Can my father lose his state pension because he didn't apply for settled status?

ambrose90

Exactly like in the topic - my parents never bothered with looking into getting a settled status, my mother finally did it last week because she still works and simply was ignorant to this. But she didn't register my dad, who's already retired and claims state pension. Will he still be eligible to receive it if he ignores it?

Marcon

Could cause problems if he doesn't apply for settled status by tomorrow. See https://www.gov.uk/guidance/benefits-and-pensions-for-eea-and-swiss-citizens-in-the-uk

tacpot12

My understanding is that your father would not lose his entitlement to receive a UK state pension, but would lose his  entitlement to receive Pension Credit, which is a top-up paid to people whose state pension is lower than a certain level.

However, he is at risk of being deported, and if he decides to settle in a country that is not on this list: Countries where we pay an annual increase in the State Pension - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) he will not get the cost of living increases that will ensure that he can live on the pension.

I would encourage you to have him apply for Settled Status today. Make this your No 1 priority. Take time off work if you need to. Go to visit him if you have a SmartPhone so that you can use the app to start his application. The deadline is 30th June 2021, i.e. tomorrow.

Start here: Apply to the EU Settlement Scheme (settled and pre-settled status): Apply to the EU Settlement Scheme - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) 

Alice_Holt

It could be vital that he applies.

Without settled status he would be subject to immigration control (after 30/6/21). so he would not be able to claim benefits like Attendance Allowance & Pension Credit later in life (as these are dependent on having a Right to Reside). State Pension will continue as this is based on NI credits, and is not a benefit subject to an immigration status or a RtR test.

Accessing NHS health care in the future  ?? - "The Home Office has a dedicated Status Verification and Enquiries Checking ( SVEC ) service which responds to such enquiries from the NHS. The service will provide information to the NHS regarding your immigration status, which will help the NHS determine whether or not you are entitled to your NHS care free of charge."

Etc, etc

Very, very foolish to have ignored it.
https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/benefits/claiming-benefits-if-youre-from-the-EU/before-you-apply/check-if-you-have-the-right-to-reside-for-benefits/


Was your father not aware of the Windrush scandal?
https://www.jcwi.org.uk/windrush-scandal-explained

SomeMadeUpName

@ambrose90, please come back and assure us both your parents registered by the 30th.  I'd hate to think of anyone who's contributed to the UK for years getting bilked on their entitlements, and I don't trust the Home Office's assurances they will be 'flexible and compassionate' as far as I can throw them!

AlanP_2

SomeMadeUpName said:

@ambrose90, please come back and assure us both your parents registered by the 30th.  I'd hate to think of anyone who's contributed to the UK for years getting bilked on their entitlements, and I don't trust the Home Office's assurances they will be 'flexible and compassionate' as far as I can throw them!

Priti is the epitome of a caring, compassionate person surely?

SomeMadeUpName

AlanP_2 said:

SomeMadeUpName said:

@ambrose90, please come back and assure us both your parents registered by the 30th.  I'd hate to think of anyone who's contributed to the UK for years getting bilked on their entitlements, and I don't trust the Home Office's assurances they will be 'flexible and compassionate' as far as I can throw them!

Priti is the epitome of a caring, compassionate person surely?

Don't even get me started.

I'll give her a 'hostile environment'.

Rich2808

I really do find it hard to believe that anyone could have missed our vote to leave the EU in June 2016, our departure in January 2020 and the end of transition on 31 January and the requirement to register for settled status which has been open for applications for two years. 5.6 million people seem to have coped with that requirement - which takes only a few minutes to do.

As for 'hostile environments' I suggest they move to most EU countries where EU citizens not from that country are required to register with the local council or police after 3 months of residency or they are in effect living there illegally. Perhaps if we had proper systems like most of the EU with public services/residency/ID cards we might not have found out that there are 2.5 million more EU residents here than we thought. Same lack of records caused the Windrush problem. Utterly s**t systems all round.

Hope the OP got this sorted - but seriously why didn't you push your parents to sort this out before this week? They have had two years to apply.

If you think the UK is tough try living in a country which has proper immigration and residency controls! Or perhaps even move to one which doesn't pay such an awful state pension on retirement (only Lithuania pays a worse pension relative to average wages)!

If you aren't a citizen of a country you can never be 100% guaranteed on anything unless you sort out your paperwork!

PS if you applying for think settled status is tough try getting an appointment with a GP. I have been on the phone for 3 days to my EU national mum's GP surgery trying to sort out various issues with her. Compared to dealing with the NHS her settled status application was a breeze!!

ambrose90

SomeMadeUpName said:

@ambrose90, please come back and assure us both your parents registered by the 30th.  I'd hate to think of anyone who's contributed to the UK for years getting bilked on their entitlements, and I don't trust the Home Office's assurances they will be 'flexible and compassionate' as far as I can throw them!

We tried registering dad on the last day but this being last day the servers got overloaded and we got errors trying to finish the application. We tried up until around midnight.
We'll need to appeal this, as obviously this is a valid reason for reassessment. 

JoeCrystal

Sorry to hear that you were unsuccessful. Not necessarily since the Home Office will be hostile, and he did have few years to apply for the settled status, and ignorance is no excuse, unfortunately. Has he already spoken with the Home Office about this?  Sooner the better. The longer this goes, the stricter the Home Office will become.

elsien

There is late application guidance that may be worth a look at. 

https://www.london.gov.uk/what-we-do/european-londoners-hub/late-applications-eu-settlement-scheme