Maintaining EU Scheme Pre-Settlement Residence Card

My wife (US Citizen) and I moved from the USA back to Northern Ireland where I am from in 2018, My wife now currently has an EU Scheme Pre-Settlement Residence Card (work permitted/ leave to remain) that was issued in the UK April 2021. We have been back in the USA since March 2022 and plan to return to Northern Ireland in the Summer/Autumn of 2024. As I understand it my wife will need to return to either the UK or Ireland before she has been gone for a total of two consecutive years to maintain her residency, she is planning on returning next year February 2024 for a week/ 10 days. The question that I need help with is should she enter back in through a UK Airport (port of entry) or if she enters through Dublin Airport will it suffice and will there be a record that she entered back in? Any help/advice on this matter would be greatly appreciated

maxtrak wrote: ↑

Fri Nov 24, 2023 6:37 pm

The question that I need help with is should she enter back in through a UK Airport (port of entry) or if she enters through Dublin Airport will it suffice and will there be a record that she entered back in?

Wouldn't expect the record to be made if she goes through ROI - that's a separate country :'(

Also, have you figured out the next steps? Since the extended pre-settled status until 2025 for now, your wife might not be able to get settled status - you'll probably have to start her journey to ILR on a spouse visa from scratch. See https://freemovement.org.uk/lengthy-abs ... s-at-risk/

I appreciate the feedback. As there hasn't been a physical border between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland for some time and back when there was one there wasn't any passport control then either, it's challenging to prove entry into the UK via this route as my wife needs to do in this case. If a friend or family member picks you up from Dublin Airport and drives you to Belfast, there won't be a record of crossing into Northern Ireland/ the UK. A bus ticket would serve as proof for a bus journey. The only other option I was thinking about was to schedule an appointment at a UK government office in Northern Ireland to prove that she was physically there. The Immigration Solicitor who assisted us in obtaining my wife's residency advised that she return within the two-year period to maintain its validity after seeking guidance on this matter, he also informed us that, in the worst-case scenario, we might need to reapply entirely when it comes to the long term as we do plan on settling in Northern Ireland which we had originally planned on doing but had to return to the USA for family reasons. If it is indeed the case that we will have to start her journey to ILR on a spouse visa from scratch can this be done while in the UK before her Residence Card expires in 2026?

Your wife may not be entitled to apply for settled status if she hasn't spent 5 years of continuous residence in the UK

https://www.gov.uk/settled-status-eu-ci ... led-status

You can apply to switch to settled status as soon as you’re eligible. This is usually after you’ve lived in the UK, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man for 5 years in a row (known as ‘continuous residence’).

The 5 years is counted from the day you started your continuous residence, not the day you were granted pre-settled status.

You may not be eligible for settled status if during the 5 years you spent more than 6 months outside the UK in a 12-month period.