Official Statistics

EU Settlement Scheme quarterly statistics, March 2021

Updated 1 June 2021

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EU Settlement Scheme quarterly statistics, March 2021

Introduction

The EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) enables EU, other EEA and Swiss citizens resident in the UK by the end of the transition period at 11pm on 31 December 2020, and their family members, to obtain a UK immigration status. Further information about the EU Settlement Scheme, including eligibility requirements and application deadlines, can be found on the GOV.UK EU Settlement Scheme webpage.

The scheme is a simple digital system which allows EU, other EEA and Swiss citizens resident in the UK by the end of the transition period at 11pm on 31 December 2020, and their family members, to obtain, free of charge, settled status or pre-settled status in the UK. Find out more about what settled and pre-settled status means.

The EU Settlement Scheme launched fully on 30 March 2019, following the success of two private beta testing phases and public beta testing of the application process. During the testing phases (between 28 August 2018 and 29 March 2019) there were over 230,000 applications. A final report on the public beta test phase was published on 2 May 2019.

About this release

This publication takes an in-depth look at the total number of applications to the EU Settlement Scheme between 28 August 2018 and 31 March 2021, and their outcomes. This covers the period between the launch of the first private beta scheme to the end of Q1 2021.

Applications to the scheme and their outcomes are presented by nationality, age, and geography (which includes constituent parts of the UK, region and local authority). Additional information on applications made on the basis of a derivative right to reside is also included.

This is the first edition of the publication where more detailed information on repeat applications and their outcomes are included. This follows the development of a data matching methodology which enables us to link multiple applications to individual applicants. Additional detail on repeat application data can be found in the ‘About the data’ section and in section 5.2 and 5.3 in the Home Office EU Settlement Scheme statistics: user guide.

Following the simplification of the high level monthly EUSS figures in July 2020, table EUSS_MON has been included in subsequent quarterly releases, providing monthly breakdowns of applications by nationality, UK country and outcome, using the same format as the previously published monthly statistics reports.

Related data

This quarterly publication complements high-level monthly statistical updates on the progress of the EU Settlement Scheme, which can be found at: EU Settlement Scheme statistics.

The monthly figures provide more timely updates on the high-level progress of the EU Settlement Scheme, whereas the quarterly release provides users with greater detail on the applications received, their outcomes and additional supporting data.

The previous monthly update, covering the period up to the end of April 2021, was published on 13th May 2021 and includes totals based on all applications received and conclusions (electronic and paper).

About the data

These statistics are released as Experimental Statistics, meaning they are going through development and evaluation. The Home Office is continuing to work to improve these statistics to ensure they meet the needs of users. Further details can be found in the ONS Guide to Experimental Statistics.

Totals published in the quarterly release may not necessarily match the totals in the monthly updates. Figures are sourced from a live operational database, to which revisions may be made. Data used to produce the quarterly report are extracted after the monthly data covering the corresponding time period, so there may be slight variation between the figures.

Figures in this publication refer specifically to applications made to the EU Settlement Scheme and cannot be directly compared with estimate of the resident population of EU/EEA nationals in the UK. Figures in this report include non-EEA national family members and eligible EEA nationals not resident in the UK. None of these are usually included in estimates of the resident EU/EEA population. Furthermore, the population estimates do not take account of people’s migration intentions and will include people who have come to the UK for a range of purposes, including some who have no intention to settle in the UK.

Paper applications

Applications to the EU Settlement Scheme are generally made through an online system, although there are certain exceptions where applications may be submitted using a paper application form.

Paper application forms may be submitted by applicants who:

• Are applying on the basis of a derivative right to reside;
• Do not hold a valid identity document and are unable to obtain one;
• Are unable to apply using the online application form and cannot be supported to do so.

Additional information can be found on the GOV.UK EU Settlement Scheme webpage and in the Home Office EU Settlement Scheme statistics: user guide.

