Surinder Singh applications post Brexit

Hi there,

Greetings. I am an Indian national who completed my masters from the UK in 2017 and returned home for 6 months due to visa limitations. I met my partner who is a British national during my term in the UK. I moved to Ireland in 2018 on another Master's course and so did my partner who undertook employment and has been living with me ever since our arrival in Ireland.
We have lived together for 3 years with substantial evidence in the UK and Ireland now collectively, however my Stamp 1G visa (student graduate visa) expires in April 2021.
My query is regarding the Surinder Singh application as I believe its my last resort to continue being with my partner(unmarried) by accompanying him back to the UK considering i am not an EEA or direct family of the British citzen

Any information as to how and where and if i can file this application or any details or experiences might any of you had would help in my case.

I don't think you will qualify: https://www.gov.uk/family-permit/surinder-singh

You are in Ireland as student, not as a partner of an EEA national.

I think the first thing to do is to switch in Ireland to an EEA stamp. As yo are in a "De Facto Partnership", you can switch to that status. This will get you out of the student status and puts you under EEA regulations regime which is more favourable to you.

Later, you can then move to the UK with your partner and use Surinder Singh. But you can't use Surinder Singh if you are a partner (not married) and holding a student visa in the EEA country where you reside with your partner. You have to apply for an Article 10 card/stamp in Ireland first.

Note that with the Brexit, sooner or later these EEA routes will be closed or restricted. So don't plan too long term. I would keep any plan within 2020.

I don't think the advice so far has been quite right.
The OP seems a similar situation to Christie
https://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWCA/Civ/2018/2378.html
Where the non eu was in a country with unmarried eu partner but not on an article 10 or 20 card.
Granted life would be easer for the OP if they switched to family member of an eu citizen.
Perhaps they should wait and see if a forum guru comes up with the answer.

357mag wrote: ↑

Wed Jan 29, 2020 10:03 am

I don't think the advice so far has been quite right.
The OP seems a similar situation to Christie
https://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWCA/Civ/2018/2378.html
Where the non eu was in a country with unmarried eu partner but not on an article 10 or 20 card.
Granted life would be easer for the OP if they switched to family member of an eu citizen.
Perhaps they should wait and see if a forum guru comes up with the answer.

Interesting ECJ case. But I would still recommend going Article 10 card then Surinder Singh.

Surinder Singh is already an ECJ judgement. So an application from student visa in Ireland to article 10 in the UK as non married partner, would require using to ECJ cases back to back. The risk is either failing on a technicality or giving too much room to the Home Office to turn around and refuse because a detail somewhere is not 100% compliant.

But thank you for pointing out that judgement. I will read it this evening.

Not ECJ but UK appeal court.
NAT gives a link to UK.gov site on Surinder Singe which says its only for spouse or civil partner but this is a bit out of date because of the Banger case which is recognised in the settlement scheme info.

Thank you I will read it indeed.

Christie is good law.

It matters not, that the person was in Ireland with Article 10, so long as they resided there lawfully.

Thank you Obie.
Back to the OP question, time is running out because of Brexit.
Ideally you would go for Irish residence card then family permit to go to UK. But the Directive allows Ireland to take up to 6 months to issue and the family permit might take a while as your situation is not easy.
I would suggest trying now for a visa to UK as family member of an EU citizen, its free. And then trying for UK residence permit, followed by settlement scheme.