{"id":5179,"date":"2017-03-03T18:17:04","date_gmt":"2017-03-03T17:17:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ounews.co\/?p=5179"},"modified":"2017-03-03T18:17:04","modified_gmt":"2017-03-03T17:17:04","slug":"home-office-rule-change-adds-febrile-atmosphere-eu-nationals-britain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/business-law\/law\/home-office-rule-change-adds-febrile-atmosphere-eu-nationals-britain\/","title":{"rendered":"Home Office rule change adds to febrile atmosphere for EU nationals in Britain"},"content":{"rendered":"

The House of Lords may have backed an amendment to protect the rights of EU nationals after Brexit, but the level of fear among nationals of other EU countries about their future has hit new highs<\/a>. \"The<\/p>\n

On March 1, the Lords voted by 358 to 256<\/a> in favour of an amendment to the Brexit bill, although it\u2019s likely<\/a> this will get overturned by MPs in the House of Commons.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, a briefing published by a well-known immigration law<\/a> blogger, arguing that the Home Office had extended its powers to remove citizens for the European Economic Area (EEA) who were unlawfully living in the country, has increased uncertainty.<\/p>\n

The actual change in the law and guidance is minimal, and the Home Office insisted<\/a> that it was wrong to imply it had new powers to deport people. But the impact of the guidance on some groups of non-UK EEA nationals is immense.<\/p>\n

Who needs health insurance?<\/h2>\n

The key issue at stake is the requirement for comprehensive sickness insurance<\/a>. Any EEA national from outside the UK wanting to reside lawfully in the UK for more than three months but who is not working or self-employed, has to show that they have health insurance. This means students and EU citizens who are not working need to prove that they are not solely relying on the NHS for their medical cover. Even if they have never used the NHS \u2013 or used it without being asked to pay or prove they had insurance.<\/p>\n

This relates to a 2004 EU directive<\/a> which was intended to ensure that those member states with a high influx of EEA nationals do not have their welfare and health care systems overburdened. The UK\u2019s implementation of this EU law is questionable<\/a> but has so far been challenged<\/a> in the UK courts without success. Although other countries in the EU have similar rules, no other country has a health system comparable to the NHS in which the majority of the population do not have private health insurance.<\/p>\n

The update on the rules and guidance seem to be aimed at allowing the Home Office to crack down on those EEA nationals living in the UK without any means to support themselves, such as rough sleepers<\/a>. This is not a new development and started long before<\/a> the referendum in June 2016.<\/p>\n

The new guidance change, in effect from February 1, enables the Home Office to ask EEA nationals to verify<\/a> their right to reside by inviting them for an interview. If they fail this, an order of removal can be issued. Until now, the assumption has always been that all EEA nationals are residing in the UK lawfully, so the change could now see a rise in individuals being treated suspiciously.<\/p>\n