working while waiting for EEA residence card

[MJGrasso]

Hi,

I just received my EEA family permit. I am the unmarried partner of an Irish national. UKBA website says an umarried partner cannot work while waiting for residence card, but the FAQ section of this board says an unmarried partner cannot work if they didn't enter the UK with an EEA family permit. Since I have the permit does that mean I can work while waiting for my residence card?

Any advice would be appreciated.

Thank you.

Matt

[Jambo]

There is only one type of Family Permit and it allows you to work. Furthermore, although normally for unmarried partners the CoA (acknowledgement letter) you will recieve following the application for the 5 years Residence Card should not allow you to work, as you have Family Permit, the HO has recognised your relationship and so the CoA should allow you to work. If this will not be the case, you should insist on getting it corrected.

[MJGrasso]

Thank you very much Jambo. I have a few questions regarding the residence card application process:

1. Does having a EEA family permit essentially guarantee I get a residence card?

2. My partner travels for work and will need her passport. Can I provide a copy with the residence card application? If not, can she get it returned when she needs to travel without affecting the status of my application?

3. How long does it actually take to get the residence card? The UKBA website says six months, but that seems like too much time.

4. What happens if my eea family permit expires while I'm still waiting for my residence card?

Please advise when you get the chance. Thanks again!

- Matt

[Jambo]

1. Does having a EEA family permit essentially guarantee I get a residence card?

It's a very good indication that the RC will be approved.

2. My partner travels for work and will need her passport. Can I provide a copy with the residence card application? If not, can she get it returned when she needs to travel without affecting the status of my application?

You will need to provide her original passport but she can ask for it to be returned without affecting the application.

3. How long does it actually take to get the residence card? The UKBA website says six months, but that seems like too much time.

It can take upto 6 months. Check the timelines thread for more update info.

4. What happens if my eea family permit expires while I'm still waiting for my residence card?

Once you apply for the RC, you will receive an acknowledgement letter (CoA - Certificate of Application) which is valid for 6 months and can be used until a decision is made.

[MJGrasso]

Can my partner ask for her passport back at any point after I have submitted my residence card application (I assume she has to wait until I receive my CoA)?

After she has received her passport does it have to be returned to the HO again during the application process?

Thank you.

- Matt

[Jambo]

Both of you can ask for the passports back at any stage although it is recommended to wait until the CoA (several weeks). The HO will not ask for her passport. They might ask for yours to place the vignette in or will just issue the vignette on a stand alone piece of paper without the passport.

[MJGrasso]

Hi again,

I just received my Certificate of Application for a Residence Card. It says "At this stage we are unable to confirm your right to work in the United Kingdom." The enclosed Questions and Answers page says the Home Office cannot confirm my right to work because I applied as the unmarried partner of an EEA national.

I was under the impression that if I had an EEA Family Permit I unequivocally had the right to work in the UK. I have already obtained temporary employment with the permit so obviously it is enough to satisfy employers.

I know I have the right to work, but the UK won't issue me a National Insurance Number until they see a letter from the HO saying I have the right to work. Until I get that number I am taxed at a much higher rate. Can I ask/demand the HO re-issue my COA to confirm my right to work? Or am I completely wrong in my interpretation of the relevant laws?

Please advise.

Thank you,

Matt

[Jambo]

complain online and write a letter to them requesting a corrected CoA to be issued.

[MJGrasso]

Thank you Jambo. Will complaining and writing a letter asking that my COA be changed have a negative impact on the outcome of my residence card application?

[Plum70]

Thank you Jambo. Will complaining and writing a letter asking that my COA be changed have a negative impact on the outcome of my residence card application?

Absolutely not.

[MJGrasso]

Hi again,

Per the below conversation/chain, I am writing the letter to the HO to complain and have my COA re-issued to confirm my right to work.

Do you know of a statute or court opinion I can reference that states or suggests an EEA Family Permit gives the permit holder the right to work in the UK regardless of the permit holder being the unmarried partner of an EU national?

I think such a reference would add some authority to my letter.

Thank you.

Regards,

Matt

[dec2015]

Hello Matt,
Can you tell me how you got on with your letter of complaint and your request for the reissue of your CoA to include the right to work? Im from Ireland living in the UK and my partner is here with me on an EEA family permit and unfortunately she's received the same response as you did, i.e. "at this stage we are unable to confirm your right to work……..". Like you she has work lined up and her employer was happy to take her on the EEA permit.
Thanks

[vinny]

(3) Subject to paragraph (4), a person who is an extended family member and has been issued with an EEA family permit, a registration certificate or a residence card shall be treated as the family member of the relevant EEA national for as long as he continues to satisfy the conditions in regulation 8(2), (3), (4) or (5) in relation to that EEA national and the permit, certificate or card has not ceased to be valid or been revoked.

Applications for a residence card

If a direct family member applies for a residence card, you must issue a COA immediately.

To be issued with a ‘long’ COA confirming a right to take employment while their application is under consideration, the applicant must have submitted:

 a valid passport
 a valid EEA identity (ID) card or EEA passport for the EEA national
 evidence of relationship to their EEA national (for example, marriage or birth certificates) and either:
o evidence the EEA national has exercised free movement rights in the UK as a
jobseeker, worker, self-employed person, self-sufficient person or student, or
o evidence the EEA national has permanent residence in the UK.

If they have not submitted all of the evidence listed above, you must issue a ‘short’ COA, which does not confirm a right to take employment.

Anyone issued with a ‘short’ COA due to their failure to submit the required evidence cannot later be issued with a ‘long’ COA if they submit this evidence.

Decisions to provide a COA for EEA2 applications

Note : Residence cards are compulsory for extended family members.