Before Brexit, free movement rights across the EU meant that British citizens were able to live and work in the EU without restrictions. For those who had families living in the EU relocating back to the UK was not an issue. However, free movement officially ended on the 31st December 2020, which means that returning to the UK with EU family members has become more complex.

The Surinder Singh route forms part of the EU Settlement Scheme, this is an immigration scheme intended to protect the rights of EU and EEA citizens who were living in the UK prior to the end of free movement. The Surinder Singh route is a UK immigration route for those who have lived outside the UK in an EEA member state with a British citizen.

Whilst the EU settlement scheme is mainly targeted towards EU citizens who were living in the UK before free movement rights ended, the Surinder Singh Route means that the EU settlement scheme can also be used by the family members of a qualifying British citizen who were living in the EU before Brexit. The Surinder Singh route allows the spouses and dependents of a British citizen who was living in the EU before the end of free movement to apply for leave to remain in the UK.