10 yr PR residence card. Am I still legal?

Evening,

I have a 10 yr PR card stamped on my passport as a unmarried partner of an EU national which expires in 2018. I am non EU. We were in a durable relationship. We split up sometime back and I consulted one lawyer and I was told not to worry and I was legal. I did not apply for naturlization at that point as I wanted to go back home and settle down and take it slowly.

However, now I am in love with a British Citizen and want to get married this yr. I decided to go for citizenship before I get married . On speaking to a lawyer today , I was told that I should have applied for retained right of residence after my break up and it's complicated. The old solicitor told me that I am independant of my ex and could have applied for ILR. I am meeting a solicitor tomorrow as this has worried me. I feel misled and unfortunetly the information to layman on the net just says durable relationship get dissolved after break up. But some say not for people who have already obtained a pr stamp. Any advise on what is right and what is the right route for me? Thanks. Really confused. I have also completed 10 yrs in UK. Thanks.

Once you have acquired permanent residence (pr), your status is independent of any relationships you had.

You do not have to apply for ROR when you already have PR.
Pr is lost if you are out of the UK for more than two years.

Since acquiring pr, if you have not been out of the UK for more than two years then you should still have pr status.

For naturalisation, there is a minimum residence requirement: you cannot have been absent more than 90 days in the year before applying and 450 days in the five years before applying.

ajaj wrote:Evening,

I have a 10 yr PR card stamped on my passport as a unmarried partner of an EU national which expires in 2018. I am non EU. We were in a durable relationship. We split up sometime back and I consulted one lawyer and I was told not to worry and I was legal. I did not apply for naturlization at that point as I wanted to go back home and settle down and take it slowly.

However, now I am in love with a British Citizen and want to get married this yr. I decided to go for citizenship before I get married . On speaking to a lawyer today , I was told that I should have applied for retained right of residence after my break up and it's complicated. The old solicitor told me that I am independant of my ex and could have applied for ILR. I am meeting a solicitor tomorrow as this has worried me. I feel misled and unfortunetly the information to layman on the net just says durable relationship get dissolved after break up. But some say not for people who have already obtained a pr stamp. Any advise on what is right and what is the right route for me? Thanks. Really confused. I have also completed 10 yrs in UK. Thanks.

From your post you appear to have PR already. As long as you were not absent from the UK for more than two years, it will still be valid. You're PR should be independent of your family member. As long as your split happened after you acquired PR, you should be fine.

I suggest that you read the regulations yourself before you consult with lawyers. It might save you some money.

Thanks Non-specific. That's what many people have told me. The solcitior today just confused me. He kept saying that I would not be legal if my relationship was durable and has broken down regardless of PR-10yr stamp. Perhaps he meant the 2-5 yr residence stamp ( depending on circumstance) that is stamped initially. Thanks for your help.I can sleep in peace knowing I haven't done anything wrong.

Thanks eusmile.

It is a confusing area. Unfortunately many lawyers do not really understand EU law very well.