Also on 22 July the Home Office issued an alert to the 5.4 million EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) status holders, urging them to review the identity documents linked to their digital status ahead of next year’s move to fully automated travel checks. The communiqué – circulated via legal advisers and highlighted by consultancy Five Star International – states that additional carrier-based verification will begin in early 2027. Travellers whose online UKVI accounts still show expired passports risk being denied boarding. Why now? Border Force will migrate to the Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) platform that already underpins visitor screening. Once switched on, airline systems will cross-check passenger manifests with UKVI databases in real time. Any mismatch – for example where an EUSS holder has renewed their passport but not logged the change – will trigger a ‘no board’ directive. The Home Office says it wants to avoid a repeat of 2021’s airport bottlenecks when digital status first went live. The notice also confirms a major policy shift: pre-settled status holders will face a simpler residence test when they upgrade to settled status. Only 30 months of UK residence in the previous five years will be required, and time spent overseas no longer needs to be justified – simplifying life for highly mobile EU professionals. Pending upgrade applications will be assessed under the new rule automatically. Employers should act quickly. Mobility teams are advised to run an awareness campaign, capture updated passport data and schedule checks for business travellers over the Christmas peak. Failure to do so could see staff stranded overseas and projects delayed. Advisers also note that the simplified upgrade criteria may reduce future compliance risk because fewer employees will drop out of status unintentionally. Airlines meanwhile are updating their departure-control software to read the EUSS digital credential. Travel managers should expect a short ‘soft-launch’ period when manual document checks continue while systems bed in.
Source: Five Star International
