Married to an Irish person in UK as an American - When is EUSS application possible?

Hi everyone, I made an account and decided to post because the guidelines on the EU Settled Family Scheme on the UK government site are, of course, kind of vague/confusing, especially in light of Brexit stuff...

I was recently a Tier 4 student in the UK and while getting my degree met my partner, who is Irish but has a job in the UK and so lives there. Before my Tier 4 leave ran out I came home to visit my family over the holidays, and then we planned to do the fiance > spouse visa route to get married and live in UK together. But now it seems like it is a lot cheaper to do the EU Family Settlement route because he is Irish. The main problem is we are not married yet. So these are my questions:

1. Can I use the Marriage Visit Visa to get married to him in the UK, and then stay with his family in Ireland while applying for the EU Settled Family route? Or would this be considered a violation of the guidance to not use the marriage visit visa if you plan to settle in the UK? I think it should be fine if you leave before the visit visa expires and apply for a different route outside of the country, rather than trying to switch or extend a visit (which is not allowed) but I just wanted to double check this would not create a problem.

2. After arriving on the EU Settled Family route, do I have only 6 months to get the residence card, or can I get it any time?

3. Can I work on this route? Are there any occupation/hour limitations like Tier 4 visa?

4. If I get a residence card by this route, is it still valid after December 2020 (current "brexit transition period") or will I have to switch to a UK Family type of visa then?

Sorry if these are basic questions, and thank you for any answers

Hi
if you have a marriage visa and get married in the uk to irish spouse then apply for uk residence card under eea regulations to get british residence card (brc) you can use this to apply for eu settlement scheme downloading the app. or you apply straight to eu settlement scheme straight after marriage. use this route and not uk immigration law to save costs. eu route is free just pay for biometrics

Hello everyone,

As the title says I am in the US and recently married to an Irish citizen who is working in the UK and has settled status. We were planning to make the application for the family permit before I travel over because it seems the most above board way to do it, but now I am worried about the coronavirus outbreak's effects on travel, and if I would end up further delayed if I go through this application process.

If you are from the US you typically do not need a visa application to visit the UK, so I was wondering if it is also possible to present my marriage certificate and my spouse's EU Settlement Scheme info upon entering to the same effect as this family permit, while travel to the UK is still generally ok. There are also flights that go through Dublin airport and in my experience do not have a UK border check, so would I still be ok making an EU family member settlement scheme application if I enter the country that way?

Thanks for the advice.

coaster wrote: ↑

Thu Mar 12, 2020 3:53 am

If you are from the US you typically do not need a visa application to visit the UK, so I was wondering if it is also possible to present my marriage certificate and my spouse's EU Settlement Scheme info upon entering to the same effect as this family permit, while travel to the UK is still generally ok. There are also flights that go through Dublin airport and in my experience do not have a UK border check, so would I still be ok making an EU family member settlement scheme application if I enter the country that way?

The ideal way would be to meet your husband at the UK airport during the morning with him bearing his passport, evidence of employment - contract of employment, pay slips and bank statements - and of non-Britishness so that he can meet you at Immigration and the Immigration Officer can check with his employer if he is feeling distrustful. You will then be able to enter under the EEA Regulations stamp, equivalent to the former 'code 1A' entry. You will then have the full protection of EU law.

If you feel bold, you may be able to use the automatic gates and blame them if anyone claims you entered as a visitor. If you didn't intend to use them as a visitor, then by law they don't grant you a visitor's visa. (Mind-reading laws feel weird.) As the spouse of a qualified person, you have a right of entry.

If you enter the common Travel Area at Dublin, you may need to prove your status at Dublin. That could be awkward, as you would then need evidence that you husband was a qualified person. Claiming you were a visitor to the UK would probably be a criminal offence, though I'm not sure of Irish law.

Having arrived in the UK, you will then be legally permitted to work, but in practice most employers won't consider you without a residence card or residence permit, though some do accept family permits. Having arrived in the UK, you may then apply for status under the EUSS.

The one snag I can see is demonstrating that your husband is not British. Evidence that he and his parents were born in the 26 counties should be good enough.

Thanks for the detailed reply Richard, that is the main thing I was worried about, that the different ways of being let in to the country are now so complicated it would affect my later application even if I was "allowed" on the day I arrived. We have not decided what to do yet but this is useful info. Would an Irish passport and birth certificate (as well as his birthplace in Dublin being recorded on the marriage certificate) be sufficient evidence of non-Britishness? He has also registered with the EU Settlement Scheme as well just to be safe so we have an approval number for that.

coaster wrote: ↑

Thu Mar 12, 2020 5:32 pm

Would an Irish passport and birth certificate (as well as his birthplace in Dublin being recorded on the marriage certificate) be sufficient evidence of non-Britishness? He has also registered with the EU Settlement Scheme as well just to be safe so we have an approval number for that.

Having pre-settled or settled status under the EUSS strongly indicates that he is not British. He should not have either status if he is also British. An EUSS approval number should clinch the matter.