EUSS­—ILPA highlights uncertainties over consequences of missing deadline to apply

Article summary

The Immigration Law Practitioners' Association (ILPA) has published a note by Professor Bernard Ryan of the University of Leicester, which looks at the UK law implications of a person missing the 30 June 2021 deadline for applications to register under the EU settlement scheme (EUSS). It considers two different views taken by the courts in the past on the legal status of EEA citizens, one that those who ceased to be eligible for free movement rights were lawfully present in the UK if they stayed on, the other that persons who cease to be exempt under the Immigration Act 1971—including EEA citizens who qualified for free movement rights—'require leave'.  M​any legislative provisions came to use versions of the 'require leave' formulation, which also appears central to the government’s understanding of the legal position of those who miss an EU settlement scheme application deadline, even if they go on to make a...