This publication also provides additional detail on applicants applying on the basis of a derivative right to reside in the UK, which constitute the majority of applications submitted using a paper application form. Derivative rights of residence are relevant to applicants who did not qualify for a right of residence under the Free Movement Directive (Directive 2004/38/EC), but may have had a right to reside in the UK derived from other EU law. Derivative rights applicants can apply to the EU Settlement Scheme under one of the following routes:

• Chen
• Ibrahim & Teixeira
• Lounes & Surinder Singh
• Zambrano

Further information on the above routes and eligibility requirements for each can be found in the Home Office EU Settlement Scheme statistics: user guide.

Repeat Applications

The data in this report account for the number of applications to the system, including individuals making applications on more than one occasion. An individual who has been granted pre-settled status can make a new application at a later stage to apply for settled status. As these are separate applications with separate outcomes, they are counted separately in the statistics. There are several caseworking systems used to administer applications to the scheme, each with a unique application number but not a single person identifier to distinguish repeat applicants. Analysis using probabilistic data matching methods have been developed to better understand the number of repeat applicants to the scheme. This allows us to provide more accurate figures on the number of people who have applied to the EU Settlement Scheme overall, including their outcomes. More information regarding the methodology is provided in section 5.3 in the Home Office EU Settlement Scheme statistics: user guide.

User Guide

The Home Office EU Settlement Scheme statistics: user guide provides further details on this topic including, definitions used, data conventions, methods, data quality, and issues arising from figures based on data sourced from a live operational database.

Feedback

We welcome feedback on the ‘EU Settlement Scheme statistics’ publications. Additionally, we’re always looking to improve the accessibility of our documents. If you find any problems, or have any feedback relating to accessibility or otherwise, please contact us by emailing [email protected]. Please include the words ‘EUSS PUBLICATION FEEDBACK’ in the subject of your email.

1. Key points

This report covers the period from 28 August 2018 up to 31 March 2021.

Figure 1 - EU Settlement Scheme: cumulative number of applications received, and applications concluded at the end of each month since the start of the scheme

Source: Table EUSS_MON, EU Settlement Scheme quarterly statistics tables

Applications received

• As seen in Figure 1, as of 31 March 2021, just over 5.3 million (5,301,470) applications had been received, with 90% received in England, 5% in Scotland, 2% in Wales and 2% in Northern Ireland. Since the launch of the scheme, October 2019 saw the highest number of applications received (591,580) and the highest number of concluded applications (401,480).

• Across all nationalities, the highest numbers of applications received were from Polish, Romanian and Italian nationals. Polish and Romanian nationals were consistently among the highest application numbers within England, Scotland and Wales. For Northern Ireland, however, Polish and Lithuanian nationals accounted for the largest number of applications.

• There were 787,680 applications received from people under 18 years of age, 4.4 million (4,391,060) applications from those aged 18 to 64 and 122,720 applications from those aged 65 and above (15%, 83% and 2%, respectively). Northern Ireland had a noticeably higher proportion (19%) of applications from people under 18 compared to the rest of the UK (15% for each nation).

Applications concluded

• Just under 5 million (4,977,740) applications had been concluded up to 31 March 2021.

• Of the concluded outcomes, 53% (2,623,720) were granted settled status, 44% (2,173,270) were granted pre-settled status and 3% had other outcomes (including 55,950 refused applications, 60,170 withdrawn or void applications, and 64,580 invalid applications).

• Concluded outcomes granted settled status were higher for Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland (61%, 58%, 56%, respectively), compared to England (53%).

Repeat applicants

• Of the 5.3 million applications received, 6% were from repeat applicants (311,870).

• This suggests that an estimated 4,963,560 people had applied to the scheme up to 31 March 2021.

• 93% of repeat applicants have received a grant of status (Settled or Pre-settled Status).

• 47% of repeat applicants have moved from Pre-settled to Settled status.

