If an EU national (say for example, a Spanish player) can evidence that he moved to the UK before 11pm on 31 December 2020, they will be eligible to apply either for ‘settled status’ or ‘pre-settled status’ under the EU Settlement Scheme, depending on how long he has been in the UK.
i. ≥ 5 years = player can apply for settled status;
ii. < 5 years = player can apply for pre-settled status.
Within 12 months of securing ‘settled status’, players (and managers) will be eligible to apply for naturalisation as British citizens. Players who apply for and receive ‘pre-settled status’ can be ‘upgraded’ to settled status upon completing 5 years of residence in the UK.
NB: All applications for settled/pre-settled status must have been made before 30 June 2021.