‘We’ve done everything by the book’: EU citizens left in limbo after UK government strips post-Brexit residency status

The Home Office is facing legal action over a controversial policy to strip EU citizens who were in the UK before Brexit of their residency rights on the grounds that it gave them the status “in error”.

It comes as a Home Office minister revealed that the government has contacted 1,473 citizens with post-Brexit residency rights to tell them the original decision to grant them residency was made in error.

The campaign group the3million, which is aware of at least 50 cases, has put the Home Office on notice that it is seeking judicial review of the policy, which it enacted in late 2025 but has only recently come to light.

“In many cases, the Home Office is actually wrong to say there was a mistake. So people whose status was properly granted are now fighting not to lose it – this is a clear breach of the withdrawal agreement,” it said in an appeal to supporters to fund their case.

Some of those who received notice were told they were not entitled to pre-settled or settled status because they did not submit passports with their original application.

This includes a group of Brazilians and others with dual Italian nationality by birth but who the Home Office claimed were not Italian at the time of their Brexit settled status applications.

Among them is a 33-year-old Italian engineer who has been in London since 2018, when he arrived for a PhD, and now has “settled status” – permanent residency granted after five years.

As a consequence of the alleged Home Office error, he stands to lose withdrawal agreement rights to have his wife living with him, causing him great stress when he received the letter.

“It was quite devastating for both of us. We have been here for a long time. We have done everything by the book, and we’ve always felt very welcome here and I always thought this is somewhere I could grow my career,” Fabio (not his real name) told the Guardian last month.

Another woman working in the NHS and researching a PhD, who also received the “error” notification, said her life had been turned upside down.

“I can lose my job, I maybe don’t have the right even to rent the property that I’m living in now, because of course I have to prove my right to live here to the landlord to rent a place,” she said.

The Home Office said those granted pre settled status in error were “not withdrawal agreement beneficiaries” but could provide evidence to the contrary if they had it.

“A person granted PSS in error can also make a further valid application to the EUSS which, if refused, will give rise to a right of appeal,” it said.

The Home Office recently conceded it was wrong in one case that was taken to an administrative court. It agreed to withdraw its decision that the claimant’s pre-settled status had been “granted in error”, and that the receipt of a physical Italian passport after Brexit was not the date at which her Italian citizenship started.

For Fabio, the case gives hope but the judicial review would give a determination for everyone in his situation.

“Despite being hopeful, we are still in a limbo as we started an appeal process and haven’t received any communication from the Home Office regarding the fact that they are now conceding their mistake,” he said.

He said he was concerned they would have continue with a costly court case to resolve the matter which could leave them with a bill of more than £5,000.