The Further Education (Student Support) (Eligibility) (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2021

Insertion of paragraphs 2A and 2B

6.  After paragraph 2, insert—

“2A.— (1) A person who—

(a) is a United Kingdom national or an Irish citizen on the first day of the first academic year of the course, and does not fall within paragraph 2B of this Schedule;

(b) is attending or undertaking a designated course in Northern Ireland;

(c) has been ordinarily resident in the territory comprising the United Kingdom, Gibraltar, EEA and Switzerland (the relevant territory) throughout the three-year period preceding the first day of the first academic year of the course; and

(d) subject to sub-paragraph (2), whose ordinary residence in the relevant territory has not during any part of the period referred to in paragraph (c) been wholly or mainly for the purpose of receiving full-time education.

(2) Paragraph (d) of sub-paragraph (1) does not apply to a person who is treated as being ordinarily resident in the relevant territory in accordance with paragraph 1(3).

2B.— (1) A person who—

(a) meets one of the following conditions on the first day of an academic year of the course—

(i) the person is within the personal scope of the citizens’ rights provisions and is settled in the United Kingdom by virtue of the grant of indefinite leave to enter or remain under residence scheme immigration rules;

(ii) the person—

(aa) is within the personal scope of the citizens’ rights provisions;

(bb) is an Irish citizen settled in the United Kingdom who, pursuant to section 3ZA of the Immigration Act 1971, does not require leave to enter or remain in the United Kingdom; and

(cc) would meet the eligibility requirements for indefinite leave to enter or remain in the United Kingdom granted by virtue of residence scheme immigration rules if that person were to make an application for such leave;

(iii) the person—

(aa) is within the personal scope of the citizens’ rights provisions;

(bb) is a relevant person for the purposes of regulation 3 of the 2020 Citizens’ Rights Regulations; and

(cc) has, or is treated as having, a right of permanent residence for the purposes of the Immigration (European Economic Area) Regulations 2016, as those Regulations continue to have effect by virtue of the 2020 Citizens’ Rights Regulations in relation to that person during the grace period;

(iv) the person—

(aa) is within the personal scope of the citizens’ rights provisions;

(bb) is an applicant for the purposes of regulation 4 of the 2020 Citizens’ Rights Regulations; and

(cc) has, or is treated as having, a right of permanent residence for the purposes of the Immigration (European Economic Area) Regulations 2016, as those Regulations continue to have effect by virtue of the 2020 Citizens’ Rights Regulations in relation to that person during the relevant period; or

(v) the person is a family member of a relevant person of Northern Ireland for the purposes of residence scheme immigration rules, where that family member is settled in the United Kingdom by virtue of the grant of indefinite leave to enter or remain under residence scheme immigration rules;

(b) is ordinarily resident in Northern Ireland on the first day of the first academic year of the course;

(c) has been ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom and Islands throughout the three-year period preceding the first day of the first academic year of the course; and

(d) in a case where the person’s ordinary residence referred to in paragraph (c) was wholly or mainly for the purpose of receiving full-time education, was ordinarily resident in the territory comprising the European Economic Area and Switzerland immediately before the period of ordinary residence referred to in paragraph (c).

(2) For the purposes of sub-paragraph (1)(a)(ii)(cc), “eligibility requirements for indefinite leave to enter or remain in the United Kingdom granted by virtue of residence scheme immigration rules” means the eligibility requirements for such leave in accordance with paragraph EU11 of Appendix EU to the immigration rules(1) (as defined in section 33(1) of the Immigration Act 1971).”.

(1)

The immigration rules were laid before Parliament on 23rd May 1994 (HC 395). Appendix EU was laid before Parliament on 20th July 2018 as part of a command paper that amended the immigration rules entitled “Statement of Changes in Immigration rules” (Cm 9675). Appendix EU was amended by the statement of changes in immigration rules presented to Parliament on 14th May 2020 (CPC 232) and on 22nd October 2020 (HC 813).