Wrong BRP Issued But I Only Realised 1 Year Later

[sunnyspells]

Hi everyone,

I've been a 'lurker' on this website for some time and have been consistently impressed with the knowledge of all of you nice people who post. Fingers crossed you can offer some guidance on the below predicament!

My partner is an EEA national and I'm a non-EEA national. I was issued a Residence Card of a Family Member of an EEA National on the 23 July 2012. This was valid until 23 July 2017 (5 years), at which point we submitted an online joint application for permanent residence cards (EEA PR).

In October 2017, my partner was issued a blue Document Certifying Permanent Residence. I was issued with a biometric residence card which I thought was a permanent residence card...

This week I went to a Nationality Checking Service to apply for naturalisation and was told the card I have is essentially an updated version of my old Residence Card, NOT a permanent residence card. They called someone at the Home Office, who confirmed I don't have permanent residence.

It seems to me there are two things that could have happened: 1) I was refused permanent residence and they issued me an ordinary residence card instead or 2) the Home Office made a mistake.

This is all further complicated by the fact that my residence card arrived on its own, without a letter from the Home Office (my partner's permanent residence card, on the other hand, DID arrive with a letter). And in my excitement I was too stupid to think of flagging this up to them.

I need to get my hands on that letter and/or more info about what decision was made on my application. Should I try to get in touch with the case worker (not sure how to do that...) by phoning the Home Office or writing to them? Or should I submit a subject access request? Is one way faster or preferable than/to the other?

I can imagine people are quite busy in the lead-up to Christmas but any light you could shed on the above would be very much appreciated! Thank you.

[vinny]

It may not wise to rely on telephone conversations with the Home Office’s helpline.

[sunnyspells]

Eek, thanks so much for sharing, Vinny. I guess sending a letter will be my best bet and then there will at least be a written trail of what's been said.

In terms of which address to use, this is the address that was on both my COA and the one asking for my biometrics:

UK Visas and Immigration
Permanent Migration
The Capital
Old Hall Street
Liverpool
L3 9PP

Does anyone have any experience of writing to the Home Office this way? It feels weird to be sending a letter without addressing it to a specific person...Any ideas on how I find out who my case worker was?

Thanks again for your help, guys.

[secret.simon]

If you make a PR Card application, but the caseworker is not convinced that you have acquired PR but you do meet the requirements for residence in the UK as a Family Member (which you did), then the correct thing for the caseworker to do is to issue you a Residence Card (they are the same fee and the card only confirms your status as on the day of issue of the card anyway).

What evidence did you provide for your PR Card application? Did you have any absence from the UK of more than six months?

It may be worth doing an SAR with the Home Office to see what comments the caseworker has put on your case and addressing those comments when you reapply (because the card only confirms you status on the date of application, the only way to get a replacement card is a reapplication).

[sunnyspells]

Thanks for your reply, Simon. I didn't have any absence from the UK of more than 6 months. In terms of the evidence we provided, we sent utility bills, council tax bills, bank statements, P60s, tenancy agreements, NHS letters and mobile phone bills. In our application, we tried to demonstrate 1) that my partner had been exercising treaty rights / that I had been present in the UK during the previous 5 years and 2) that our relationship is durable (we're unmarried partners).

I know there's no way of knowing for sure unless I get my hands on that accompanying letter but how is it possible that I qualified for residence in the UK but not permanent residence seeing as I already had been issued a residence card 5 years earlier? I thought that since my partner's application for permanent residence was approved mine would have to be too?

Sorry for the stupid questions -- I'm keen to understand and appreciate your help!

[secret.simon]

I thought that since my partner's application for permanent residence was approved mine would have to be too?

Not at all necessary.

In our application, we tried to demonstrate 1) that my partner had been exercising treaty rights / that I had been present in the UK during the previous 5 years and 2) that our relationship is durable (we're unmarried partners).

As an unmarried partner of an EEA citizen with PR and with holding a pre-existing Residence Card, you certainly have the right to reside in the UK under EU law. The above would entitle you to a Residence Card, not a PR card.

However, PR requirements are higher, such as being in the UK for five continuous years after the issue of your first Residence Card. For some reason, the caseworker was not convinced that you had met the PR requirements. The only way to find out the reason why the caseworker was not convinced is in the response to your SAR request. As family member of an EEA citizen, your passport should not be stamped in any EEA member-state and therefore cannot be used as proof of residence.

As for the evidence, what is required is ideally letters addressed to you from government departments (DWP, HMRC, etc) for five continuous years from 2012 (when you got your Residence Card) to 2017. Your P60s for that period also help. The bank statements, utility bills, etc are not necessarily accepted as proof of residence, to the best of my knowledge.

[sunnyspells]

Gotcha Simon. I must not have sent enough evidence or the right kind of evidence to convince the caseworker.

I'd reapply for PR now but I have a couple of trips planned for the new year that I've paid upfront for. I'm also hesitant to apply again without knowing what I did wrong in the first place.

I guess my next steps will be to submit a subject access request to figure out what went wrong with my application and then just apply for settled status once the EU Settlement Scheme opens on the 30th March.

If any of you can think of any reason why applying for PR again (even if it means missing my trips) would be better than waiting to apply for the settlement scheme, please let me know! I'm all ears.

And thanks again for shedding light on this whole situation, Simon. You've been very helpful.