Thread by @the3million

What do delays to EU Family Permit visas mean for families? Anna*, a Belarusian citizen with #SettledStatus, cannot return home to the UK with her 1 year old British baby and husband. They are stuck in Latvia, waiting for a family travel permit, with their lives on hold.

Over Christmas, Anna went home to Belarus, for her family to meet her child for the first time. After the holidays, her British husband returned. Anna's mother applied for a Schengen visa to travel through Lithuania to the UK, to help Anna with childcare here.

When they got to the border, Anna's mother was refused. Most Belarusian travellers are temporarily banned from leaving. bbc.co.uk/news/world-eur…

They applied for permission with the relevant authorities and got it. When they got to the airport in Lithuania, Anna was denied boarding. The airline required physical proof of residency and her digital status would not be accepted.

At 10pm, in sub-zero temperatures, a mother and a barely one year old baby had nowhere to go. They were fortunately able to book a hotel at short notice.

They called the UKVI and the EU settlement helpline. They weren't helpful, even suggesting they speak to @CitizensAdvice. This is the helpline the Home Office is claiming is a good enough provision for EU citizens who struggle with their digital-only status.

After a lot of scrambling for information, travelling to different centres for biometric appointments, the family applied for an EUSS Travel Permit.

We've seen how this issue has been affecting other families 👇

independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-n…

They are now stuck, waiting, in Latvia. There is barely any information on how long the EUSS Travel Permit will take to come through. UKVI told them it is "up to 6 weeks due to the backlog caused by the crisis in Ukraine".

For over a week, this family hasn't had clean clothes or a place to cook for their baby. The child missed two appointments for childhood immunisations, and several sessions at the local nursery. They cannot go back to Belarus, as they wouldn't be allowed to leave for 3 months.

No one deserves to go through emotional and financial distress, jump through this many hoops and be stranded away from their home. We need the Home Office to do better.

Confusing messaging from the govt for family members of British and EU citizens has led to awful situations. The digital-only status requires a Biometric Residency Card for non-EU family members. Is this clearly communicated? Doesn't look like that to us. the3million.org.uk/_files/ugd/cd5…

*Name has been changed to protect the privacy of everyone involved.