Can PR holders retain rights as previously settled persons in the UK like ILR holders

I had a UK Permanent Resident Card as a vignette on my passport, however I couldn't apply for Settled Status outside the UK because I didn't have the BRP and EU passport. According to the Home Office website and all available information, in my circumstance, I needed to be present in the UK to apply for Settle Status, but this was not possible for a variety of reasons at the time.

I'd prefer to keep my residency rights as a previously settled person in the UK; is this conceivable, as it is for previously settled ILR holders? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.


Can I apply to keep my residency rights as a previously settled person in the UK, and what is the process?

Can you post your past immigration history, with dates, etc? This might help members to better comment on your scenario.

alterhase58 wrote: ↑

Mon May 22, 2023 6:51 am

Can you post your past immigration history, with dates, etc? This might help members to better comment on your scenario.

Arrived in the UK 2019
EEA Family resident card issued 2011
Permanent Resident Card issued 2016, exp 2026

For the duration of period above, my family and I resided and worked in the UK. After receiving my PR in 2016, I found job as an expat in the EU, but I continued to visit the UK frequently (spending at least two weeks there roughly every three months) up until the travel ban related to the corona virus.

Since I haven't been back to the UK in a while, my other family members continue to visit frequently, and my spouse now has Settled status and back in the UK. Although I have not yet filed for divorce, my marriage has failed, and I do not want any involvement.

I hold a South African Passport so I could not apply for settled status from abroad and also could not used the BRP as this was not issued when I received my PR. Thanks.

It is an interesting question.

From the point of view of the law, Permanent Residence as a status no longer exists. It ceased to exist when the UK left the EU.

Settled Status, unlike Permanent Residence, is not automatically acquired. It needs to be applied for. And PR holders and holders of other statuses under the EEA Regulations in the UK were encouraged to apply as soon as possible.

If you were in the UK at any period of time before the corona outbreak, why did you not apply at the time?

grocetti wrote: ↑

Mon May 22, 2023 11:28 am

I hold a South African Passport so I could not apply for settled status from abroad and also could not used the BRP as this was not issued when I received my PR. Thanks.

If you are a non-EEA citizen with PR, surely you were issued with a biometric Permanent Residence Card. A DCPR (cardboard card) would only have been issued to EEA citizens with PR. A vignette in the passport would have been an EEA family permit, not a denominator of PR.

Have you tried contacting the EU Settlement Resolution Centre?

If you are a non-EEA citizen with PR, surely you were issued with a biometric Permanent Residence Card. A DCPR (cardboard card) would only have been issued to EEA citizens with PR. A vignette in the passport would have been an EEA family permit, not a denominator of PR.

Have you tried contacting the EU Settlement Resolution Centre?

I appreciate your reply. However, I am absolutely certain that my Permanent Resident (PR) status is a vignette, as well as that of others I know and I had no knowledge that Biometric PR was issued to anyone at that time. It seems that the introduction of Biometric PR came later.

I plan to follow your suggestion and reach out to the EU Settlement Resolution Centre. Additionally, I will contact the UK High Commission in my country to seek further guidance. My intention is to explore if there are others facing a similar issue and gather more information.

grocetti wrote: ↑

Mon May 22, 2023 5:27 pm

I plan to follow your suggestion and reach out to the EU Settlement Resolution Centre. Additionally, I will contact the UK High Commission in my country to seek further guidance. My intention is to explore if there are others facing a similar issue and gather more information.

Correct me if i'm wrong but ....
I doubt that the UK HC (or embassies elsewhere) will be of much assistance, especially where (ex-)EU regulations and EUSS are involved. Everything is online these day, even when paper applications are possible they have to be mailed to UKVI in the UK. British passports have to be applied online.