It has been reported that the Home Office is having trouble hiring enough immigration staff to be able to handle the task of registering the 3 million EU nationals in the UK.
Amber Rudd, the Home Secretary, has already told MPs that 700 extra immigration caseworkers have been recruited, with a further 500 to be hired early next year. However, the level of staffing still falls far below the capacity required, with the Home Office saying that it will still need to recruit more staff in the coming years. Furthermore, if EU nationals will be required to queue with passport holders from the ‘rest of the world’ at airports, significantly more Border Force staff will also be required to avoid huge queues.
Brandon Lewis, the immigration minister, is to be questioned by the Commons Home Affairs Committee tomorrow about the shortage of immigration staff.
On 8 November the government released a technical note on the proposed settled status for EU citizens. The government confirmed that EU citizens holding permanent residency status would be able to quickly convert this to settled status. Due to the delays that we expect post-Brexit as a result of the sheer number of applications and shortages of staff, it may be a good idea for those eligible for permanent residence to apply now.
Should you require any advice on your immigration matters, please contact us.
The information in this blog is for general information purposes only and does not purport to be comprehensive or to provide legal advice. Whilst every effort is made to ensure the information and law is current as of the date of publication it should be stressed that, due to the passage of time, this does not necessarily reflect the present legal position. Gherson accepts no responsibility for loss which may arise from accessing or reliance on information contained in this blog. For formal advice on the current law please don’t hesitate to contact Gherson. Legal advice is only provided pursuant to a written agreement, identified as such, and signed by the client and by or on behalf of Gherson.
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