Despite having a British birth certificate and being born in the UK, Emma could not be allowed to remain.
She has a British birth certificate, was born in the UK to a Portuguese mother, and has only ever resided here.
Therefore, it was shocking when the 22-year-old’s application for a British passport was turned down.
EU nationals residing in the UK were given the opportunity to apply for settled status after Brexit.
But Emma realized last year that the application deadline had passed.
When she sought to be a care worker, she was aware that she was not formally a British citizen and that she would have to prove her eligibility for employment.
She runs the possibility of being deported to a nation she has never visited and is unable to challenge the Home Office’s ruling.
She described herself as “shocked” and stated, “I was basically told how to leave the country when I got the rejection letter.”
Emma (not her real name) stated, “There’s a high chance I could be deported to Portugal and I would be separated from my family.”
“I would have to start a whole new life.”
Emma’s mother was successful in her application for settled status, allowing her to stay in the UK indefinitely.
Emma has been informed that she can resubmit her application if she provides more proof that her late application was justified. She is working on it, but she is unable to find employment, create a bank account, rent an apartment, or receive NHS secondary care in the interim.
Applications for settled status are still accepted after the 30 June 2021 deadline, but most persons had to apply by then.
But the Home Office strengthened the standards for “reasonable grounds” for late applicants in August 2023.
