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Travelling with Immigration Status Document only

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MoAbdi
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Location: United Kingdom

Travelling with Immigration Status Document only

Post by MoAbdi » Fri Mar 01, 2013 3:44 pm

Hi,

I am an EU National exercising treaty rights in the UK and live here with my wife and daughter. My wife is Somali by nationality and when we applied for residence permit we got the permit on an A4 Immigration Status Document. In addition, her Somali passport expired and there is no Somali Embassy in the UK to renew it.

We were planning to travel to Germany over the summer, however, the embassy informed us, that a valid travel document is required for entry to Germany and that the Immigration Status Document does not qualify as such.

I have contacted the Home Office and asked them if they could issue a travel document, however, the Home Office told us that my wife would not qualify for this, as she is an EEA-family member.

My wife could (theoretically travel freely within the EU) if she had a Somali Passport. However, there are no Somali Embassies in the UK. The nearest one would be in Belgium and applications have to be made in person. However, if she cannot travel without a passport or travel document, how can she get there? I emailed the Belgian Embassy, but they were not sure if the Immigration Status Document would suffice for entry into Belgium.

Does anyone know what I can do about this problem or do you know Shengen Countries which accept travel with Immigration Status Document. In that case I could travel via that country, after all, my wife does theoretically have the right of free movement within the EU.

Thanks.

ravii
Member
Posts: 210
Joined: Fri Jun 15, 2012 12:57 pm
Location: Dorset

Post by ravii » Fri Mar 01, 2013 4:27 pm

This is the address from where your Somali partner can re new passport before travel to Germany... 
Address        
Somaliland Representative Office in London, the United Kingdom
319 Waterlily Business Centre
10 Cleveland Way
London E1 4UF
United Kingdom
Best regards

MoAbdi
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Location: United Kingdom

Post by MoAbdi » Fri Mar 01, 2013 4:31 pm

Hi ravii,

thanks, however, your post refers to the Somaliland Representative Office. This is not part of the Somali government and they do not issue Somali Passports. In fact it is a part of Somalia that seeks independence but is not internationally recognised (including by the UK government).

ravii
Member
Posts: 210
Joined: Fri Jun 15, 2012 12:57 pm
Location: Dorset

Post by ravii » Fri Mar 01, 2013 4:40 pm

If you cantact them then they will assist you.This office issueing Somali visas so they will re new your partners passport as well.this is non sense that there is no way to re new Somali passport in united kingdom.?do you know it means that all Somali citizen are adopted citizen in united kingdom under UN human protection.
Best regards

sheraz7
Respected Guru
Posts: 2509
Joined: Thu Jan 27, 2011 8:56 pm
Location: UK

Post by sheraz7 » Fri Mar 01, 2013 4:52 pm

Despite EEA2 RC either being stamped on passport or on A4 size page has same worth but still travel docuemt i.e passport is needed. In your situation the best way to immediately contact somalian head of passport unit in somalia as what alternative arrangements they have got for the renewal of somalian passport.
Please donot send PM. Write in open forum to facilitate others too.
REGARDS

wiggsy
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Location: Warwickshire, UK

Post by wiggsy » Fri Mar 01, 2013 5:29 pm

maybe this is useful for you:
4. Where a Union citizen, or a family member who is not a national of a Member State, does not
have the necessary travel documents or, if required, the necessary visas, the Member State

concerned shall, before turning them back, give such persons every reasonable opportunity to obtain
the necessary documents or have them brought to them within a reasonable period of time or to
corroborate or prove by other means that they are covered by the right of free movement and
residence.
an ISD issued by UK is a family member RC...

it is a photographic ID... and therefore covers the EEA family member who is travelling WITH the EEA national... (EEA nationals do not need a passport to travel around europe... - some of my collegues at work entered using their spanish driving licenese / etc (which isnt allowed now as per rules).

EUsmileWEallsmile
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Post by EUsmileWEallsmile » Fri Mar 01, 2013 6:05 pm

wiggsy wrote:maybe this is useful for you:
4. Where a Union citizen, or a family member who is not a national of a Member State, does not
have the necessary travel documents or, if required, the necessary visas, the Member State

concerned shall, before turning them back, give such persons every reasonable opportunity to obtain
the necessary documents or have them brought to them within a reasonable period of time or to
corroborate or prove by other means that they are covered by the right of free movement and
residence.
an ISD issued by UK is a family member RC...

it is a photographic ID... and therefore covers the EEA family member who is travelling WITH the EEA national... (EEA nationals do not need a passport to travel around europe... - some of my collegues at work entered using their spanish driving licenese / etc (which isnt allowed now as per rules).
You are correct in that if the person arrived at a border, they should be admitted, particularly if travelling with their family member. The problem may be an airline (if that route were taken). The OP might find travelling by train easier as they could encounter Belgian immigration on the UK side.

