Finnish academic Eva Johanna Holmberg says official has told her she will be reimbursed after letter was sent in error

The Home Office has privately told an EU national who received a deportation letter in error that it will be reimbursing the legal fees she incurred in fighting the order to leave the UK.

After Eva Johanna Holmberg spent about £3,800 fighting the government decision to order her to leave the country or face deportation or detention, she discovered that the letter had been sent in error – and that up to 100 EU citizens had received similar ultimatums.

When the Guardian raised the issue the Home Office apologised to Holmberg and the prime minister, Theresa May, called the incident an “unfortunate error”.

Holmberg, a Finnish academic with a British husband, said the Home Office had now assured her that her expenses would be fully reimbursed and an official had told her that no one who had received a letter would be out of pocket.

In a statement, the Home Office directed those affected to its complaints process and said: “We cannot comment on the details of any individual compensation claim.” Other recipients of the letters said they had not heard from the Home Office.

“I am relieved, especially for those people who had to take personal loans and were in distress,” said Holmberg. “I wish the Home Office will be more careful with people’s lives in the future and keep their promise to investigate this matter thoroughly. How was it possible to make 100 ‘unfortunate errors’?”

Play Video 0:19 Deportation letters sent to EU nationals was ‘unfortunate error’, says May – video

The government had faced growing pressure to reinforce their apology with recompense for the worried EU nationals who, in some cases, spent thousands on legal fees to appeal against their since annulled deportation.



Holmberg spent £3,800 overall, which included a £3,500 fee to lodge an appeal.

The Home Office mistakenly sent the letters to EEA nationals informing them they were at risk of detention if they did not leave the country in the next month. Recipients of the letters had called on the government to cover the costs they spent on legal consultation fees, lodging appeals and going to tribunal.

Mihaela Duta, a Romanian national who has lived in the UK since 2010, also received a deportation letter last week and has spent £1,335 on legal fees, including paying for a consultation with a solicitor, lodging an appeal and taking the case to a tribunal. She has not yet received a promise of reimbursement and said that she had little faith in the authorities.

“The UK is my home, regardless of my nationality or borders,” said Mihaela Duta, who also received a deportation letter last week. “I have adapted, integrated and respected the rules and the culture of this country. I do feel welcomed but this is not to be confused with the trust I have in the government of this country.”



She also said she had complained to the European court of justice over the issue.

The Home Office is conducting an investigation into the issue. Letters published on social media by the recipients show they were signed off by more than one person.



“The Home Office has long played fast and loose with people’s lives and Brexit means yet more and more people risk being caught up in their often Kafkaesque systems,” said Caroline Lucas, Holmberg’s MP in Brighton Pavilion. “I hope there will be a full investigation into what’s happened and heads rolling should not be ruled out if anyone’s found to have acted irresponsibly.”



Attention is now likely to turn to the cause of the “unfortunate errors” as calls grow for the Home Office to reassure the public that they are prepared to deal with hundreds of thousands of applications after Brexit.