Brexit information for staff

Yes. However, until a trade agreement has been agreed by the end of the transition period on 31 December 2020, things that affect your individual situation may change. 

There will be no change to the immigration status of EU/EEA/Swiss staff who are already here or living in the UK before the end of the transition period on 31 December 2020 when the UK leaves the EU on 31 January. 

Staff may wish to apply for settled status which will enable them to live, work and study in the UK for as long as they like. The EU Settlement Scheme opened fully in March 2019 and the deadline for applications will be 30 June 2021. For more information on the EU Settlement Scheme and how to apply, please refer to the ‘What is settled status and how do I apply’ tab.

If the UK leaves the EU without a deal at the end of the transition period, EU, EEA and Swiss nationals who enter the UK after this date will need to apply for European temporary leave to remain (EuroTLR). This will enable these nationals to live, work and study in the UK for 36 months after a successful application has been granted.

You can also apply for status under the EU Settlement Scheme from outside the UK. All University staff who are EU nationals are strongly encouraged to consider this option if they are currently overseas.

As a university, Oxford Brookes strongly believes that the diversity of its staff and student body, and the extent to which we collaborate with international colleagues, are signs of a successful, responsible and forward-thinking institution.

Colleagues in Human Resources are available to support staff wherever possible with questions or concerns about their employment in light of the UK’s planned exit from the EU. Contact details can be found on the HR webpages.

Details about the EU Settlement Scheme are available on the Gov.UK website.

EU/EEA/Swiss nationals who have already been in the UK for five years and can provide evidence of that, will be granted settled status. EU/EEA/Swiss nationals who have been in the UK for fewer than five years will be granted pre-settled status until they reach the five-year residency requirement. Those EU/EEA/Swiss nationals with permanent residence will be able to convert their permanent residence status into the new settled status free of charge, subject only to verification of identity, a criminality and security check and proof of ongoing residence.

The Home Office has produced a step-by-step application process for EU citizens to apply for settled status. The settlement scheme opened in March 2019 and the deadline for applications will be 30 June 2021.

Staff are strongly encouraged to apply for pre-settled status even if they do not have 5 years’ continuous residence by the deadline date. You can stay in the UK for a further 5 years from the date you get pre-settled status and, depending on your initial residence date, you may well be able to make a subsequently successful application for full settled status.

You can also apply for status under the EU Settlement Scheme from outside the UK. All University staff who are EU/EEA/Swiss nationals are strongly encouraged to consider this option if they are currently overseas.

Some staff members may wish to apply for British citizenship rather than settled status. The University announced in January 2019 that it will allow claims of £65 for those EU staff who, since 1 January 2018, have applied successfully for British citizenship. Further detail and conditions can be found on the Staff Communications Hub.

ID verification

Part of the settled status application involves ID verification that utilises a downloadable app, which runs on Android devices. A number of staff who do not own such a device have asked if one can be made available and IT Services can indeed assist. Android devices will be made available to staff on each of our four main sites at the IT Services service desk.

The process is that:

• the user will be given a factory reset blank android phone;
• they will then log into the phone using their google account;
• they will download the app from the Play Store and do the required scan as part of the settlement application and complete the process; 
• finally they will then watch as the service desk staff member factory resets the phone for the next user.

You will not be able to take the phone away from the service desk and IT Services staff are on hand to help if you encounter problems. Please keep in mind that we have specific opening times for walk-in service desks - details are available online. The last admittance for this service will be an hour before they close.

You can print off your P60 from the Core HR staff portal yourself, as well as your monthly payslips from May 2015 onwards. Regrettably we are unable to exactly re-produce P60s earlier than 2016; these are specifically produced legal documents. However our Payroll team can, with at least 30 calendar days’ notice, produce a letter which would contain historical P60 details for you. If you contact Payroll on finance-payroll@brookes.ac.uk then they will be able to assist you but please do give them as much notice as possible.

As above, you can print off your payslips from May 2015 onwards yourself. However if you would like payslips prior to that date then you can request this information from Payroll on finance-payroll@brookes.ac.uk but please allow at least 30 days’ notice.

Yes. HR will happily write a ‘to whom it may concern’ letter confirming the essential employment details that you will need to assist you in your application. If you contact your link HR team then they will be able to assist you with this request.

If you give Human Resources sufficient notice, they will happily stamp historical payslips and copies of contractual documents as having been verified by us. Please do request this in advance with your link team though and with suitable notice. Please note that Human Resources cannot verify any documents that are not created by the University such as copies of utility bills or other papers. HR will verify contractual documents and payslips but regrettably no other documents.

Information on European research funding after Brexit can be found on our European Funding and Brexit intranet page.

After the transition period from 1 January 2021, all UK nationals travelling to the EU will be treated as third-country citizens. Business travellers from Oxford Brookes will need to ensure that they adhere to the rules in place for the jurisdiction(s) to which they are travelling and ensure that their intended activities are permitted. For information on travel within specific countries, Universities UK has provided a Immigration in the EU post-Brexit guide. 

The Government has provided advice and guidelines for UK nationals on driving in the EU after 31 January 2020.

The Southern Universities Purchasing Consortium, of which Oxford Brookes is a member, has this advice:

While we can, and will, continue to support universities on their use of Southern Universities Purchasing Consortium framework contracts, we recognise the range of products and services you purchase is hugely varied. It’s important for procurement teams to develop a clear picture of their supply chain for all existing contracts and seek to understand which present a higher or lower risk by asking appropriate questions around key topics. When reviewing risks and challenges, universities should consider aspects such as:

• currency volatility
• staffing constraints
• supplies shortages
• increased risk of modern slavery
• waste impacts
• products subject to higher levels of border control
• border delay impacts
• and how agile suppliers are in a fluctuating market.