‘Can I join my family in the UK?’ ‘Can I bring my family member to live in the UK’ ? We’ve heard these questions a lot in the last few weeks!
Join our next webinar on Tuesday, 25 January to learn more about #EUSS Joining Family Members.
Please register here: https://bit.ly/3GY2NTu
The UK Government is jeopardising EU citizens’ right to stay in Scotland by failing to extend the deadline for applying to the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) the First Minister has said.
The deadline for applications is currently 30 June, but the Scottish Government has argued for this to be extended to give those who have not yet applied more time.
A backlog of almost 350,000 applications by EU citizens who wish to stay in the UK is also still waiting to be addressed by the Home Office.
The First Minister reiterated calls to reform the EU Settlement Scheme after hearing from EU citizens in Edinburgh who received help with their applications to the scheme from two charities, and urged anyone who has not submitted their application to do so as soon as possible before the deadline.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said: “Five years ago the people of Scotland voted overwhelmingly to remain in the EU but today we find ourselves subject to a damaging, hard Brexit.
“This will have been a particularly difficult time for EU citizens who have made Scotland their home but who have been forced by the UK Government to apply to stay here.
“They have friends, families, careers and communities that are dear to them and that they are dear to. I can barely begin to imagine the anxiety and stress they have suffered – indeed many continue to suffer – as they wait to be told whether or not their right to all of that will be removed.
“The UK Government’s refusal to listen to our call to extend the deadline is unacceptable and means all EU citizens must urgently apply for settled status if they have not already done so.
“I am hugely grateful to those providing free support to EU citizens with the application process, here at St Margaret’s House and across Scotland. To all EU citizens my message is this – ‘Scotland is a better country because you are here. You are part of us and we badly want you to stay’.”
While at St Margaret’s House, the First Minister met Virginia Zamojski and Bernadeta Żynda who have been helped by Feniks and Citizens’ Rights Project with their applications for Settled Status.
Virginia, an NHS worker, has lived in Scotland for 27 years yet her application for Settled Status is still outstanding.
She said: “I came to Feniks for help, because I need to apply for my settled status through a special form for people without a valid form of ID. Filling it in made me very nervous.
“I have lived in the UK since I was three. I am now an NHS key worker, and throughout the COVID-19 pandemic I was needed at work and could not travel to renew my passport. The German embassy was also overwhelmed.
“Now my application for Settled Status is ongoing and I really hope everything will be sorted out in time as Scotland is my true home – I have no one in Germany.”
Bernadeta, who has lived in the UK for over 10 years and successfully applied for Settled Status with the help of Feniks, said: “I moved to the UK over 10 years ago to join my family and look after my grandchildren upon my retirement in Poland.
“As I never worked in the UK, I had to provide additional proof of my residency, which was difficult as I needed to obtain official letters from the bank or other institutions and I didn’t feel confident enough to contact them as my English was not good enough.
“Dorota from Feniks showed a lot of patience and understanding and helped me gather additional evidence, which meant I successfully received my Settled Status.”
The deadline for the EU settlement scheme is 30 June 2021.
Get support to apply now at http://mygov.scot/stayinscotland.
SNP MSP for Edinburgh Pentlands, Gordon MacDonald, is highlighting the Wednesday 30 June 2021 deadline for the UK Government’s EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS).
Whilst The SNP Scottish Government continue to work to convince the UK Government to reform the EU Settlement Scheme and extend the deadline, for now the local MSP is encouraging all EU citizens living and working in Edinburgh to apply by the 30 June 2021 deadline to retain their rights.
Support funded by the Scottish Government is available from Citizens Advice Scotland to any EU citizen living in Scotland yet to apply to the EUSS. Their team of specialist advisors can be contacted on their freephone EU Citizens Support Service helpline, 0800 916 9847.
EU citizens can learn more about rights of EU, EEA and Swiss citizens in Scotland in a series of factsheets written by JustCitizens. The factsheets include information about EU citizens’ rights to live, work, study and access healthcare, benefits and housing in Scotland. These factsheets are free for anyone to download, print and share with others.
The Scottish Government’s Stay in Scotland toolkit also includes further information on the EU Settlement Scheme, including information on rights, education and where to access support.
Gordon MacDonald is also reaching out and encouraging constituents to get in touch with him for help or advice on the EUSS or any other issue by emailing him at Gordon.MacDonald.MSP@parliament.scot or by calling his constituency office on 0131 443 0595.
The SNP MSP for Edinburgh Pentlands, Gordon MacDonald, said: “Scotland is a welcoming, inclusive nation and we want EU citizens to stay.
“I share Scottish Government and First Minister Nicola Sturgeon’s view that EU citizens should not have to apply to retain their right but given the risks it is important that I do all I can to support my EU citizen constituents.
