The Dutch immigration service IND says 6,100 British nationals who were sent a letter asking them to apply for a Dutch residency permit have still not responded, even though they will need to prove they are allowed to live in the Netherlands from the end of this year.

By August 1, the IND had written to 34,400 British nationals in the Netherlands about their rights, but by the end of October, only 28,300 had made a formal application to stay.

Although Brits have until the end of June 2021 to sort out their residency status under the terms of the withdrawal agreement, from the end of this year they will have to be able to prove they are entitled to live in the Netherlands to apply for healthcare, for example, the IND said.

Hunt is on for missing Brits as Brexit deadline looms

Some 95% of the applications submitted so far have been approved and just 1% rejected, the IND said in an update on Friday.

In addition, some 1,500 British nationals who did not receive a letter from the IND about their status have also made an application to stay, the agency said.