Expression of interest form for France to UK transfers goes live

It appears that the first application window has opened for those who want to come to the UK from France under the new scheme announced this week. The expression of interest form is online along with guidance that says: “The scheme will be open for applications for a short period. There are a limited number of places to come to the UK on the scheme which will be released gradually.”

It appears that the Home Office actually does have a clever way of checking that people are in France, as step two listed in the guidance is to “Confirm you are in France using your mobile phone”. The guidance states that:

Once you and each adult in your family have submitted your expression of interest applications, you will each be sent an email and text message with instructions on how to prove you are in France. You will have 24 hours to reply to this message. If you cannot find the email in your inbox, check your junk or spam folder.

If people are applying as a family then the main applicant must submit their application first, get a family reference number by email, and then the other family members use that reference number when applying. They will also need to provide evidence of the relationship, which is likely to be difficult for some.

Progress in the form cannot be saved so people will need to have everything in advance. The form asks if the person is the main applicant, and if they want to come to the UK alone or with family. Applicants must confirm that they are 18 or over, have an identity document that shows their nationality and are in France. They then need to provide their details – name, nationality, date and place of birth, sex and relationship status.

People are then asked for details of their identity documents, expired passports or national identity cards can be used if there is no valid document. The guidance on identity standards is linked to for an explanation of what will be accepted. A copy of the document must then be uploaded in JPEG, PDF or PNG format at 25MB or less. The applicant then needs to upload a recent photo of themself that is different to the one in the identity document.

The form then concludes with questions on criminal offences, war crimes, terrorism, espionage etc. Once through those there is a summary page showing all the answers given, with a “confirm submission” button at the end.

No timescales for a decision are given and people are told only that decisions “may take some time”.