A British widow is facing deportation from Sweden after 21 years because authorities say she filled out her post-Brexit application form to stay too late.

Joyce Thomas, 78, was initially given just four weeks to leave the country in November, three years after her husband died, according to *The Guardian. *

It comes as Sweden enforces a tough crackdown on immigration, passing legislation last month allowing deportation on the grounds of bad behaviour and forcing public sector workers to report those who they suspect are in the country undocumented.

Mrs Thomas is one of 2,500 British people ordered to leave the country under what the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office has dubbed a “considerably stricter approach” to Brexit rules.

“It is unbelievable at my age to be chucked out after being in a country for so long, when you’ve done absolutely nothing wrong,” she said as pro bono lawyers are now taking the case to a higher court.

Mes Thomas and her husband learned they should have made a formal application to stay in Sweden in 2022, before Mr Thomas died of cancer in 2023.

The widow’s application was rejected in 2024 after she was told she could not demonstrate that she had “reasonable grounds” to file it late. She then applied to stay under national immigration laws and was rejected again.

Mrs Thomas says she “will be dead” by the time she has moved and resettled again and would instead prefer to stay close to her son, grandchildren and her husband’s grave.

A spokesperson for the Swedish immigration authority told The Guardian a late application can only be filed “in exceptional circumstances” and that “simply stating that the person was unaware of the requirement to apply is not, in itself, considered a sufficient explanation”.

Peter Kyle, MP for Brighton, told The Independent that the case “deeply concerning” and said that UK nationals “should be treated fairly and with compassion”.

“I hope the authorities will carefully consider all the circumstances of Mrs Thomas’s case, including her long residence in Sweden, her family connections, and the humanitarian factors involved.”

In a similar case in 2023, a British woman with Alzheimers living in a dementia care home faced removal from Sweden after being unable to complete the required paperwork shortly before she died.

An FCDO spokesperson told The Independent: “We regularly raise concerns regarding Sweden’s protection of citizens’ rights with both the Swedish authorities and the European Commission, which is responsible for monitoring the implementation and application of citizens’ rights matters in EU member states.”