Page 1 of 1
Permanent residency
Posted: Thu Nov 22, 2018 11:57 am
by Aboke
Dear sir .
Im new in this forum and I desperately need advise .I'm due to apply for my permanent residency . I have been married since September 2012 so just over 5year .I'm the non eea my wife is from Lithuania n hold her permanent residency for 2 years now we are seperate( coz we were arguing a lot and did not get on anymore)( we are not divorce for 2 years now we have 2 kids and we actually trying to work out our mariage but she is not ready yet to move back in with me , my question is can i apply for my pr as a family member as my eea2 is about to finish in February 2019 , my wife is happy to give me her passport and all . On the new form they ask why you don't live together . I'm really concern what do it put also they ask when was the last time you seen her , my wife is on benefit now house benefit council and universal credit , and we obviously live in different address myself im working what do i do ? Please I would deeply appreciate if i can get responses for the guru of the forum . Please need help im worried and any advise please . Thank you
I have already all the document for the pr form her passport my kids passport our mariage certificate, her pr card .. her bills in different address at mine .thx
Re: Permanent residency
Posted: Thu Nov 22, 2018 1:00 pm
by NikiGio
Aboke wrote: ↑Thu Nov 22, 2018 11:57 am
my question is can i apply for my pr as a family member as my eea2 is about to finish in February 2019 , my wife is happy to give me her passport and all . On the new form they ask why you don't live together .
Yes.
Aboke wrote: ↑Thu Nov 22, 2018 11:57 am
I have been married since September 2012 so just over 5year .
If you've been here for at least 5 years - you can apply for a Permanent Residence Card using form EEA (PR) as a direct family member, using this link (
https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... orm-eea-pr) - you need to use the paper form (not the online form).
If you've been here less than 5 years, you can apply for a Residence Card using form EEA (FM), as a direct family member using this link (
https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... orm-eea-fm) - make sure you read the guidance notes thoroughly.
Aboke wrote: ↑Thu Nov 22, 2018 11:57 am
On the new form they ask why you don't live together . I'm really concern what do it put also they ask when was the last time you seen her
Include a covering letter explaining your situation - how long you've been here, how long you've been married, that you're married but separated, you have children and are trying to work things out and get back together, etc.
Aboke wrote: ↑Thu Nov 22, 2018 11:57 am
On the new form they ask why you don't live together . I'm really concern what do it put also they ask when was the last time you seen her , my wife is on benefit now house benefit council and universal credit , and we obviously live in different address myself im working what do i do ?
How was your wife exercising treaty rights - working? Self-sufficient? Etc?
How long has your wife not been exercising treaty rights - ie. how long has she been on benefits - more or less than 6 months?
I don't think the fact that your wife is now on housing benefit/Universal Credit affects your application - there's no need for the EEA nationals to continue exercising treaty rights after obtaining PR. Make absolutely sure, however, that you make it *very clear* in the covering letter that you are applying for PR based on a five-year qualifying period which is in the past, and matches the five-year qualifying period indicated in the letter your wife received with her blue PR card. If you don't make this very clear, the HO could reject your application as your wife is not *currently* exercising treaty rights - but this depends whether she's been out of work/not exercising treaty rights for more or less than 6 months. The pure fact that she's on benefits is not an impediment to you getting PR.
Aboke wrote: ↑Thu Nov 22, 2018 11:57 am
I have already all the document for the pr form her passport my kids passport our mariage certificate, her pr card .. her bills in different address at mine .thx
Make sure any documents not in English (other than passports) are translated by a certified translator - like the marriage certificate.
Good luck.