Local authority statistics

• As of 31 March 2021, Newham saw the highest number of applications to the scheme (125,620).

• As of 31 March 2021, Ealing had the highest number of applications from Polish nationals (23,430) of all local authorities.

Applications on the basis of a derivative right to reside

• There were 4,800 applications received from family members of British citizens (Surinder Singh and Lounes), 3,840 applications received from Zambrano applicants, 1,200 applications received from Chen applicants and 290 applications received from Ibrahim & Teixeira applicants.

2. Applications to the EU Settlement Scheme

The total number of applications received up to 31 March 2021 was 5,301,470.

2.1. Repeat applicants

Individuals can make more than one application to the EU Settlement Scheme. Repeat applicants may for example receive an outcome on an application and then have another application pending, or receive an outcome on one application and choose to withdraw another application.

Of the 5.3 million applications received, approximately 6% were repeat applicants (311,870).
This suggests that an estimated 4,963,560 people have applied to the scheme.

Table 1 - EU Settlement Scheme: number of applications to the scheme by people, 28 August 2018 to 31 March 2021

Applications submitted	People applied to the EUSS
1 application	4,651,690
2 applications	299,340
3 or more applications	12,530
Total	4,963,560

Source: Table EUSS_RA_01, EU Settlement Scheme quarterly statistics tables

As Table 1 shows, of the people that made a repeat application (311,870), the vast majority made just one further application (95%).

Of the repeat applicant cohort, as of 31 March 2021:

93% (290,820) of repeat applicants have received a grant of status:

• Of those, 47% (147,660) moved from Pre-settled to Settled status.
• 15% (47,380 ) received a grant of Settled status following an ‘other’ outcome(s).
• 31% (95,800) received a grant of Pre-settled status following an ‘other’ outcome(s) or a previous grant of Pre-settled status.

In addition:

• 7% (21,020) of repeat applicants have not yet recieved a grant of status (either Pre-settled or Settled).
• Of those, 2% (6,020) have not yet received an outcome.

Figures on repeat applicants can be found in data Table EUSS_RA_01 EU Settlement Scheme quarterly statistics tables

2.2. Applicants who have moved from Pre-settled to Settled status

Figure 2 below shows the number of applicants who have moved from Pre-settled to Settled status per month since the launch of the scheme. There has been a steady increase in numbers from December 2018 onwards with November 2020 seeing the largest number of people moving from Pre-settled to Settled status so far (17,600 applicants).

Figure 2: EU Settlement Scheme: Repeat applicants moving from Pre-settled to Settled status by month, 28 August 2018 to 31 March 2021

Source: Table 5, EUSS_MON, EU Settlement Scheme quarterly statistics tables

2.3. Applications from England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland

Most applications were received from England (4,779,450; 90%) with an additional 263,220 from Scotland (5%), 87,960 from Wales (2%) and 86,330 from Northern Ireland (2%).

2.4. Applications by nationality

In total, there were 4,910,690 applications received from EU nationals, 50,060 received from other EEA and Swiss nationals and 340,650 received from non-EEA nationals. The nationalities with the highest number of applications received were:

• Polish (975,180)
• Romanian (918,270)
• Italian (500,550)
• Portuguese (376,440)
• Spanish (320,850)

The top five nationalities combined represent around 58% of applications received.

Applications were received from all constituent countries of the UK: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, with Poland and Romania featuring in the top 5 nationalities for each country as shown in Table 2.

Table 2 - EU Settlement Scheme: top five nationalities by applications received and UK country, 28 August 2018 to 31 March 2021

England	Scotland	Wales	Northern Ireland
1. Romania	Poland	Poland	Poland
2. Poland	Romania	Romania	Lithuania
3. Italy	Italy	Bulgaria	Romania
4. Portugal	Spain	Portugal	Portugal
5. Spain	Bulgaria	Italy	Bulgaria

Source: Table EUSS_01, EU Settlement Scheme quarterly statistics tables

As seen in Figure 3, a lower proportion of applications from Polish nationals were from England (84%) than the average across the top ten nationalities (90%). The proportion of applications in Scotland from Polish nationals (9%) was nearly double the average of 5% across the top ten nationalities in Scotland.

