Immigration

United Kingdom | EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) status automation process announced

Summary

The UK Government has announced a phased process to automatically convert as many eligible Pre-Settled Status holders as possible to Settled Status without the need to make a further application.  

The first automatic grants of Settled Status will begin from late January 2025.

Employees should regularly check and update their online immigration status account, especially when new passports are issued to make sure they are properly linked to their digital status.

The detail

When the UK left the European Union, EEA nationals who were living in the UK by 31 December 2020 were invited to apply for an immigration status under the EU Settlement Scheme. Those that had been living in the UK for a least 5 years were granted Settled Status (an indefinite permission to remain). Those that were living in the UK for under 5 years were granted Pre-Settled Status (a one time five year permission to remain).

In 2023, the Home Office lost a High Court battle which challenged the inability to extend Pre-Settled Status and the need to make a further application for Settled Status once the five year threshold had been reached.

Consequently, the Home Office amended the EU Settlement Scheme to grant automatic extensions of Pre-Settled Status every five years and announced plans to automate grants of Settled Status.

The roll out of the automation process will happen in phases. In the first phase, the Home Office will continue to extend individuals’ Pre-Settled Status, by a period of five years, for those approaching expiry of their Pre-Settled Status.

The Home Office will email Pre-Settled Status holders who are approaching the expiry of their status to inform them that they may soon be considered for an automated conversion to Settled Status. They expect to issue the first grants of Settled status under this new process from late January 2025.

What the process will entail

• Pre-Settled Status holders approaching their Pre-Settled Status expiry date will be notified that their Pre-Settled Status has been extended by five further years and their case is being considered for conversion to Settled Status.
• The Home Office will conduct automated checks against tax and benefit records to confirm Pre-Settled Status holders have lived continuously in the UK for five years or more and therefore may be eligible for Settled Status.
• Further checks will be made to ensure Pre-Settled Status holders have continued to meet other EU Settlement Scheme requirements before they are converted to Settled Status.  
• If the available data confirms that a Pre-Settled Status holder is eligible for Settled Status, then they will be granted Settled Status and receive written confirmation of this. Their digital status will be automatically updated, and they will be able to view and share their status in the usual way.
• If the Home Office does not have sufficient data to confirm that a Pre-Settled Status holder is eligible for an automatic grant of Settled Status, then they will be contacted and informed of the next steps and the need to continue meeting the requirements of their status.

The Home Office intends to expand the process later in 2025 to enable more eligible Pre-Settled Status holders to benefit from it. They are also considering the appropriate next steps for cases where a Pre-Settled Status holder has ceased to meet the conditions of their Pre-Settled Status due to not maintaining their continuous residence in the UK. Further information on this will be provided in due course.

It is important to note that Pre-Settled Status holders don’t need to wait to be converted to Settled Status. They can still apply for it as soon as they are eligible at www.gov.uk/eusettlementscheme. The introduction of this automated process will not prevent people from doing so.

Contact us

For a deeper discussion on the above, please reach out to your Vialto Partners point of contact, or alternatively:

Lyudmyla Davies
Partner (Solicitor)

Ian Robinson
Partner

Andrea Als
Director (Solicitor)

Tom Marsom
Director (Solicitor)

Lucy Vaux
Senior Manager (Solicitor)

Awale Olad
Senior Manager

Want to know when a Regional Alert is posted?

Simply follow our Vialto Alerts page on LinkedIn and posts will be displayed on your feed. To ensure you don’t miss one, once you’re on our LinkedIn page, click on the bell icon under the banner image to manage your notifications.

Further information on Vialto Partners can be found here: www.vialtopartners.com

Vialto Partners (“Vialto”) refers to wholly owned subsidiaries of CD&R Galaxy UK OpCo Limited as well as the other members of the Vialto Partners global network. The information contained in this document is for general guidance on matters of interest only. Vialto is not responsible for any errors or omissions, or for the results obtained from the use of this information. All information is provided “as is”, with no guarantee of completeness, accuracy, timeliness or of the results obtained from the use of this information, and without warranty of any kind, express or implied, including, but not limited to warranties of performance, merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. In no event will Vialto, its related entities, or the agents or employees thereof be liable to you or anyone else for any decision made or action taken in reliance on the information in this document or for any consequential, special or similar damages, even if advised of the possibility of such damages.

© 2025 Vialto Partners. All rights reserved.