EUSS Family Permit

The EUSS Family Permit is available to close family members of EEA or Swiss nationals (or British citizens who exercised EU free movement rights before Brexit) who hold settled or pre-settled status. Eligible family members include:

• Spouse or civil partner — the marriage or civil partnership must have been in existence on 31 December 2020 (or the relationship must have started before that date for durable partners).
• Durable partner — an unmarried partner in a relationship akin to marriage or civil partnership that was in existence before 31 December 2020.
• Dependent children or grandchildren — under 21, or older if dependent on the sponsoring EEA national or their spouse/partner.
• Dependent parents or grandparents — those who are dependent on the EEA national sponsor.

Critically, the family relationship must have commenced before 31 December 2020 for most categories. Family members who entered a new relationship with an EUSS holder after that date generally do not qualify under this route and must use the standard immigration rules instead.

Applications for the EUSS Family Permit are made online, free of charge, from outside the UK. The applicant must provide evidence of their relationship to the sponsoring EEA national, evidence that the sponsor holds settled or pre-settled status (via a share code), and evidence that the relationship pre-dates 31 December 2020 where required.

The permit is typically valid for six months and allows one entry into the UK. Once in the UK, the family member should promptly apply for EUSS settled or pre-settled status (depending on how long they have been resident in the UK). There is no separate fee for the EUSS status application.

The processing time for EUSS Family Permit applications is generally around three to six weeks, though it can be longer in some cases. An urgent or priority service is available at a Visa Application Centre in some countries.

The Family Permit itself is only temporary entry clearance. Once in the UK, the family member must apply for EUSS settled or pre-settled status to obtain a long-term right to remain. This application should be made promptly after arrival — failure to do so means relying on the temporary permit which will expire.

The EUSS status application is made online through the same UKVI portal. Once approved, the holder will have a digital status that can be shared with employers, landlords, and others. There is no physical document.

If the family member has already been living in the UK for five or more years by the time they apply, they may be directly eligible for settled status. If they have been in the UK for fewer than five years, they will receive pre-settled status and must later apply to convert to settled status once they reach the five-year point.

Although the EU Settlement Scheme closed to most new applications on 30 June 2021, late applications to both the EUSS and the EUSS Family Permit remain possible where there are reasonable grounds for the delay. The Home Office has taken a broadly inclusive approach to what constitutes reasonable grounds for late EUSS applications, recognising that many eligible people were simply unaware of the requirement or faced circumstances preventing timely application. However, for the EUSS Family Permit specifically — which is entry clearance — a late applicant must demonstrate both the reasonable grounds for the delay and that they meet the substantive eligibility criteria (principally that the family relationship predated 31 December 2020).

If an EUSS Family Permit application is refused, the applicant has a right of appeal to the First-tier Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber). This is an important distinction from most points-based system refusals, which only carry a right to administrative review. EUSS refusals may engage rights under the Withdrawal Agreement between the UK and the EU (which has direct effect in UK law), and the tribunal is required to apply the Withdrawal Agreement standards rather than purely domestic Immigration Rules. This means that arguable cases — particularly those involving disputed evidence of the relationship timeline — may be worth pursuing through the tribunal rather than simply reapplying.

The appeal time limit for EUSS Family Permit refusals is 28 days from receipt of the refusal decision. Appeals are submitted to the First-tier Tribunal online or by post. Applicants who have not yet entered the UK (as is the case for most EUSS Family Permit applicants) can appeal from outside the UK. Free advice and representation for EUSS appeals is available from a number of charitable organisations, including JCWI (Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants), Coram Children's Legal Centre (for cases involving children), and some Citizens Advice bureaux that have trained immigration caseworkers. OISC-regulated advisers and immigration solicitors can represent at tribunal hearings where free representation is not available.