Pre-Settled, Settled and family members

[LucasLucas]

Hi there, can someone please advise.

I am an EU national with a Polish passport (biometric), I have arrived in the UK on 1st November 2014 and since then I have been continuously working on Permanent basis. My wife is a Chinese national, holding a Chinese passport and EEU family member Residence Card (biometric). We live together here in the UK. My wife works here as well, permanent work.

Shall I apply for Pre-Settled status now and Settled in November or wait till November and apply for the Settled only. I am not sure I can apply one after another within a couple of weeks?

Also, can I combine my application with my wife's application or does she need to apply separately? What is going to happen with her Residence Card, does she have to send it back to HO?

Thank you!

[kamoe]

Shall I apply for Pre-Settled status now and Settled in November or wait till November and apply for the Settled only.

If you qualify for Settled Status before 31st December 2020, the Home Office recommends waiting until you are eligible for it and apply only then. This is because otherwise you'll have to make two applications (pre-settled then settled) yet this will make no difference in your status. Let's say Pre-settled status is only useful as a "registered but not yet allowed to stay indefinitely" status for people who after the deadline still don't qualify for Settled Status.

I am not sure I can apply one after another within a couple of weeks?

You are right to be asking this question, as it has been reported that some people experienced issues while trying to convert from Pre-Settled to Settled, as the system was not prepared to process applications of people who already have a status (there are a few other posts related to this). I am not sure whether this issue has been resolved.

Also, can I combine my application with my wife's application or does she need to apply separately?

Each person has to apply separately, BUT non-EU citizens need to add their EU family members' application number to theirs (there is a specific field in the application form precisely for this). In this way both applications will be attached. This means you should apply first, then she can apply (to have your app number to add).

What is going to happen with her Residence Card, does she have to send it back to HO?

This is still an unresolved question. The general understanding of this forum is that the Residence Cards will expire on December 2020, but it is still not clear how the replacement process will work. An alternative answer that has circulated is that if non-EU citizens used their EEA cards to apply for the Settlement Scheme, then they would not expire on Dec 2020, but this is as yet unconfirmed by any publicly referenceable source.

[Magus1984]

What is going to happen with her Residence Card, does she have to send it back to HO?

This is still an unresolved question. The general understanding of this forum is that the Residence Cards will expire on December 2020, but it is still not clear how the replacement process will work. An alternative answer that has circulated is that if non-EU citizens used their EEA cards to apply for the Settlement Scheme, then they would not expire on Dec 2020, but this is as yet unconfirmed by any publicly referenceable source.

I don't think this is an unresolved question. See here here Non-EU nationals who do not have a valid Biometric Residence Card will also be sent a Biometric Residence Permit confirming their status in the UK. In your case you Chinese wife's 5 year residence card will expire in November 2019 so she should get a new BRP confirming her status.

The big question is when should she apply? Ideally after you have applied so she can link her application with your application number but I don't know if she should wait until the 5 year anniversary on her BRC or if she can apply before that.

[kamoe]

What is going to happen with her Residence Card, does she have to send it back to HO?

This is still an unresolved question. The general understanding of this forum is that the Residence Cards will expire on December 2020, but it is still not clear how the replacement process will work. An alternative answer that has circulated is that if non-EU citizens used their EEA cards to apply for the Settlement Scheme, then they would not expire on Dec 2020, but this is as yet unconfirmed by any publicly referenceable source.

I don't think this is an unresolved question. See here here Non-EU nationals who do not have a valid Biometric Residence Card will also be sent a Biometric Residence Permit confirming their status in the UK. In your case you Chinese wife's 5 year residence card will expire in November 2019 so she should get a new BRP confirming her status.

If she applies well before her card expires, then she could be in a position where she does not get issued a new card automatically as, technically speaking, she already has a BRC (computer will say no).

The big question is when should she apply? Ideally after you have applied so she can link her application with your application number but I don't know if she should wait until the 5 year anniversary on her BRC or if she can apply before that.

She can apply anytime, question is if she wants to get Pre-Settled Status or Settled Status. She will only get Settled Status if she waits for 5 years mark.

So one approach to attempt an automatic issue of a card is to wait until the card expires, 5-year mark, but I'm not sure if this works (if the card needs to be valid for the Android app to accept it? worth asking the EU Settlement Scheme about this).