Flintshire Council to get funding to support ‘hard-to-reach’ EU citizens living in the county

Under the scheme, EU citizens and their relatives, plus those from the European Economic Area (EEA) countries of Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway, as well as Switzerland, are asked to apply to confirm their immigration status so they can live and work in the UK after June 30 2021, once the Brexit transition period and freedom of movement ends.

Figures published by the Home Office this week show another 6000 applications from EU citizens living in Wales were received last month.

Up to the end of January 2020, a total of 50,100 applications had been submitted from EU Citizens in Wales – a jump from 44,100 at the end of December.

Funding worth more than £220,000, will support every council in Wales to step up “local outreach, and to tackle barriers to help those who still aren’t aware of the need to apply, or are struggling to apply.” Welsh Government said.

Reacting to the latest official EUSS statistics, Counsel General and Brexit Minister Jeremy Miles said:

“I’m pleased to see another significant rise in the numbers applying from Wales, which shows our efforts are working, but we want to see more applications across all parts of Wales.

That’s why we’ve made more funding available to every council in Wales to raise awareness of this scheme in their area, and increase the number of people applying.

Each council will be free to choose the best way to support their residents, whether through events, leaflets or introducing more digital application centres with scanning facilities, but it’s so important we’re all pulling together in the right direction.

We’ve always been clear that EU citizens who have made their home in Wales are welcome here. This is your home, we want you to stay.

If you think you might need to apply, or know someone else who might, there is advice and support available to you, so that you can continue to make Wales your home.”

Further information on the support available to EU citizens living in Wales can be found on the Welsh Government’s Preparing Wales website