British Passport taking Filipino wife to Italy for Wedding.

Hello

I am a British Passport holder and my wife is Filipino with permanent right to remain in the UK.

We have been invited to my Brothers wedding in Italy.

As I have a British Passport, does my wife need a visa? I called the Italian Embassy but they just referred me to their website which didnt answer my question totally.

Any advice? I did look thru the forum but couldnt find anything similar!

Thankyou in advance

I'm pretty sure Filipinos need visa for most of the EU, irrespective of their status here.Try a travel agent or airline.

UKBAbble

Thanks - the only reason I am investigating, as my British friend who has a wife from Argentina (with perm right to remain), travelled all over europe with no VISA.

I would imagine the Philippines and Argentian would be considered similar in terms of VISA etc.

I will try contact one of your suggestions tomorrow! - thanks , i didnt think of that approach!

Filipinos require visas for the UK, Argentinians don't (as far as I remember). Britain's visa policy is similar to that of most EU countries.

UKBAbble

I Just found a very help company - http://it.vfsglobal.co.uk

They advised me that if my wifes VISA has "Family Member of EU National" printed on it, she does NOT requirea a VISA. if not, she will.

Also, as she is married to an EU National, I only have to pay the processing fee of £24 if she does require a VISA.

So I am happy

PaulD76 wrote:UKBAbble

I Just found a very help company - http://it.vfsglobal.co.uk

They advised me that if my wifes VISA has "Family Member of EU National" printed on it, she does NOT requirea a VISA. if not, she will.

Does it?

PaulD76 wrote:
Also, as she is married to an EU National, I only have to pay the processing fee of £24 if she does require a VISA.

So I am happy

It should be free if she is applying under EEA regs.

PaulD76 wrote:They advised me that if my wifes VISA has "Family Member of EU National" printed on it, she does NOT requirea a VISA.

I suppose what they refer to is the residence card (not visa) of family members under EU regulations. Unless you are a Surinder Singh case this doesn't apply to you.

Have you tried calling the Italian embassy? I would say no visa is needed, because she is a family member of an EU citizen.

Richard66 wrote:Have you tried calling the Italian embassy? I would say no visa is needed, because she is a family member of an EU citizen.

That's fine provided you can persuade the airline.

It might well be Italy honours the Directive.

is your wife a british citizen? if she is still filipino citizen then yes she would have to get a visa from the Italian embassy, pretty straightforward getting it.
You might want to apply for it in advance as some of my family (who are filipino citizens) tried coming over to Italy for my wedding, but the appointment given to them was too late.

Hello

I did call the Italian Embassy but they just directed me to the webiste, which didnt really answer my question that clearly. I cant take a risk that I will not be allowed to travel so want 100% written confirmation. Eventually I found the VSF link which seemed to answer my questions and were very helpful.

I cannot see the "EU Family member" reference on my wifes "indefinite right to remain" visa so it looks like she will need a visa. Ive been advised the VISA is free BUT it costs £24 to process the application (which is fair enough).

We are debating driving across europe at the moment (altho the majority of time will be spent in italy) so she will need a shengen visa (if thats how its spelt.

I wish she had a British Passport but the whole process seems to take years and cost a fortune. its such a pain and has stopped us taking short breaks into europe on many occassions (no room for impule when you need to think about visas!)