BREXIT

Last-minute day trips give EU citizens the right to stay after Brexit

Applicants who intend to move to Britain only have to prove being resident in the country for one day in the past six months
Applicants who intend to move to Britain only have to prove being resident in the country for one day in the past six months
ALAMY

Top City lawyers have been advising European citizens to make last-minute trips to Britain before Friday to qualify for the right to live here when the new immigration system is implemented.

Hundreds of citizens of EU countries are estimated to have made short visits to the UK in recent weeks, sometimes for less than 24 hours, to qualify for pre-settled status before freedom of movement ends on Thursday night.

Lawyers have been advising clients who intend to move to Britain soon that a whistle-stop visit before January 1 can be the simplest way to obtain the right to do so. One lawyer said there were likely to have been hundreds of trips for this purpose in the past few months.

Under the law, EU citizens