UNITED KINGDOM: Citizens’ Rights Under the Withdrawal Agreement Versus a No-Deal Scenario

December 10, 2018


On 14 November 2018, the United Kingdom (UK) government reached an agreement with the European Union (EU) on the UK’s withdrawal from the EU. The deal, which still needs to be ratified by both the UK and European parliaments, includes arrangements about the legal status of EU citizens in the UK post-Brexit.

On 6 December 2018 the Department for Exiting the European Union (DExEU) published a policy paper outlining the UK government’s proposals for protecting citizens’ rights in case the UK leaves the EU without an agreed and ratified withdrawal deal.

Here we examine how the UK government’s proposed no deal arrangements for EU citizens in the UK differ from those in the withdrawal agreement.

Deadlines

In a no-deal situation, with no transition period to the end of 2020 (extendable to 2022) the cut-off dates for applying special rules for EU citizens would be brought forward:

Deadline Withdrawal Agreement No Deal
Enter UK to qualify for EU Settlement Scheme 31 December 2020 29 March 2019
Apply under EU Settlement Scheme 30 June 2021 31 December 2020
Family members can join those with settled status No deadline 29 March 2022
Family relationship must start 31 December 2020 29 March 2019
Higher EU deportation threshold applies to crimes committed 31 December 2020 29 March 2019

Further Details

Other differences in the case of no deal include:

  • The Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) would not have jurisdiction as regards EU27 citizens in the UK (under the withdrawal agreement it would have residual jurisdiction for eight years after the end of the transition period.
  • EU citizens would have no right to an appeal to an immigration judge.

The UK government admits that it cannot unilaterally affect the position of UK nationals resident in the EU after Brexit, but the paper includes some guarantees to uphold their rights on returning to the UK, among other tentative proposals.

Our Advice

Employers who may be affected by Brexit are encouraged to contact their Newland Chase immigration specialist for case-specific advice.

For general advice and information on immigration and business travel to the UK, please contact us.