Ministers are set to begin removing post-Brexit residency rights from some EU citizens who are no longer considered to be living continuously in the UK.
The move is legally permitted under the 2020 Brexit withdrawal agreement, but it has already raised concern because officials plan to use travel data as part of the assessment of whether someone has been absent from the country for too long.
The issue has prompted comparisons with the HMRC fiasco, in which almost 20,000 parents were stripped of child benefits after inaccurate Home Office border data was used in error. That case has sharpened scrutiny of any system that relies on travel records to make decisions about people’s rights and entitlements.
What the government plans to do
The initiative targets EU citizens whose post-Brexit residency status depends on continued residence in the UK. According to the report, the government intends to act where people are no longer regarded as being continuously present in the country.
While the withdrawal agreement allows such action, concerns have been raised about how absences will be measured and how much weight will be given to border or travel information. The central worry is that inaccurate or incomplete data could lead to people losing rights unfairly.
Data concerns revive old anxieties
The planned use of travel data has drawn attention because of the earlier HMRC case, which involved significant numbers of families being wrongly affected after Home Office records were found to be unreliable. That episode has become a reference point for critics who argue that border data should be used with caution in decisions that affect residency, benefits, and legal status.
The new approach is likely to reignite debate over how the government checks whether a person has remained continuously in the UK, and what protections are in place for those who may have legitimate reasons for travel or gaps in records.
For EU citizens covered by the post-Brexit system, the development marks another stage in the long-running process of defining and enforcing residency rights after Britain’s exit from the European Union.
The move is legal under the withdrawal agreement, but the controversy surrounding the use of travel records suggests that its implementation will face close scrutiny.
