The number of EU citizens claiming benefits has doubled during the pandemic, with around 780,000 EU citizens receiving working-age benefits, according to new data from the Department for Work and Pensions.

In comparison, the figure stood at just 380,000 in November 2019.

Claims from migrants from some nations that acceded into the Brussels bloc in 2004 and 2007 stood even higher than the overall average.

Claims from Romania and Bulgaria more than trebled – taking the figure from 66,00 to 190,000 among so-called EU2 citizens.

Madeleine Sumption, Oxford University’s director of Migration Observatory, told the Telegraph: “EU migrants were hit hardest in the pandemic because of their concentration in hospitality and retail which closed down for long periods.

“There’s a pretty substantial increase in out-of-work claims for EU citizens.”

Citizens from the European Union who obtained a settled status remain eligible to claim benefits and furlough under the UK’s Withdrawal Agreement with the Brussels bloc.

According to a read-out from the UK’s Department for Exiting the European Union, Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal ensures “citizens who have moved between the UK and the EU, or those who have interacted with the social security of the UK and a Member State, before the end of the implementation period are not disadvantaged in their access to pensions, benefits and other forms of social security including healthcare cover.”

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