Help needed - Fathers application for settled status

[bkm1988]

Hi,

I am looking for some information/advice.
My father is from an EU country and has a passport from that country. My mother was British and passed away last year unfortunately. My father is living with me here in the UK now permanently and I am trying to make sure he has all the correct paperwork to legally remain following brexit.

He married my mother in 1988 here in the UK and since then has been living between the UK and his home country. The house they owned was purely in my mothers name and he has never worked in the UK despite spending long periods here (probably 4-5 months every year on average but sometimes 6+).
He has 3 children who are all British.

I think we will find it difficult to prove his continued residence but equally struggle to see how the HO will be able to disprove it.

He has a UK bank account that has been open since pre 1988 but other than that he only really has medical letters from GP/NHS in his name.

He has never had a national insurance number but now has what I think is a temporary one as he has inherited my mothers pension.

Will he really only be able to get pre-settled status considering all of his immediate family are British and live in the UK? Is there anything I can do to improve his chances of being given settled status.

I need to secure his status as soon as possible as he has a serious health condition and is likely to need care for the rest of his life.

Thanks in advance.

[Zerubbabel]

Hello

When it comes to Home Office, they don't have to disprove anything. The burden of proof is on the applicant. When you apply under any route, it's up to you to demonstrate that you meet the eligibility criteria. Otherwise, they can refuse the application with the classic "you could not demonstrate..." or "we are not satisfied..."

From what you are describing, your father is not exercising Treaty Rights in the UK at the moment. He has relatives here, he has some assets... but he doesn't work or pay taxes in the UK. He never did in the past. He doesn't have a National Insurance number which is the basic for anyone who has his center of life in this country. He travels a few months a year to the UK but lives most of the year abroad.

I don't see any interest for him applying for the EU Settlement scheme. As he is a regular visitor, he can continue visiting after the Brexit visa-free. The Scheme is needed only for people who want to work and live in the UK. If it is for visiting relatives, there is no point.

He can still apply if he wants to and see what it gets him. But even if he gets the pre-settled status, he might lose it in the future if it is established that he actually lives abroad and he is only a regular visitor to the UK.

[bkm1988]

Maybe I wasn't clear, regardless of whether my father is exercising treaty rights in the UK or not. He does live here now and plans on doing so long term. In the past yes he was a regular visitor but that is no longer the case.

I need to make sure he is able to continue living here. Is the settlement scheme the best/most appropriate way of doing that for his situation or is there another route because he has a British family?

[CR001]

or is there another route because he has a British family?

Not really no.

[Zerubbabel]

British routes are complex, expensive and, in many cases, doomed for failure.

So anytime you have the option EEA/British route, just go EEA.

As his wife passed away, your father cannot use the spouse route. The fact that he has assets, family and is a regular visitor to the UK doesn't open any route.

If he wants to live in the UK, he needs to make the move now. He needs to move to the UK find a job, or register as a job seeker, or as a self-sufficient, apply for a national insurance number... etc. He can then apply for the EU Settlement Scheme. He will probably get a pre-settled as if he just arrived in the country. Previous visits don't count.

[bkm1988]

Thanks for your help.

Can you elaborate on the spouse route?
Interested to know what they should have/could have done.

[CR001]

Thanks for your help.

Can you elaborate on the spouse route?
Interested to know what they should have/could have done.

It it reference to the spouse visa, which is a 5 year route to ILR/PR but has very specific mandatory requirements. It doesn't apply to EU citizens as they have the right to free movement under the EU directive and do NOT require an entry clearance visa etc. It is for non-EU citizens joining a British spouse or spouse who holds ILR/PR.

If your father has been living here since 1988, you should look at all his old passport and documentation to make sure he was not stamped in with 'no time limit on your stay' type etc.

[Zerubbabel]

When you marry a British citizen, you can get a residence on that basis then you can apply for British citizenship after 3 years.

However, this route never made much sense for EEA nationals. That's why your parents probably never considered it.

An EEA national can easily obtain residence in the UK by his own right. So there is no point for an EEA national to try to justify residence through his spouse or partner.

The spouse route is often the only option from people from outside the EU: USA, Canada, India... etc. For these nationals. it's very difficult, sometimes impossible, to obtain the right to reside in the UK unless they do it through their spouse.

But in the case of your father, as he wasn't living in the UK, no immigration route was really applicable to him.

Now, despite what we hear in the news, we are still an EU member and all EU laws are fully applicable. So if your father makes the move now, he can still settle in the UK before these EU immigration routes are closed for good.

[CR001]

When you marry a British citizen, you can get a residence on that basis then you can apply for British citizenship after 3 years.

This is NOT correct or accurate information. Please do not offer confusing advice if you are not sure of the facts or rules. PR or ILR under the UK immigration route ALL require 5 years residence.

[Zerubbabel]

This is NOT correct or accurate information. Please do not offer confusing advice if you are not sure of the facts or rules. PR or ILR under the UK immigration route ALL require 5 years residence.

I have been told 3 years just a few days ago in this forum. So I got myself confused then.

When it's critical, I post links and screenshots from official sources. Here, we are just speculating about non existent application.

[CR001]

This is NOT correct or accurate information. Please do not offer confusing advice if you are not sure of the facts or rules. PR or ILR under the UK immigration route ALL require 5 years residence.

I have been told 3 years just a few days ago in this forum. So I got myself confused then.

When it's critical, I post links and screenshots from official sources. Here, we are just speculating about non existent application.

British citizenship laws state if you are married to a British citizen you can apply for naturalisation based on 3 years residence, this is completely separate and independent of the mandatory requirement for ILR and PR, both which take 5 years. What you said above is that only 3 years residence is required when married to a BC, which is not correct as ILR and PR is needed first. The devil is in the detail.

[Zerubbabel]

The devil is in the detail.

As always I stand corrected. Thank you