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hi, i was just wondering if it is worth going it alone for the Retention of Rights application, i dont want to use solicitors since they charge rediculous amount of money.
what do you guys think?

Mate you need solicitor to assist you.This year is their bumper year.HO is making them rich that is why they have refused so many applications.My solicitor told me there is a trend from HO ,many applications have been refused for ridiculous reasons.Mine was refused last month I lodged the appeal but my solicitor has advised me to withdraw and make fresh application.I am thinking about that.Good luck because we are in the same boat.My solicitor is charging me £2500 for the appeal. I am sweating blood through my nose to pay that.

troubled wrote:Mate you need solicitor to assist you.This year is their bumper year.HO is making them rich that is why they have refused so many applications.My solicitor told me there is a trend from HO ,many applications have been refused for ridiculous reasons.Mine was refused last month I lodged the appeal but my solicitor has advised me to withdraw and make fresh application.I am thinking about that.Good luck because we are in the same boat.My solicitor is charging me £2500 for the appeal. I am sweating blood through my nose to pay that.

Hi troubled,

When did you apply? when did they ask for more documents and when did you get the answer?
why did they refuse your applicatio?

thanks

mego

vegeta_2009 wrote:hi, i was just wondering if it is worth going it alone for the Retention of Rights application, i dont want to use solicitors since they charge rediculous amount of money.
what do you guys think?

I advise you use a solicitor and not just a solicitor as there are solicitors out there that are very useless, instead of helping your case, they will mess your case up. I will suggest you find a reputable one that is knowledgable about EU law.

the scary thing is , you can have all the documents listed and they will still refuse the application, i mean if you read chapter 5 it all looks clean cut, so i dont understand why so many refusals.

do you think it is worth using eea2 for retention of rights? i know michelenna has gone that route before but not sure what your experiences were, please post

vegeta_2009 wrote:hi, i was just wondering if it is worth going it alone for the Retention of Rights application, i dont want to use solicitors since they charge rediculous amount of money. what do you guys think?

If you are on good terms and can proof that your ex spouse is exercising treaty right - then you should be fine. But if anything is slightly unusual, you should get a solicitor. Of course you can always apply again if you get a refusal, but do you really want to wait twice?

What are you applying for anyway? If you say EEA2 - you mean you do not have 5 years in the UK? In that case I don't think you have to do anything except tell the UKBA of your divorce.

thsths wrote:
What are you applying for anyway? If you say EEA2 - you mean you do not have 5 years in the UK? In that case I don't think you have to do anything except tell the UKBA of your divorce.

i have all the documents necessary, the reason i said EEA2 (i still have my valid original RP, exp 2011) is because i called the HO and they said nonchallantly " just apply for another EEA2 form with a cover letter explaining you're divorced and that you want to retain your rights, another rp will be issued to you".

i dont think there is a set procedure for this, it seems to be hit and miss from what i have read so far.

vegeta_2009 wrote:i dont think there is a set procedure for this, it seems to be hit and miss from what i have read so far.

Indeed. But retention of right of residence is an automatic process - no application is necessary for it. And since you already have a residence card, why apply for a new one? The old one does not become invalid.

However, the UKBA expects to be notified of significant changes in circumstances, so I would just write them a (registered) letter. If you fill in another EEA2 form, that will quite certainly start another lengthy process.

Of course you will have to go through all the details anyway when you apply for PR. I am not sure whether you can avoid that if you made an EEA2 application after being divorced - logic would dictate so, but I have given up on logic when dealing with the UKBA. It is not an easy process, and you would really hope that the UKBA sorts it out soon.

thanks thsths, just out of interest, are the HO call center workers OISC registered? i called several times between jan-march, everytime i am given a different answer, however when you do the tally, seems most are advising me to use EEA2 form for retaining my rights even though i already have a valid one
other answers were :

• use EEA4
  just send a letter
  do nothing and wait the 5 years are up
  leave the country

vegeta_2009 wrote:thanks thsths, just out of interest, are the HO call center workers OISC registered?

Why should they? The registration is something you have to pay for, I am afraid. Of course you would expect a minimum of competence, but even that is not always given, it seems.

Hi All - Just to update you of my situation. I re-applied with all my documents, this time proof of co-habitation, Decree absolute, Proof of initiation of divorce, my employment contcat s for the last three years, My ex's payslips for the time covering from the initiation to the Decree absolute and an employment letter from my ex's employer covering 5 years until after the divorce, my passport and other docs.

I re-applied on the 11 Feb 2010, sent a complain email on the 15 March 2010 as I had not received a COA, received a COA in post on the 20 March 2010 dated 17 March 2010.

I am not sure if this is a coincidence or maybe a complain email did the trick. Got the HO standard template, but had a Case ID, so I think I am in a Loooooong queue.

Lets see what happens next, fingers crossed., Give the HO a few months to sit on my application and then will start firing emails again.

All the best to everyone!!

B

Hi All - Just to update you of my situation. I re-applied with all my documents, this time proof of co-habitation, Decree absolute, Proof of initiation of divorce, my employment contcat s for the last three years, My ex's payslips for the time covering from the initiation to the Decree absolute and an employment letter from my ex's employer covering 5 years until after the divorce, my passport and other docs.

I re-applied on the 11 Feb 2010, sent a complain email on the 15 March 2010 as I had not received a COA, received a COA in post on the 20 March 2010 dated 17 March 2010.

I am not sure if this is a coincidence or maybe a complain email did the trick. Got the HO standard template, but had a Case ID, so I think I am in a Loooooong queue.

Lets see what happens next, fingers crossed., Give the HO a few months to sit on my application and then will start firing emails again.

All the best to everyone!!

B

Hi All - Just to update you of my situation. I re-applied with all my documents, this time proof of co-habitation, Decree absolute, Proof of initiation of divorce, my employment contcat s for the last three years, My ex's payslips for the time covering from the initiation to the Decree absolute and an employment letter from my ex's employer covering 5 years until after the divorce, my passport and other docs.

I re-applied on the 11 Feb 2010, sent a complain email on the 15 March 2010 as I had not received a COA, received a COA in post on the 20 March 2010 dated 17 March 2010.

I am not sure if this is a coincidence or maybe a complain email did the trick. Got the HO standard template, but had a Case ID, so I think I am in a Loooooong queue.

Lets see what happens next, fingers crossed., Give the HO a few months to sit on my application and then will start firing emails again.

All the best to everyone!!

B

thank boboo, just refresh my mind, was it just a covering letter you sent with all the documents?

Hi Vegata - I did indeed send just a covering letter, along with 2 pics of me and my ex and a whole heap of documents to the HO. I expect the HO will not ask me to furnish my ex's passport. I have a valid resident stamp on my passport anyways. My application was returned once beforer as I didnt send my passport , and they requested for that, they also gave me a list of documents that I need to submit, which was a print out of what they have on the website.

vegeta_2009 wrote:thank boboo, just refresh my mind, was it just a covering letter you sent with all the documents?