“EU citizens have long lived with unacceptable levels of uncertainty about how Brexit will affect their lives, careers and families, and the COVID pandemic has exacerbated the difficulties faced to secure their rights and their future here.
“EU citizens are our friends, colleagues, neighbours and, in many cases, our family in Scotland and make valuable and valued contributions to life in Edinburgh and across Scotland. I want all EU citizens who have chosen to live and work in Scotland to stay.”
JustCitizens factsheets: https://justcitizens.scot/EU
The Scottish Government’s Stay in Scotland toolkit: www.mygov.scot/stayinscotland
EU citizens in Edinburgh, we’re back in our offices and ready to support you with your settled and pre-settled status applications
!
You now have a second chance to find FREE and multilingual support
14-27th June 2021
St Margaret’s House, 151 London Road, Edinburgh, EH7 6AE
Citizens Rights Project in Scotland provide support to EU citizens to apply for settled and pre-settled status.
We’re based in Edinburgh and we are holding Open Days until 27 June
Our support is FREE and multilingual
LIMITED appointments offered due to social distancing measures in place.
Book yours now: https://bit.ly/3fAViqm
Our website: https://citizensrightsproject.org/
Feniks is located in the St Margaret House on 151 London Road EH7 6AE Edinburgh.
Use the London Road entrance if you can use the stairs. For wheelchair users there are free parking spaces behind the building and access via lifts from the basement:
https://www.edinburghpalette.co.uk/contact/find-us/
Come to our events in the Lothians and the Borders to receive free help in applying for ‘pre/settled status’.
To apply, bring your passport or other ID, National Insurance Number, proof of address and telephone. The information you share with us is confidential. Social distancing measures apply. Book your tickets now to secure your place.
With just 50 days until the end of the EU Transition Period, EU benefit claimants living in the UK are being urged to apply to the EU Settlement scheme.
The UK has left the EU and is in the Transition Period which ends at the end of this year. The Withdrawal Agreement provides citizens with the certainty they need about their rights going forward.
For EU citizens living in the UK by 31 December, that means they can continue to receive benefits on the same terms as they do now.
People need evidence they were living in the UK by 31 December and to apply to the EU Settlement Scheme in order to be covered by these provisions.
For those thinking of moving to the UK on or after 1 January 2021, the benefit rules will change.
The deadline for applying to the EU Settlement Scheme is 30 June 2021.
To apply, visit www.gov.uk/settled-status-eu-citizens-families/applying-for-settled-status
The Home Office has announced that there have been more than 135,000 applications to the EU Settlement Scheme from Scotland.
According to newly released official statistics up to the end of December 2019,
The top four nationalities in Scotland are Polish (47,160), Italian (11,000), Romanian (10,850) and Spanish (9,210).
The EU Settlement Scheme is designed to make it straightforward for EU citizens and their family members to stay after the UK leaves the EU – guaranteeing their rights in UK law.
To apply they only need to complete three key steps – prove their identity, show that they live in the UK and declare any criminal convictions.
Security Minister Brandon Lewis said: “It’s brilliant that there have been more than 135,000 applications to the EU Settlement Scheme from Scotland.
“EU citizens are an integral part of our society, culture and community and the scheme guarantees their rights in UK law. It’s free, straightforward and I encourage all EU citizens living in Scotland to apply today.”
Internal figures show that there have been more than three million applications to the scheme less than a year since it was fully launched to the public.
A wide range of support is available online, over the phone and in person to help EU citizens apply. There are more than 1,500 Home Office staff working on the EU Settlement Scheme with 250 based in Liverpool at the Settlement Resolution Centre supporting applicants with any questions about the scheme or who need help applying.
There are also more than 50 voluntary and community sector organisations – funded by the Home Office – which have helped hundreds of thousands of vulnerable EU citizens including the homeless, the elderly and victims of domestic abuse. This includes Community Renewal Trust, Simon Community Scotland and the Scottish Association of Citizens Advice Bureaux based in Scotland.
One of these organisations is PKAVS, who are supporting EU citizens in Perth and Kinross to apply to the scheme. On Thursday 6 February 2020, PKAVS are hosting a community event where representatives from the Home Office, Perth & Kinross Council, Perth Citizens Advice Bureau and the Ethnic Minorities Law Centre can answer the local community’s questions about the scheme.
Paul Graham, Chief Executive of PKAVS said: “We are pleased to be working with the Home Office to support vulnerable people in Perth and Kinross with their applications to the EU Settlement Scheme.
“We have helped approximately 900 people since Summer 2019 through our free helpline, our events programme, and individual support for those who need it most.”
Continue reading Funding to support vulnerable EU citizens in Scotland
