Pre Settlement and Settlement Applications

You will need to apply on the scheme if:

• you’re an EU, EEAor Swiss citizen
• you’re not an EU, EEAor Swiss citizen, but your family member is

This means you need to apply even if you:

• were born in the UK but are not a British citizen – you can check if you’re a British citizenif you’re not sure
• have a UK ‘permanent residence document’
• are a family member of an EU, EEAor Swiss citizen who does not need to apply – including if they’re from Ireland
• are an EU, EEAor Swiss citizen with a British citizen family member

You may be able to apply if you’re not an EU, EEA or Swiss citizen but:

• you used to have an EU, EEAor Swiss family member living in the UK (but you’ve separated, or they’ve died)
• you’re the family member of a British citizen and you lived outside the UK in an EEAcountry together
• you’re the family member of a British citizen who also has EU, EEAor Swiss citizenship and who lived in the UK as an EU, EEA or Swiss citizen before getting British citizenship
• you’re the primary carer of a British, EU, EEAor Swiss citizen
• you’re the child of an EU, EEAor Swiss citizen who used to live and work in the UK, or the child’s primary carer

If you have settled status, you can spend up to 5 years in a row outside the UK without losing your status. If you’re a Swiss citizen, you and your family members can spend up to 4 years in a row outside the UK without losing your settled status. If you have pre-settled status, you can spend up to 2 years in a row outside the UK without losing your status. You will need to maintain your continuous residence if you want to qualify for settled status.

If you get settled status, any children born in the UK while you’re living here will automatically be British citizens.If you get pre-settled status, any children born in the UK will be automatically eligible for pre-settled status. They will only be a British citizen if they qualify for it through their other parent.

Your close family members can join you in the UK before 31 December 2020 (or before 31 December 2025 for spouses and civil partners of Swiss citizens). They’ll need to apply to the EU Settlement Scheme once they’re here. If you cannot bring your family member under the EU Settlement Scheme, they may still be able to come here in a different way, for example on a family visa.

If you wish to bring family members after the 31 December 2020 you can do so if you’re a citizen of an EU country, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland, but only if the following apply:

• your relationship with them began before 31 December 2020
• you are still in the relationship when they apply to join you

If you’re a Swiss citizen, you’ll also be able to bring your spouse or civil partner to the UK until 31 December 2025 if both of the following apply:

• your relationship with them began between 31 December 2020 and 31 December 2025
• you are still in the relationship when they apply to join you

Applications under the scheme can be made online or via the App which can be downloaded to your Android device or I-Phone. You cannot use the online service or the app if you are not an EEA, EU or Swiss Citizen and are applying in any of the following categories:

• the family member of a British citizen you lived with in Switzerland or an EUor EEA country
• the family member of a British citizen who also has EU, EEAor Swiss citizenship and who lived in the UK as an EU, EEA or Swiss citizen before getting British citizenship
• the primary carer of a British, EU, EEAor Swiss citizen
• the child of an EU, EEAor Swiss citizen who used to live and work in the UK, and you’re in education – or you’re the child’s primary carer

Please visit our other EEA pages for help with the above categories.