‘I thought I was a British citizen for 22 years but now might be deported’ | UK News [Video]

‘Your application has been rejected as invalid’.

On 12 December last year, I was devastated to receive an email informing me that my settled status application had been denied.

The reason the Home Office gave was that the deadline had passed and I lacked sufficient evidence to justify the reason for applying late.

But the thing is, I had no idea my status was even in question until I started a job as a care worker and was asked to provide a ‘share code’:  a code for migrants to prove their Right to Work.

This led me down a path where I’m now at threat of deportation – even though I was born in the UK and I have a British birth certificate.

Born in 2001 and raised in London, my Portuguese mother believed I was British, even if her and my father weren’t. She came to the UK in  2000 and had me and my three siblings. 

Since birth, I’ve been registered …