ARD Application : Help me please

Hello so the situation is as follows :

I was born in dec 2001 to EEA parents who where not considered settled due to the law change in October 2000. However my brother is a British citizen as he was born in Jan 2000

Although my parents where not settled when I was born, they became settled in 2006 due to the EU directive in 2004, stating that 5 years of living in a EU countries makes you permanent resident = ordinarily resident = settled.

Therefore, I could have applied to become a British Citizen through section 3(1) using the MN1 form. However when my father in 2003 requested to register me as A British citizen they said this was not possible until I was 18. When my father researched it the MN1 form guidance did not exist yet, and therefore it was not stated nor clear that they became settled in 2006 due to the EU directive.

The MN1 guidance was made in 2019 but information regarding EEA Nationals application for the MN1 (Aka the settled status regarding EEA nationals exercising treaty rights in the UK) only was introduced in 2025.

Thus I just realised that I was able to be registered as a British citizen when I was <18. However, the actual information regarding my ability to do this only became available when I was >18 and the MN1 form was introduced and updated. When my father asked the home office to register me they said it was not possible.

Therefore, the omission of guidance on EU settled status on the MN1 form and previous home office guidances when my father tried to register me as a British citizen in 2003 and response from government that this was not possible. Prevented me from exercising my right to apply through the MN1 process and therefore be registered as a British citizen. This right was due to government omission withheld, until I was >18, and they actually clarified settled status of EEA Nationals in the MN1 Form in 2025. Thus, I was not able to exercising my right from 0-18.

Now what are your opinions on this type of registration, is this realistic ? Is there any other cases I can reference ? Is there other information that is relevant (Maybe Brexit being a special circumstance) ?

Since I am still a student spending 1600 Pounds on the application is something I would only do if there was a realistic chance / precedent for these types of cases.

Thank you for your help in advance !!

Extra :
- Form T not viable since not 10 years lived there
- EUSS Not viable since did not live there in 2020

From Page 7 of the Form MN1 guide on 13th April 2011

Children of EEA nationals

Some children born in the United Kingdom to EEA and Swiss nationals will be British citizens automatically. However, changes in the law mean that different rules apply depending on when a child was born.
• A child born in the United Kingdom before 2/10/2000 to an EEA national parent will be a British citizen if the parent was exercising EC Treaty rights at the time of birth.
• A child born in the United Kingdom between 2/10/2000 and 30 April 2006 to an EEA national parent will only be a British citizen if the parent had indefinite leave to remain in the UK at the time of the birth. (This does not apply to EEA nationals with an unconditional right of residence, such as retired people or someone who is unable to work because of incapacity).
• A child born in the United Kingdom to an EEA national after 30 April 2006 will be a British citizen if their parent had been in the United Kingdom exercising EC Treaty rights in accordance with the Immigration (European Economic Area) Regulations 2006 for more than 5 years or has indefinite leave to remain

The child of an EEA national who did not become a British citizen at birth may now have an entitlement to be registered as a British citizen under section 1(3), if the parent has since become “settled” here. The parent will have become “settled” if:
- He or she has been granted indefinite leave in the United Kingdom, or
- He or she has been exercising EEA free movement rights in the United Kingdom for a continuous period of five years ending on or after 3o April 2006

A8 National Workers
On 1 May 2004 the Accession Treaty gave nationals from the following States the right to travel freely across the European Union:

Czech Republic Estonia Hungary Latvia
Lithuania Poland Slovakia Slovenia

However, the nationals of these eight member states (A8 nationals) are required to have been registered under the Worker Registration Scheme (WRS) for 12 months if exercising Treaty rights in the UK as a worker.

Only when an A8 national has completed the necessary 12 months employment underthe WRS will they be considered to be in the UK and exercising their treaty rights. However, time spent as a registered worker on the Workers Registration Scheme will count towards the five year qualifying period for permanent residence.

A8 nationals who are here in another capacity, e.g. Student / self-sufficient / self-employed, have a right of residence here without registering under the Scheme.

(underlines added by me for emphasis)

I think the guide is quite clear, indeed, better written than today's guides and even goes into details of the situation of the A8 countries in some detail.

The guide quoted above is from 2011, which would have been about the middle of the period you would have been eligible to be registered (2006-2019).

You will need to come up with a better argument than that the guide was not updated to cover the situation of EEA citizens who acquired PR under EU law. It clearly was.

And if I, a mere stranger with internet access, can find it, I'll bet that the Home Office can.

Mark1233 wrote: ↑

Mon Dec 29, 2025 5:41 pm

- EUSS Not viable since did not live there in 2020

Did you live here for at least five years before 2020, perhaps as the dependent child of EEA citizens? If so, you would have acquired PR under EU law automatically, which could have been converted to Settled Status in 2020.

When did you leave the UK? And have you returned to the UK? If so, when did you return to the UK?

Thank you for your reply ! You make a valid point

I left the UK in 2007, so I did 5+ years from 2001 to 2005 and I did not move back since. I believe I was the dependent child of EEA nationals, well my parents are both EEA and I was dependent on them so... I tried reading the legislation around EUSS and although I should have pre settled status due to the 5 years I believe that I lost my settled status due to a absence of more then 5 years. However, is this is a possibility I will try.

So essentially it just comes down to my parents not being sharp enough on the rules and not having registered me in time. Also probably because the need didn't seem there as both UK and NL where EU. Also just got unlucky with timing as my brother just made it and I did not.

Minor correction it was from 2001 - 2007 so around 6 Years

Mark1233 wrote: ↑

Tue Dec 30, 2025 1:30 am

it was from 2001 - 2007

Assuming that you didn't return to the UK since then, you would have lost PR under EU rules in 2009, after two years of continuous absence from the UK. Assuming that your parents left at the same time, the window of opportunity for you being registered as a British citizen was realistically 2006-7, at the most 2006-9 (2006 being when the concept of PR under EU law was introduced into UK law).

An outside possibility: Can you get hold of your parents' passports from before your birth?

if either parent has an ILR stamp in their passport predating your birth and you were born in the UK, you would be a British citizen from birth and can apply directly for a British passport.

Pre October 2000, EU citizens could get ILR stamped into their passports on request, but crucially they had to ask (i.e. it wasn't automatic). And of course your parents need to have kept their passports.