The remaining top five nationalities, Romania, Italy, Portugal and Spain, had a greater number of applicants applying from England than average (94%, 93%, 93% and 90%, respectively). Non-EEA nationals also had a higher than average proportion (95%) of applicants applying from England.

Northern Ireland had more than three times the number of applications for Lithuanian nationals (14%) compared to the average of 4% across all the other nations.

Figure 3 - EU Settlement Scheme: number and proportion of applications by nationality and UK country, 28 August 2018 to 31 March 2021 - top 10 nationalities (and non-EEA nationals) by number of applications

Source: Table EUSS_01, EU Settlement Scheme quarterly statistics tables

2.5 Applications by age group

As seen in Figure 4, of the 5,301,470 applications received:

• 787,680 (15%) were made from applicants under 18 years of age.
• 4,391,060 (83%) were made from applicants aged between 18 and 64.
• 122,720 (2%) were made from applicants aged 65 and over.

Compared to the rest of the UK, Northern Ireland had a noticeably higher proportion (19%) of applications from people under 18. This was 15% across all other nations.

There was some variation in the proportion of applicants from different age groups for different nationalities across the UK. Irish (21%), Netherlands (21%) and Belgian nationals (20%) had the highest proportion of applications from those aged under 18. Maltese nationals had the highest proportion of applications from those aged 65 and over (11%).

Figure 4 - EU Settlement Scheme: proportion and number of applications by UK country by age group, 28 August 2018 to 31 March 2021

Source: Table EUSS_02, EU Settlement Scheme quarterly statistics tables

3. Concluded applications to the EU Settlement Scheme

The number of concluded applications up to 31 March 2021 was 4,977,740. Of these, 53% (2,623,720) were granted settled status and 44% (2,173,270) were granted pre-settled status. There were 55,950 refusals, 60,170 withdrawn or void outcomes and 64,580 invalid outcomes in the same period, representing 3% of all outcomes. Of the refusals, 99% were refused on eligibility grounds and 1% were refused on suitability grounds.

Refusal outcomes occurred across all constituent parts of the United Kingdom, all age groups, and almost all nationalities.

Figures on outcomes by repeat applicants can be found in section 2.1.

3.1. Concluded applications by UK country

The majority of concluded applications were received from England (4,501,460; 90%), with an additional 250,040 from Scotland (5%), 82,960 from Wales (2%) and 80,190 from Northern Ireland (2%).

England was the source of the greatest number of applications, and the proportion of applications receiving settled status (53%) across the whole UK is the same as England alone.

Compared to England, applications received in Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland were more likely to be granted settled status (61%, 58% and 56%, respectively).

Refused, withdrawn or void, and invalid outcomes occurred across all constituent parts of the UK. Applications from England accounted for the largest proportion of the 55,950 EU Settlement Scheme refusals (46,330, 83%).

3.2. Concluded applications by nationality

As seen in Figure 5, there were 4,643,670 concluded applications from EU nationals, 45,990 from other EEA and Swiss nationals, and 288,030 from non-EEA nationals, similar to the number of applications received. The nationalities with the highest number of concluded applications were:

• Polish (931,140)
• Romanian (852,310)
• Italian (478,830)
• Portuguese (359,070)
• Spanish (304,310)

The top five nationalities combined represent around 59% of applications concluded.

The proportion of settled outcomes differs among the top 10 nationalities, with Polish and Lithuanian nationals having the highest proportion of settled outcomes (77% and 75%, respectively), compared to Croatian and Romanian nationals with the lowest proportions (24% and 33%, respectively).