Re: Permanent residency
Posted: Thu Nov 22, 2018 6:04 pm
by Aboke
Thk you Nikkigio, my wife never stopped working since I moved out she just cut down her hours from 3 working days to one day so she worked from 2012 to up to now part time and obviously once she moved out in 2015 ( i believe it is 2 to 3 years that we are living seperately what worries me as well )she reduce her days at work to one day also she hold her pr before we seperate she has always been excerice treaty right , do i necessarily need to include a cover letter or i just need to explain on the form why we don't live together which is as i mentioned above and we are trying to work things out , anyone got into the same situation plz advise or a example of a cover letter would be much appreciate im trying to apply for it next week sometime we been living together in UK since 2010 n got married in sep 2012 , we got 2 kids one British and one lithuania . Do u think my case is straight fowards with us being seperate for 3 years and her on benefit and the fact that our address are different, plz advise on an example cover letter so I can have an idea . Thk u so much
Re: Permanent residency
Posted: Thu Nov 22, 2018 6:26 pm
by NikiGio
Aboke wrote: ↑Thu Nov 22, 2018 6:04 pm
do i necessarily need to include a cover letter or i just need to explain on the form why we don't live together which is as i mentioned above and we are trying to work things out
There's not much space in the form for explanations - so I would recommend a covering letter, which is more professional also and makes it easier for the case worker to understand the case (provided the covering letter is clear and well-written).
Aboke wrote: ↑Thu Nov 22, 2018 6:04 pm
or a example of a cover letter would be much appreciate
I posted an edited version of my own covering letter which I used when I applied for PR, which you can use as a starting point. Link:
eea-route-applications/eea-pr-cover-let ... t=covering letter my covering letter#p1683050
Aboke wrote: ↑Thu Nov 22, 2018 6:04 pm
Do u think my case is straight fowards with us being seperate for 3 years and her on benefit and the fact that our address are different
I don't think your case is straightforward, due to the fact that you're separated - but the fact that you're still married and have children with your EEA wife helps to make the application easier. If your wife is still working 1 day/week and on benefits, then she could be deemed to still be exercising treaty rights. However, this may be irrelevant if your 5-year qualifying period is the same as her 5-year qualifying period (as indicated on the letter she received with her blue PR card).
Do you know the date your wife was deemed to have acquired PR?
If your 5-year qualifying period is the same as her 5-year qualifying period, then the only evidence you need to send of your wife exercising treaty rights is her PR card and nothing else.
If you got married in September 2012 and your wife was working at the time and continued to work for the next 5 years, then you will be deemed to have acquired PR in September 2017 - you *must* make it extremely clear on your covering letter that the qualifying period you are applying for is September 2012 - September 2017. I would underline this several times in the letter, in bold - like I've done in my covering letter.
Re: Permanent residency
Posted: Thu Nov 22, 2018 7:58 pm
by Aboke
Thank you for your reply after checking my paper work my wife and I got married in Sept 2013 and she was qualify for pr in 2016 .her pr date for 2016 as my 2nd daughter is bien in 2016 and she is British due to my wife holding pr. I have no money and want to apply for pr without lawyer . I will do the cover letter stating that my wife and I don't live together due to marital problem however we are trying to sort things out for us and the sake of our kids , I'm hope that sound enough n professional, the other thing is since 3 years that we seperate I asked my wife to let her bill coming at my address it is only recently that she has change everything I actually have 5years worth of myself n my wife bills on my address but I rather not lie .I'm not sure Sir.
Thank you
Re: Permanent residency
Posted: Thu Nov 22, 2018 8:00 pm
by Aboke
I have document on both names from Sep 2013 to Sept 2018 on same address even though we seperate 3 years ago . I see my eife everyday n things are getting better just she doesn't wanna move back in .
Re: Permanent residency
Posted: Fri Nov 23, 2018 7:54 am
by Aboke
Morning all and guru from this forum please i need help and advise on my case ..thank you to nikigio for your advises really thank you.very helpful
Re: Permanent residency
Posted: Fri Nov 23, 2018 9:45 am
by NikiGio
Aboke wrote: ↑Thu Nov 22, 2018 7:58 pm
Thank you for your reply after checking my paper work my wife and I got married in Sept 2013 and she was qualify for pr in 2016 .her pr date for 2016 as my 2nd daughter is bien in 2016 and she is British due to my wife holding pr. I have no money and want to apply for pr without lawyer .
Ok - so if you got married in Sep 2013, your 5-year qualifying period (QP) is Sep 2013-Sep 2018.
Given the date your wife acquired PR is 2016, her QP is 2011-2016 - so your wife's PR card will confirm she was exercising treaty rights only for part of your QP, ie. from Sep 2013 to 2016.
