This is an HTML version of an attachment to the Freedom of Information request 'European Operational Policy Team notices from October 2014 through February 2016'.

From:  
 
Free Movement Operational Policy Team  
 
Subject:  

 
Comprehensive sickness insurance for family members 
of students 

 
Date:   
 
1st June 2015 
 
Issue number: 

06/2015  
 
Purpose of notice 
 
1.  This notice provides guidance on assessing applications from family 
members of students who are required to hold comprehensive sickness 
insurance (‘‘CSI’’) in the UK following amendments to the Immigration 
(European Economic Area) Regulations 2006 (as amended)(‘’the 
Regulations’’). 
 
Background 
 

2.  Prior to amendments to the EEA Regulations which came into force on 6th 
April 2015, EEA nationals who are residing in the UK as students were 
required to hold CSI for themselves, but the Regulations did not explicitly 
require such persons to also hold CSI for any family members who are 
residing in the UK with them. This is in contrast to the requirements for 
self-sufficient persons, who are explicitly required to hold CSI for 
themselves and any family members.  
 

3.  Changes have been made to the Regulations to bring the requirements 
for family members of students in line with those for the family members of 
self-sufficient persons.  
 
Implementation 
 
4.  Whilst changes to the Regulations were made on 6th April, for operational 
reasons, the requirement for family members of students to hold CSI will 
only be applied in practice from 22nd June 2015. The change will be 
communicated on the gov.uk website two to three weeks before this date 
to enable customers to comply with the requirement. 
 
Registration certificates and residence cards – applications received on or after 
22nd June 2015 
 
5.  Applications for registration certificates or residence cards received on or 
after 22nd June will be decided in line with the amended Regulations. This 
means that evidence of CSI must be provided to cover the EEA national 
and any family member also residing in the UK with them. Where there is 
no evidence of CSI for the EEA national or their family member(s), the 
application must be refused in line with regulation 4. For full details of 
what is sufficient evidence of CSI, see the modernised guidance [hyperlink 
redacted].  

 
 
 
Registration certificates and residence cards – applications received before 22nd 
June 
 
6.  In order to give applicants the opportunity to comply with the amended 
Regulations, where an application for a registration certificate or residence 
card has been received prior to 22nd June, and that application remains 
outstanding, caseworkers can proceed to issue a document where the 
EEA national student has evidence of CSI and all other requirements of 
the Regulations are met. This means that you must not refuse an 
application where the family members of the EEA national do not also 
have CSI on the date of decision (even if that decision date is after 22nd 
June).   In order to make applicants fully aware of the change in 
requirements, where it is proposed to issue a registration certificate or 
residence card, caseworkers must issue an accompanying letter which 
explains that any subsequent applications (including for permanent 
residence) must show full compliance with the new requirements for CSI. 
A copy of this letter can be found at Annex A of this notice.  
 
Permanent residence cards and documents certifying permanent residence  
 
7.  Applications for permanent residence must be assessed according to the 
qualifying period under consideration. For example, a family member of an 
EEA national student applied for a permanent residence card on 15th 
February 2015 and this application remains outstanding on 22nd June 
2015. They have provided evidence their EEA national sponsor was a 
student and that the EEA national held CSI for the period January 2010 to 
January 2015. As this qualifying period preceded changes to the 
Regulations, we can accept for the purposes of CSI, that the Regulations 
have been met.  
 
8.  Contrast this to a family member of an EEA national student who applies 
for a permanent residence card on 15th September 2015. This application 
relies on a qualifying period of between September 2010 and September 
2015. In this case therefore, we would require the family member to 
provide evidence that they also have CSI, in addition to their EEA national 
sponsor for the period between 22nd June 2015 and September 2015 (i.e 
the period after which the requirement to hold CSI was applied). Any 
period preceding 22nd June, we can accept evidence of CSI for the EEA 
national only.  
 
Enquiries 
 

9.  Masterclass sessions on the modernised guidance will be available for all 
decision-makers who require it over the next few weeks.  If specific 
training is required on any section in particular, please email the Free 
Movement Operational Policy Team mailbox at the following address in 
the first instance: [email address redacted]. 

 
       
 
      [name redacted] 
Head of Free Movement Operational Policy Team 
01 June 2015 
 
 
 
 
Annex A 
 
 
This letter is to notify you of changes to the Immigration (European Economic 
Area) Regulations 2006 (as amended) (‘’the Regulations’’) which came into 
effect on 6th April 2015. From this date family members of EEA nationals who 
are exercising Treaty rights in the UK as a student, will be required to hold 
comprehensive sickness insurance (‘’CSI’’) in the UK. This is in addition to 
the EEA national also holding CSI. This requirement is being applied to all 
applications for a registration certificate or residence card made on or after 
22nd June 2015. This will also apply to applications for a document certifying 
permanent residence or a permanent residence card.  
 
As your application for registration certificate/residence card [delete as 
appropriate
] was received prior to 22nd June, your application has been 
considered in line with the previous Regulations and it has not been 
assessed whether any family members also hold CSI. Please note, however, 
that any subsequent applications made under the Regulations after 22nd June 
will be decided on the basis that CSI is required for any family members of an 
EEA national who is exercising Treaty rights in the UK as a student.  
 
For more information on these changes, please see the Gov.uk website at the 
following link modernised guidance [hyperlink redacted].