of arriving in the UK on your family permit.
Where can you apply from initial entry clearance from?
You must apply for initial entry clearance from your country of residency and not from within the UK. We do not recommend that you book any travel to the UK until you are in receipt of a valid permit. There is no standard processing time for EU Settlement Scheme Family permits. UK Visas & Immigration will simply make a decision as soon as they are able to which can take any length of time.
There is no deadline for these applications, and the deadline to apply for a status under the EU Settlement Scheme does not apply to joining family members.
EU Settlement Scheme
EU Settlement Scheme Family Permit
The EU Settlement Scheme offers eligible citizens a solution for secure EU residence status in the UK. This status provides individuals with the rights and freedoms necessary to continue living, working and studying in the UK. It also gives peace of mind that their rights will be respected and protected..
Apply for pre-settled or settled status under the EUSS
The European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) provides individuals with pre-settled or settled status, allowing them to lawfully remain in the UK for a period of time.
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With years of experience working in UK immigration and British nationality law, our advisors can help you understand the process and take the right steps to obtain your visa. Get in touch today.