You will therefore need to send evidence to show that she continued to exercise treaty rights from 2016 to Sep 2018, to cover the rest of your 5-year QP. So apart from sending your wife's PR card and her letter confirming when she acquired PR, you will need to send evidence of her work (like pay slips or P60) and her benefits (like letters or bank statements showing money coming in) from 2016 to Sep 2018.
Aboke wrote: ↑Thu Nov 22, 2018 7:58 pm
the other thing is since 3 years that we seperate I asked my wife to let her bill coming at my address it is only recently that she has change everything I actually have 5years worth of myself n my wife bills on my address but I rather not lie .
Don't lie - just explain this in the covering letter.
Aboke wrote: ↑Thu Nov 22, 2018 7:58 pm
I have no money and want to apply for pr without lawyer .
You could get in touch with UKCEN, The Good Law Project and/or The Aire Centre to get more advice from pro-bono lawyers, as your case is a bit complex and would benefit from advice from a good immigration lawyer.
I would advise you not to rush this application - if you are careful and collect the right evidence, you could be succesful. But if you rush it and send incorrect evidence, you will waste time and money and possibly get rejected.
Re: Permanent residency
Posted: Fri Nov 23, 2018 12:40 pm
by Aboke
Thank you once again for your reply, my understanding was as my wife gor her pr in 2016 I don't need to show evidence of her excercice traity right from 2016 to 2018 saying that she still work a day a week anyway since 2016 to now and I have payslip and letter from her work she gave me , i think i have everything and proove that u mentioned for the application my only worries seem to be only the fact that we are still married and me to explain why we are not living together since 3 years how to word it and professionally explain as 3 years is a long time being seperate. Really useful the info you are giving me and I have no intention to rush that why im seeking advise in here .thk u so much and please let me kno your thoughts. Sorry to get around in circle
Re: Permanent residency
Posted: Fri Nov 23, 2018 2:19 pm
by NikiGio
Aboke wrote: ↑Fri Nov 23, 2018 12:40 pm
My understanding was as my wife gor her pr in 2016 I don't need to show evidence of her excercice traity right from 2016 to 2018 saying that she still work a day a week anyway since 2016 to now and I have payslip and letter from her work she gave me
Like I said before: because her 5-year QP (2011-2016) only covers part of your 5-year QP (2013-2018) - apart from sending her blue PR card and her PR letter, you need to send evidence of her exercising treaty rights for the period after she acquired PR (2016-2018). So I would send 3 payslips for 2016, 3 payslips for 2017 and 3 pay slips for 2018. Also send her employer letter.
I would also sign up to UKCEN - they have put together a very useful FAQ file which answers most questions on getting PR, and their pro-bono lawyers can answer questions and direct you.
Also make sure you read the EEA (PR) Guidance Notes (
https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... orm-eea-pr), follow the instructions on the EEA (PR) application, and write very clearly on the form.
Aboke wrote: ↑Fri Nov 23, 2018 12:40 pm
Really useful the info you are giving me and I have no intention to rush that why im seeking advise in here .
Great - good luck

Re: Permanent residency
Posted: Fri Nov 23, 2018 6:13 pm
by Aboke
Thank you really useful question info . Will definately sign up on that website ..really appreciated
Pr while seperate with wife on benefite
Posted: Fri Nov 23, 2018 11:07 pm
by Aboke
Dear sir .
Im new in this forum and I desperately need advise .I'm due to apply for my permanent residency . I have been married since September 2012 so just over 5year .I'm the non eea my wife is from Lithuania n hold her permanent residency for 2 years now we are seperate( coz we were arguing a lot and did not get on anymore)( we are not divorce for 2 years now we have 2 kids and we actually trying to work out our mariage but she is not ready yet to move back in with me , my question is can i apply for my pr as a family member as my eea2 is about to finish in February 2019 , my wife is happy to give me her passport and all . On the new form they ask why you don't live together . I'm really concern what do it put also they ask when was the last time you seen her , my wife is on benefit now house benefit council and universal credit , and we obviously live in different address myself im working what do i do ? Please I would deeply appreciate if i can get responses for the guru of the forum . Please need help im worried and any advise please . Thank you
I have already all the document for the pr form her passport my kids passport our mariage certificate, her pr card .. her bills in different address at mine .thx