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Hi all,

I hope you guys can help me with this.

I am an EEA national. My wife is a Kenyan national and we married 2 years ago in Kenya. She has been in the UK for at least 1 year out of the 2 years we were married.

The thing is, the marriage broke down. I am supposed to inform UKBA about this but I am not quite sure whether I have to file a "divorce petition" in the UK as we were not married in the UK and didn't go to a register office. Do I have to file one in Kenya or me telling the UKBA that we are no longer together is sufficient?

How does it work?

Thank you in advance

Kevin101 wrote:Hi all,

I hope you guys can help me with this.

I am an EEA national. My wife is a Kenyan national and we married 2 years ago in Kenya. She has been in the UK for at least 1 year out of the 2 years we were married.

The thing is, the marriage broke down. I am supposed to inform UKBA about this but I am not quite sure whether I have to file a "divorce petition" in the UK as we were not married in the UK and didn't go to a register office. Do I have to file one in Kenya or me telling the UKBA that we are no longer together is sufficient?

How does it work?

Thank you in advance

In March you were asking whether your wife would be able to stay in the UK as she was pregnant with your child.
http://www.immigrationboards.com/eea-ro ... ml#p999917

Hi Casa,

Thanks for the reply. We got a child together but at the time we were only divorced on religious ground. Now we are seperated and divorced according to religion Law.

However, to inform the UKBA, do I have to produce a divorce certificate and if so do I have to get it from Kenya or UK?

Do you not want your wife and child to remain in the UK?

Hi Casa

it has been a painful and long ordeal and it reached the final stage. My child will not be leaving as he was born in UK and he is a EEA national.

What will be the fate of her? Assuming that we have been married for 2 and half years and she has been in the UK for over 1 year. Will she have the right to remain?

As you haven't been married for 3 years, she won't be able to apply for a Retained Right of Residence as your ex-wife. However if she has custody or a right of access to your child, she may be eligible to apply for a Retained Rights of Residence on this basis.

What aboit divorce proceedings. Do I get it from Kenya or UK?

I'm unsure what you mean exactly. You mention a 'religious law' divorce. Have you divorced through the court?

Basically Islamically we are divorced but I assume we have to be divorced through court? My question is do we have to go through British petition or where the marriage took place in Kenya

If you are both resident in the UK, you can go through the UK courts.

You can apply to begin the divorce process in the UK as both you and your wife are habitually resident here. However, are you able to say under what grounds you are applying for a divorce? You may find this link helpful:
https://www.gov.uk/divorce/grounds-for-divorce

Also this link referring to agreeing arrangements when the care of a child needs to be considered. Don't assume that you will automatically be granted custody, as your wife also has legal rights.
https://www.gov.uk/looking-after-children-divorce

Why don't you try and resolve things for the sake of the baby? also if not, as for your side you don't need to inform HO it makes no difference at all and that will not make any authority to take away the baby from her except she's a risk to that baby.

My humble advice will be to assist your wife to regularize her immigration status.
1, Wait till your marriage reach 3 years before you start your divorce proceedings or settle things between yourselves. Marriage is up and down but you just have to see how things can work out for both of you JUST FOR THE SAKE OF THE INNOCENT BABY.

2, After 3 years of marriage and as you have been advised by Casa, she will be able to retain the right to stay and you both look after the baby together. You need to divorce UK court as you both leave here and not in Kenya or Islamically the HO will not recognise any form of divorce apart from through court.

Masalam.

I will say sort out your marriage for the sake of the child if possible.

But in response to the previous comments relating to qualification of ROR, I thought if the non eea has custody of the child after divorce, the 3 year rule of staying married doesn't count. ??? Unless the wife isn't having custody of the child

Annebee wrote:I will say sort out your marriage for the sake of the child if possible.

But in response to the previous comments relating to qualification of ROR, I thought if the non eea has custody of the child after divorce, the 3 year rule of staying married doesn't count. ??? Unless the wife isn't having custody of the child

Correct. Which is why I advised: "However if she has custody or a right of access to your child, she may be eligible to apply for a Retained Rights of Residence on this basis."