An open letter to all EU, EEA and Swiss citizens living in South Gloucestershire

23rd March 2021

2733

Dear resident of South Gloucestershire,

As of Tuesday 23 March, there are 100 days to go until the 30 June 2021 deadline for applications to be made to the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS).

South Gloucestershire Council recognises that local EU, EEA and Swiss nationals are an integral part of our thriving community in South Gloucestershire and we are therefore writing to encourage you to apply for the EUSS, if you are eligible and have not already done so or to ask you to encourage others who you may know to apply.

Together with our partners at Southern Brooks Community Partnerships, the council wants to make sure that eligible residents are aware of and supported to apply to the EUSS, prior to the fast-approaching deadline.

What is the EUSS?

Most EU nationals living in the UK must apply to the EU Settlement Scheme in order to retain their current rights to work, live, study, receive benefits and pension rights and access services like healthcare.

EU nationals who do not apply by the deadline are at risk of losing these rights. The scheme is free and closes on 30 June 2021.

Who should apply?

Except in a few cases, you need to apply if:

you’re an EU, EEA or Swiss citizen
you’re not an EU, EEA or Swiss citizen, but your family member is (or is an eligible person of Northern Ireland)

This means you need to apply even if you:

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

If you have children, you need to apply for them separately.

If you’re an EU, EEA or Swiss citizen and you have a family member who is an eligible person of Northern Ireland, you may be able to choose which way you apply.

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

you used to have an EU, EEA or Swiss family member living in the UK (but you’ve separated, they’ve died or the family relationship has broken down)
you’re the family member of a British citizen and you lived outside the UK in an EEA country together
you’re the family member of a British citizen who also has EU, EEA or Swiss citizenship and who lived in the UK as an EU, EEA or Swiss citizen before getting British citizenship
you have a family member who is an eligible person of Northern Ireland
you’re the primary carer of a British, EU, EEA or Swiss citizen
you’re the child of an EU, EEA or Swiss citizen who used to live and work in the UK, or the child’s primary carer.

Who does not need to apply?

You do not need to apply if you have:

indefinite leave to enter the UK
indefinite leave to remain in the UK
Irish citizenship (including British and Irish ‘dual citizenship’)

You cannot apply if you have British citizenship.

How can we help?

Our partners at Southern Brooks can provide tailored support to individual cases, talking residents through your concerns about the EUSS and options to best protect your rights for the future.

They work with a network of community ambassadors, so that residents can be supported in your preferred language via a community member.

If you are unsure whether the scheme applies to you, your friends or clients, or you would like more information, please get in touch with the EUSS team: euss@southernbrooks.org.uk or call 07929 787 473 / 07971 797 770.

Alternatively, you can visit one of the council’s One Stop Shop offices where our customer care staff will be pleased to help you at: