According to the British Interior Ministry, of the 5.06 million applications submitted by 31 January, 4.5 million were made in England, 252,400 in Scotland, 83,800 in Wales and 81,800 in Northern Ireland.

However, the data also shows that about 380,000 cases have yet to be completed and that almost 141,000 applications have been refused or invalidated.

"It is fantastic news that more than five million people have applied for the extremely successful EU Citizens Registration System (EU Settlement Scheme). It is the largest such system in the history of the United Kingdom and means that European citizens and their families can continue to call the UK their home”, said Interior Minister Priti Patel.

The Secretary of State for Borders, Kevin Foster, stressed the fact that five million applications were registered months before the 30 June deadline, while announcing another six million pounds (seven million Euros) for services support and advertising campaigns.

The British Government has provided funding to 72 organizations to help vulnerable people, including homeless people, victims of human trafficking or domestic violence, the elderly or people with mental health problems.

However, European rights activists, forced to apply for residency status due to the UK's withdrawal from the European Union (EU), which put an end to freedom of movement, fear that tens of thousands of people may miss the deadline or lose rights because of the covid-19 pandemic.

Last week the organization “the 3 million” submitted a report to the Independent Monitoring Authority, a body created in the United Kingdom to guarantee the fulfilment of the rights of post-Brexit European residents, where it expresses several concerns and urges the extension of the deadline by another six to 12 months.