MoAbdi
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Posts: 4
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Location: United Kingdom

Post by MoAbdi » Fri Mar 01, 2013 6:09 pm

wiggsy wrote:maybe this is useful for you:
4. Where a Union citizen, or a family member who is not a national of a Member State, does not
have the necessary travel documents or, if required, the necessary visas, the Member State

concerned shall, before turning them back, give such persons every reasonable opportunity to obtain
the necessary documents or have them brought to them within a reasonable period of time or to
corroborate or prove by other means that they are covered by the right of free movement and
residence.
an ISD issued by UK is a family member RC...

it is a photographic ID... and therefore covers the EEA family member who is travelling WITH the EEA national... (EEA nationals do not need a passport to travel around europe... - some of my collegues at work entered using their spanish driving licenese / etc (which isnt allowed now as per rules).
Yes that is very helpful indeed. How do the border agents normally react if you start quoting EU articles.

Also, could the Airlines refuse travel prior to boarding the plan from the UK?

EUsmileWEallsmile
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Joined: Fri Oct 07, 2011 7:22 pm

Post by EUsmileWEallsmile » Fri Mar 01, 2013 6:11 pm

@MoAbdi - you might look at the post above the one you've just made. We may have been posting roughly the same time.

ravii
Member
Posts: 210
Joined: Fri Jun 15, 2012 12:57 pm
Location: Dorset

Post by ravii » Fri Mar 01, 2013 8:58 pm

You can apply Somali travel documents by post as well,as per my knowledge,but this is non bio metric travel document and you need one local person who identify you in your passport office.
Another option is that take your EEA national partner along with all your documents and try your luck.franch border controllers are well known about EEA regulations.
Another option write a letter or e mail to uk foreign office London and request for further assistance.nothing to lose.
There is also a video available about Somali passport on Internet.but I am not suggesting you.
Best regards

MoAbdi
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Posts: 4
Joined: Fri Mar 01, 2013 3:18 pm
Location: United Kingdom

Refusal of Entry

Post by MoAbdi » Fri Apr 05, 2013 8:43 pm

Hi all,

I have finally had my shot at travelling with my wife and child.

To begin with, I should note that the German embassy refused to accept the application of a child passport for my daughter because they need the full passport for my wife before they accept the application. Again (perhabs not surprisingly) they do not accept the Immigration Status document of my wife (on which her residence card is placed) as a valid ID....thank you Home Office.

Hence, we attempted to travel without passport for both my wife and daughter. Since my daughter did not have any other form of photographic ID, I obtained a Citizencard for her which is recognised (in the UK only) as a valid photographic ID. To proof family ties we further carried our marriage certificate as well as the (long) birth certificate of my daughter (which showed the name of both parents), as well as a host of utility bills and NHS letters for my daughter. We relied on Article 5(4) of EU Directive 2004/38/EC which wiggsy already quoted above to enable us to travel.

Initially we tried flying with KLM via Amsterdam, but the airline refused carriage for my daughter, even after I showed them the relevant EU directives as well as birth certificate and other documents, establishing me and my wife as her parents. I asked them to call the relevant authorities to confirm, but they refused and they also refused to issue me a refusal of boarding letter stating the reasons for denial. The best they could do was to contact a UK immigration officer who told me that it was up to the airline and that she was only acting as an adviser. Anyways, she only confirmed what I already knew (that the Citizencard was not a valid travel document for EU wide travel). She initially did not seem familiar with Article 5(4) of Directive 2004/38/EC and said that passport free travel is only possible within the Schengen area. After I clarified that the Directive was EU wide (including the UK) and also referred to the relevant section in the UKBA Border Force Operations Manual, she said that the meaning of the directive only applies in cases where somebody for example looses his passport at the airport during travel??? I wondered a bit how someone would prove otherwise that he is covered by the right of free movement if he looses his passport at the airport. I for once do not carry any photographic ID which proves my nationality other than my Passport or German ID card with me when I travel.

We then decided to travel directly to Belgium with Eurostar, in order to obtain a Somali Passport for my wife and try and sort out this mess. This time I was more prepared and not only had a copy of the above EU Directive, but also had a copy of the "Schengen Handbook", the UK Border Force Operations Manual (for my planned return journey), the operative part of the ECJ MRAX ruling (for my wife) and the ECJ Salah Oulane ruling (regarding requesting passport to the exclusion of all other means of proof of ID for my daughter). When we came across the French border at St. Pancras. The first officer asked for our passports and when I showed him the documents that I had and briefly explained the reasons for not having passports for my wife and daughter he took us to the office of the senior border officer. On our way he asked further questions regarding our journey and then told the senior officer what we had told him. The senior officer then said that we could not cross the border with these documents (except of course me who had a full German passport). He was very nice in general and informed me that he must refuse entry into France for both my daughter and (more surprisingly) my wife on the grounds of not having a valid travel document. I attempted to show him the relevant section of the EU directive but before reading he said that he is very familiar with the directives. I then asked him as to the meaning of "to corroborate or prove by other means that they are covered by the right of free movement and residence" and he replied that this is only related for when partners do not have visas. I pointed out that the directive also covers in cases of travel documents as clearly stated in the text but he kept on talking about the fact that my wife's residence card only proves that she does not need a visa when travelling within the EU and told us that it was easy to forge documents such as Birth/Marriage certificates, Citenzcards and Residence Cards and hence we could not cross the border with those.

