Between 2020 and 2023, Latin American House offered assistance to hundreds of vulnerable Spanish and Portuguese-speaking EU citizens and their families who needed help applying for temporary or permanent residence under the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS).
This service has now ended, however you can find useful resources and links to other organisations below. We have partnered with New Europeans UK to provide a referral service, so any new EUSS queries will be passed on to their team.
The Latin American House EU Settlement Scheme Advice Service has ended, but we are working with New Europeans to continue providing support to our users.
If, after reading the information on this page, you still need help, please contact info@casalatina.org.uk. We will refer your case to New Europeans and get in touch to arrange a Zoom call.
You can also contact New Europeans directly via email (help@neweuropeans.uk) or WhatsApp (+44 7367 095176). The advice line is open Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, 10 AM to 5 PM.
Please note that:
(1) Most people can no longer apply to the EU Settlement Scheme. There are a few exceptions, such as for Family Permits and if you can prove “reasonable grounds” as to why you didn’t apply by the 30th June 2021 – find out more here.
(2) The application is free, as is our service.
There is currently not a drop in-service for EUSS advice.
Instead, we recommend using the New Europeans advice line. You can contact New Europeans directly via email (help@neweuropeans.uk) or WhatsApp (+44 7367 095176). The advice line is open Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, 10 AM to 5 PM.
Click here to see all the information on the EU Settlement Scheme in English or here to read it in other languages.
Check out IRMO’s guide on the subject, “Lo que necesitas saber al mudarse al Reino Unido” and their Frequently Asked Questions on the EUSS.
New Europeans has a wide range of useful resources translated into several languages, including Spanish and Portuguese. Find all their resources here.
Due to Brexit, all EU citizens and their family members in the UK who were in the UK before the 31st December 2020 need to request a residence permit through a programme called the EU Settlement Scheme.
This permit is called Pre-Settled Status if it is for 5 years, and Settled Status if it is indefinite.
For the most part, no, as applications for the EU Settlement Scheme closed on the 30th June 2021.
You can now only apply to the EU Settlement Scheme if you were living in the UK before the 31st December 2020 and also if you:
Have a justifiable reason to be applying late, and have evidence of this
Wish to update a Pre-Settled status (temporary leave to remain) to a Settled Status (indefinite leave to remain)
Wish to join a family member in the UK
No. The only case in which you might have to pay is if you have a biometric appointment and you choose to pay for it rather than wait for a free appointment.
To inquire about an ongoing application, you can write to the Home Office or contact the Settlement Resolution Centre on 0300 123 7379. Make sure you have you UAN (Unique Application Number)
We recommend that you first check all of your inbox folders to check whether they have not contacted you asking for further evidence, or indeed to grant you your Status.
Once you’ve done this, you can immediately check if you have received your Status here.
Your Status is digital only, and you will be notified by email. If you are an EU citizen, you will NOT receive any physical document. To see and check your Status you need to log in here with the number of the ID document you used in your application, and the number and email you registered with. You need to log in to your Status page online every time you want to update the personal information associated with your Status, such as your phone number, email, address, ID document, etc.
To update your Biometric Residence Card (BRC), you will have to follow the steps outlined in this page.
You will have to do this if:
Yes! If you don’t update the phone number and email connected to your status each time you change then you can get stuck when trying to see and access your Status. You also need to make sure your ID and address are up to date.
If your application is still ongoing, you can update your information here.
Once your application is approved, you need to access your settled or pre-settled status with the same ID number and the same phone number or email than the one you registered with. Then go to “Updte your details” and follow the steps.
You need to inform the Home Office if you renew the passport or ID card linked to your status. You will need to physically send the new document to the Home Office by mail (it will then be returned to you). The process is as follows:
1 – Access your profile (your Status online) and click on “update your Details”
2 – Select “Identity Documents” and update the information following the steps
3 – You will need to upload a photo of the new document
To see your Status, you need to log in with the same ID number and the same phone number or email that you used to apply.
If you are asked for a 9-digit ID code (“share code”) for any government request (for example Universal Credit applications) you will also need to log in to your status. From there, go to “Prove my status to someone else” and follow the steps.
This video in Spanish by IRMO shows you how to manage your profile and get your share code.
NOTE: Having Pre-Settled Status does not automatically entitle you to Universal Credit.
The free movement of persons stopped applying in the UK as of the 1st of January 2021.
EU citizens who wish to enter the UK as tourists can do so for a maximum of 6 months without requiring a visa. All citizens who wish to enter the UK for other reasons, such as working of studying, will need to request a visa beforehand.
The Spanish national identity document (DNI) stopped being a valid travel document on the 1st October 2021 except for those who have their DNI linked to their Settled or Pre-Settled status.
If you have already applied but you are still awaiting a response from the Home Officer, you will need to traver with a valid passport or DNI and the “Certificate of Application” (COA) that was sent to you by email when you applied.
EU citizens who travel to the UK without the COA or without a valid EU Settlement status could be subject to a series of questions about their motives for staying in the UK. The immigration agent at the border will decide if they can enter as a tourist to the UK or if they are deported.
EU citizens with COA or an approved EU Settlement Scheme status have access to a UKVI online account, with which they can proove their rights. Do note that the “View and Prove” service which generates a security code proving your migration status in the UK is now valid for 90 days instead of 30 days, as it was before.
You have two options.
The first is to inform the Home Office Settlement Resolution Centre and keep any evidence that shows you were not able to return (e.g.: flight cancellations)
The second option is to re-apply to the EU Settlement Scheme.
You can write to the Settlement Resolution Centre online or you can call 0300 123 7379. If you are calling from abroad, call 0044 203 080 0010.
You can now only apply to the EU Settlement Scheme if you were living in the UK before the 31st December 2020 and also if you:
Have a justifiable reason to be applying late, and have evidence of this
Wish to update a Pre-Settled status (temporary leave to remain) to a Settled Status (indefinite leave to remain)
Wish to join a family member in the UK
As of the 1st of July, under the new rules, you can only regroup family members belonging to these 4 categories:
1. Spouses, Civil Partners, or non-married couple
2. Children, grandchildren, or great-grandchildren under 21 years old
3. Children, grandchildren, or great-children over 21 years old who are dependents
4. Parents, grandparents, or great-grandparents who are dependents
You can find more information about this here.
You can also directly ask any questions about Family Permits through the UK Visas & Immigration Customer Contact Centre on 0300 790 6268.
Don’t see your question in the list above? Please click the button below to fill out a form with your query. Our advisor will take these questions and record a video answering them.
Please note this service is for general queries only – if you want specific or in-depth advice relating to your EUSS application, please request an appointment below.
Please click the button below to fill out an Appointment Request form. Our advisor will be in touch shortly.
Brexit: ¿Seguro que no tienes que solicitar el nuevo permiso de residencia?
Settlement Resolution Centre (UK Government)
EU Settlement Scheme: Translated Information Materials (UK Government)
How to use the EU Exit: ID Document Check App (Home Office)
Keeping Your Family in the UK after Brexit
New Europeans: Managing your Status (Translated resources in Spanish and Portuguese)
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