Eligible non-EEA nationals had a greater proportion of pre-settled outcomes (62%) than settled outcomes (30%).

Refused, withdrawn or void, and invalid outcomes occurred across most EEA and Swiss nationalities. EU and other EEA and Swiss nationals accounted for four out of five (83%) of the 55,950 EU Settlement Scheme refusals, with non-EEA nationals accounting for just under a fifth of refusals (17%).

Figure 5 - EU Settlement Scheme: number and proportion of concluded applications by nationality and outcome, 28 August 2018 to 31 March 2021 - top 10 nationalities (and non-EEA nationals) by number of concluded applications

Source: Table EUSS_03_UK, EU Settlement Scheme quarterly statistics tables

3.3. Concluded applications by age group

As seen in Figure 6, there were 4,160,800 concluded applications from persons between 18 to 64 years of age, 702,900 from people under 18, and 114,030 from individuals aged 65 and over. Of the concluded applications made by those aged 65 and over, the majority (73%) resulted in a settled outcome, higher than concluded applications for people under 18 and those aged 18 to 64 (59% and 51%, respectively).

Refused, withdrawn or void, and invalid outcomes occurred across all age groups. Individuals aged between 18 and 64 accounted for the vast majority of the 55,950 EU Settlement Scheme refusals (84%).

Figure 6 - EU Settlement Scheme: proportion and number of concluded applications by age group and outcome, 28 August 2018 to 31 March 2021

Source: Table EUSS_04, EU Settlement Scheme quarterly statistics tables

4. Applications to the EU Settlement Scheme by local authority

Applications to the EU Settlement Scheme were made from all 379 UK local authorities ^{[footnote 1]}. Newham saw the highest number of applications to the scheme (125,620).

Table 3 - EU Settlement Scheme: top 10 London local authorities by applications received, 28 August 2018 to 31 March 2021

Local Authority	UK Region	Applications
1. Newham	London	125,620
2. Brent	London	116,550
3. Ealing	London	96,000
4. Haringey	London	86,690
5. Barnet	London	80,170
6. Tower Hamlets	London	75,120
7. Hounslow	London	74,020
8. Waltham Forest	London	72,480
9. Enfield	London	72,260
10. Lambeth	London	69,340

Source: Table EUSS_LA_01, EU Settlement Scheme local authority tables

As shown in Table 3, the UK region of London accounted for seven of the top 10 local authorities by number of applications made. Birmingham saw the highest number of applications to the scheme (116,260) of all the local authorities outside of London. The top 10 local authorities (excluding London) are spread across multiple regions of the UK with the Midlands and the East of England accounting for six of the top 10.

Table 4 - EU Settlement Scheme: top 10 local authorities outside London by applications received, 28 August 2018 to 31 March 2021

Local Authority	UK Region	Applications
1. Birmingham	West Midlands	116,260
2. Leicester	East Midlands	81,710
3. Manchester	North West	81,010
4. Edinburgh	Scotland	62,880
5. Leeds	Yorkshire and The Humber	55,600
6. Bristol	South West	49,540
7. Northampton	East Midlands	49,360
8. Coventry	West Midlands	49,360
9. Peterborough	East of England	47,980
10. Luton	East of England	46,180

Source: Table EUSS_LA_01, EU Settlement Scheme local authority tables

Scotland had the highest proportion of applications from Polish nationals (34%). The West Midlands saw the highest proportion of Romanian applicants (23%).

At a local authority level, of all local authorities with at least 10,000 applications:

• Wakefield had the highest proportion of applications from Polish nationals (52%);
• Harrow had the highest proportion of applications from Romanian nationals (58%).

The North West had the highest proportion of applications from people under 18 (20%), London had the highest proportion of applications for those aged 18 to 64 (85%), and the South East, East of England, South West and Wales had the highest proportion of applications from individuals aged 65 and over (3%).