Before my journey I have contacted the "Your Europe Advice" who confirmed that my wife could travel with her residence card as long as I accompanied her, even without a passport. I offered to show this letter, along with other documents proving our family ties (i.e. joint utility/council tax bills as well as bank statements) but he told me (perhaps because he did not speak very good English it sounds offensive) that it did not matter what I showed him as he knew the law and already made up his mind. This rendered attempting to show him the sections in the Schengen Handbook as well as the ECJ Case laws pointless.

When handing me the Refusal of Entry letters for my wife and daughter, he told me that with respect to my daughter, she could not cross the border without a passport even if I travel with her and carry documentary evidence as it was for her own protection to avoid that she is not abducted and carried illegally across the border. With respect to my wife he told me that she could also not travel with her Immigration Status Document with her residence card for family members of EEA nationals even when I accompany her and we have our marriage certificate and other documents to prove conjugal ties. This was again due to our own protection as the Police in Belgium could arrest us if they found her not carrying a passport, which I thought was strange.

The whole situation is extremely irritating and I feel like our free movement rights in this case are more theoretical than practical. I found it also quite interesting that my wife and daughter were both refused entry on the grounds of not carrying valid travel documents. I am no legal expert, but I believe that this clearly violated our right to free movement within the EU and in particular:

- Article 5(4) of Directive 2004/38/EC

- "Schengen Handbook" section 3.1.2 and 6.3.2 as well as 6.3 (which states that "Persons enjoying the community right of may only be refused entry on grounds of public policy or public security, i.e. when their personal conduct represents a genuine, immediate, and sufficiently serious threat affecting one of the fundamental interests of society"...I quite doubt that my one year old daughter is such a threat!

- Likewise, "Schengen Handbook" sections 6.8 states that "If a person enjoying the Community right of free movement is refused entry, the border guard must always provide the person with a written decision. The decision must be drafted in such a way that the person concerned is able to comprehend its content and the implications. The decision must also include precise and full indication of the public policy or public security grounds on which the decision taken is based, unless this is contrary to the interests of State security. The decision must also specify the court or administrative authority with which the person concerned may lodge an appeal and the time limit for the appeal." However, all that our refusal letters state is that my wife and daughter were refused on the grounds of not carrying a valid travel document and makes no mention of any public security or public policy on which the decision was based. Interestingly though, the letter of refusal for my daughter states that she was accompanied by (me) her farther and carries my birth date and passport details (At least he did not seriously believe that she was not my daughter and I wanted to abduct her).

- ECJ Case C-459/99 (MRAX vs Kingdom of Beligium) which states that "...a Member State may not send back at the border a third country national who is married to a national of a Member State and attempts to enter its territory without being in possession of a valid identity card or passport or, if necessary, a visa, where he is able to prove his identity and the conjugal ties and there is no evidence to establish that he represents a risk to the requirements of public policy, public security or public health..." However, French authorities did just that when refusing entry for my wife on grounds of not having a valid identity card or passport.

- ECJ Case C-215/03 (Salah Oulane vs Minister voor Vreemdelingenzaken en Integratie) which states that "Requirement for nationals of other Member States to provide an identity card or a passport in order to prove their nationality to the exclusion of all other means of proof – Not permitted"

I would like to hear your opinion on this case as well as how to effectively complain to the relevant authorities and enforce my right of free movement.

Thanks.

wiggsy
Senior Member
Posts: 849
Joined: Sun Jan 06, 2013 6:59 pm
Location: Warwickshire, UK

Post by wiggsy » Sat Apr 06, 2013 3:29 am

seams really.... messed up... your daughters ID, ok, but your wifes? the rulings are clear... she doesnt need a passport, only valid ID, which a RC is~?????

Plum70
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Post by Plum70 » Sat Apr 06, 2013 11:59 am

wiggsy wrote:seams really.... messed up... your daughters ID, ok, but your wifes? the rulings are clear... she doesnt need a passport, only valid ID, which a RC is~?????
I cannot comment on the bulk of MoAbdi's post but having received my PR confirmation on an ISD there is a note on one of the folds which says (I am paraphrasing) that the document does not confirm the legitimacy of one's identity as it has been issued in the absence of a valid passport.

This may be an added reason why airline staff, border guards or embassies refuse to acknowledge a free standing RC as legitimate ID.

Stefan-TR
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Post by Stefan-TR » Mon Apr 08, 2013 7:55 am

Have you tried contacting the authorities in the country where your wife plans to apply for her passport? Maybe they can issue her an emergency travel document / laissez-passer / Notreiseausweis or similar.

Zamy301
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Re: Travelling with Immigration Status Document only

Post by Zamy301 » Thu Nov 13, 2014 7:51 pm

Hello,

Do you mind me asking if you were successful to resolve your issue or not? And if so, how? We are more or less in the same boat with the exception that my passport will expire soon and my child is an EU citizen.

Many thanks,

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