Thousands of migrants from nations like India, Pakistan, and Somalia entered the UK last year using the European Settlement Scheme (EUSS), a program originally for Europeans post-Brexit. Critics label it a hidden channel for migration despite its June 2021 deadline.
Key Visa Statistics
Official data reveals 6,709 non-European nationals received EUSS visas in 2025. This includes 1,124 Indians, 855 Somalis, and 791 Pakistanis.
Over the three years ending December 2025, 78,785 non-Europeans applied, with 33,658 approvals. Among them, 6,656 Indians, 5,413 Pakistanis, and 3,768 Somalis arrived. Nearly all visas fell under the EUSS Family Permit category for spouses, durable partners, dependent children, or parents of UK-based EU citizens.
Family members worldwide can join EU citizens indefinitely if they prove a pre-Brexit relationship, bypassing the main deadline.
Concerns Over Abuse and Migration Impact
A government source calls the continued influx ‘insane.’ By September 2025, 6.4 million total EUSS applications included 531,000 non-European family members, per the Migration Observatory at Oxford University.
EUSS holders represent 9.2 percent of Universal Credit claimants, according to Department for Work & Pensions data.
Robert Bates, research director at the Centre for Migration Control, states: ‘The EUSS has been beset with issues since it first launched and is still a huge driver of long-term migration into Britain. There is a pressing need for a real inquiry into some of the abuse and untoward practices that have been allowed to proliferate. It has been nearly five years since the deadline for most applications, and it is now time that it was closed for good.’
Documented abuses include a Ghanaian woman granted stay despite missing her wedding, and investigations uncovering 365 sham marriages between March 2018 and September 2021 to extend non-EU residency.
Political Reactions
Reform UK’s home affairs spokesman Zia Yusuf describes the scheme as ‘a scam on the British people’ and ‘a backdoor for Somalis, Pakistanis, and Indians among others to claim benefits.’ He demands explanation for its persistence and notes £15 billion in recent Universal Credit for foreign nationals, mostly EUSS holders. Reform pledges to end it.
Home Office Position
The Home Office maintains no evidence of abuse by non-Europeans. It explains EUSS terms stem from the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement, binding the UK to late family applications. A spokesman adds: ‘We have found no evidence that the scheme is being abused in this way. The government is doing everything in its power to reduce net migration.’