At a local authority level, of all local authorities with at least 10,000 applications:

• Bolton had the highest proportion of applications from people under 18 (30%);
• City of London and Islington had the joint highest proportion of applications from people aged 18 to 64 (93%);
• Kensington and Chelsea, Bedford, Woking and Maidenhead had the highest proportion of applications from people over 65 (5%).

5. Applications based on a derivative right to reside

Derivative rights applicants are applicants who did not qualify for a right of residence under the Free Movement Directive but may have had a right to reside in the UK derived from other EU law. Derivative rights applicants can apply to the EU Settlement Scheme under one of the following routes:

• Chen
• Ibrahim & Teixeira
• Lounes & Surinder Singh
• Zambrano

More information on these routes and eligibility requirements can be found in the Home Office EU Settlement Scheme statistics: user guide.

There were 4,800 applications received (4,620 concluded) from family members of British citizens (Lounes and Surinder Singh), 3,840 applications received (3,300 concluded) from Zambrano applicants, 1,200 applications received (420 concluded) from Chen applicants and 290 applications received (70 concluded) from Ibrahim & Teixeira applicants.

When looking at the total refusals in the derivative rights applicants (2,260), Zambrano applications accounted for 92% of the total (2,090).

About these statistics

This is the eighth quarterly statistical publication on the progress of the EU Settlement Scheme, which are designed to complement higher-level monthly data published on the EU Settlement Scheme.

If, as a user, you have any comments on this report please email [email protected]. Please include the words ‘EUSS PUBLICATION FEEDBACK’ in the subject of your email.

The findings presented here are based on data collected from Home Office administrative systems. These systems hold records of individual applications that have been received to the EU Settlement Scheme and their outcomes (settled or pre-settled status, and other outcomes). As these are sourced from live operational systems, numbers may change and may not precisely reflect other published statistics produced at a different point in time. The majority of applicants to the scheme are EEA nationals, but non-EEA nationals are eligible to apply in some cases. Non-EEA nationals who have submitted an application to the scheme are included in these statistics.

The Home Office EU Settlement Scheme statistics: user guide provides further details on this topic, including definitions used, data conventions, methods, data quality, and further considerations arising from figures based on data sourced from a live operational database.

Other related data

The Home Office publishes high-level progress information on the EU Settlement Scheme through monthly Experimental Statistics, available from the EU Settlement Scheme Statistics collection on GOV.UK.

Key findings of the earlier test phases of the EU Settlement Scheme can be found on GOV.UK at EU Settlement Scheme private beta 1, EU Settlement Scheme private beta 2 and EU Settlement Scheme public beta testing phase report.

The EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) Family Permit facilitates entry into the UK of an eligible family member, in order to join or accompany, an EEA or Swiss citizen who has been granted settled or pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme. Data on EUSS Family Permits are published as part of the quarterly Home Office “Immigration Statistics”, and are covered in the chapter ‘Why do people come to the UK? For family reasons’. The latest quarterly Immigration Statistics report was published on 27 May 2021.

The Home Office Looked After Children and Care Leavers Survey, 2021 provides estimates of the numbers of looked after children and care leavers eligible to apply to the EU Settlement Scheme. The follow up survey findings identified 3,660 looked after children and care leavers eligible to apply to the EUSS, and that 67% had applied to the scheme as of 23 April 2021. The updated report was published on the 13 May 2021.

Data tables

Further data on the EU Settlement Scheme for the period 28 August 2018 to 31 March 2021, are available in:

• EUSS_01 to EUSS_05, EUSS_DR_01, EUSS_MON and EUSS_RA_01 EU Settlement Scheme quarterly statistics tables

• EUSS_LA_01 to EUSS_LA_03, EU Settlement Scheme quarterly local authority tables

Upcoming publications

The next quarterly EU Settlement Scheme release is due for publication in August 2021.

1. Local Authority Districts (April 2020) Names and Codes in the United Kingdom ↩