One Week Remaining for EUSS Applications!
EU/EEA/Swiss nationals and their families need to apply for settled or pre-settled status under the European Settlement Scheme (EUSS) by 30 June 2021 if they wish to remain in the UK for purposes including work.
Individuals who do not have settlement status after this date may lose their right to live and work in the UK and employers who continue to employ EU nationals who do not have the relevant permissions will fall foul of the illegal working provisions. Irish nationals do not need to apply for settlement status to travel to or to live and work in the UK by virtue of the Common Travel Agreement (CTA).
Employers who do engage the services of EU Nationals and who wish to retain their services into the future should consider speaking with the affected employees now in order to check their immigration status. Employees who have not yet applied for settled or pre-settled status under the EUSS should be reminded of next weeks’ deadline for application and the consequences of not applying in time. Employees who do not have correct status on 1 July 2021 will have no immigration status in the UK and will be prevented from starting a new job or retaining their existing one. Other hostile environment controls would also apply, for instance, limited access to health care, or being prevented from renting a flat. Applications under the EUSS are free and can be done via the gov.uk website: https://www.gov.uk/settled-status-eu-citizens-families/applying-for-settled-status
Employers do not need to check the right to work status of their foreign nationals until after 30 June 2021, so long as they have conducted a compliant right-to-work check at the start of employment. Employers should however ensure that they have a robust Right to Work checking process in place in order to ascertain the immigration status of its employees past this date.
