EUSS family permit application in February

[f-h-a]

Hi all, hope you guys are able to help me with this question.

I have been together with my fiance for almost six years, mainly long distance for the past 3 years due to me living in the UK and him living abroad.

I am an EEA national and have pre-settled status and he is not. We are planning to get married in February and then apply for the family permit.

However, I have read on the GOV website that the relationship should be in place before the end of the transition period which is the 31st of December. Does that mean that we should be married before that date or does it mean that the actual relationship should have started before the 31st?

We are not able to get married before the end of this year, due to work responsibilities. Will this cause issues for us later on regarding the family permit?

thank you

[Gnud3mn]

I believe the deadline for application is 31st December so whatever you do, whether marriage or application must be before that deadline. You are also right when you said relationship must have begun before dec 31 so I’ll advise you get married and apply asap unless he can move to the UK by then and apply for maybe pss. My two cents

[kamoe]

I have read on the GOV website that the relationship should be in place before the end of the transition period which is the 31st of December. Does that mean that we should be married before that date or does it mean that the actual relationship should have started before the 31st?

You will find the wording of "start of family relationship" in a number of documents, and you need to interpret that as the date in which people became members of the same family.

For parent-child relationship this means date of birth of the child; for couples this means date of marriage. This is because simply being in a relationship as boyfriend/girlfriend does not make you being members of the same family.

The one exception you might see to this is unmarried partners who have a EEA RC, in which case, the date of start of relationship is date the card was issued (applications for EEA RC are currently taking 6-7 months to process, so too late to apply now). This is because the couple has shown solid proof of cohabitation, validated by the caseworker when issuing the card; which acts as a stand-in for a marriage certificate.

So the answer to your question is, in your case, it means you should be married before that date.

We are not able to get married before the end of this year, due to work responsibilities. Will this cause issues for us later on regarding the family permit?

Yes, this means you will miss the deadline to bring her under the EU Settlement Scheme. See this other post.

[kamoe]

I believe the deadline for application is 31st December

Deadline of application is June 30th; but deadline for start of family relationship is December 31st.

[kamoe]

I am an EEA national

Small but very important point: The deadlines are different for Swiss nationals. From the flag of your profile I am assuming you are from the Netherlands, but if at all you were Swiss, then the story would be a different one (you would have until December 2025!).

[Zerubbabel]

mainly long distance for the past 3 years due to me living in the UK and him living abroad.

For the purpose of immigration, long distance relationships don't exit. Once married, you will be recognised as a couple.

At the moment, he won't even qualify for a partner visa as there is a strong requirement that you live together and have shared commitments.

Once you marry in 2021, you will still have options to bring him in the UK but not under the EU Settlement Scheme. You can always try that route but the probability for it working is low.

When do you qualify for settled status yourself? That's after 5 years of residence.

[Gnud3mn]

I believe the deadline for application is 31st December

Deadline of application is June 30th; but deadline for start of family relationship is December 31st.

Oh so does this mean that any can apply for euss family permit next year inasmuch as relationship started before 31 dec ?

[kamoe]

I believe the deadline for application is 31st December

Deadline of application is June 30th; but deadline for start of family relationship is December 31st.

Oh so does this mean that any can apply for euss family permit next year inasmuch as relationship started before 31 dec ?

In as much as:

1. the EU sponsor started living in the UK before Dec 31st AND
2. the family relationship started before Dec 31st

[Zerubbabel]

I believe the deadline for application is 31st December

Deadline of application is June 30th; but deadline for start of family relationship is December 31st.

Oh so does this mean that any can apply for euss family permit next year inasmuch as relationship started before 31 dec ?

In as much as:

1. the EU sponsor started living in the UK before Dec 31st AND
2. the family relationship started before Dec 31st

Does a long distance relationship count as start of a relationship for the purpose of immigration?

[Gnud3mn]

I believe the deadline for application is 31st December

Deadline of application is June 30th; but deadline for start of family relationship is December 31st.

n that any can apply for euss family permit next year inasmuch as relationship started before 31 dec ?

In as much as:

1. the EU sponsor started living in the UK before Dec 31st AND
2. the family relationship started before Dec 31st

Thanks for clarifying kamoe,
I really appreciate. I know you probably not paid for the advice you give but a friend of mine could really use your help.

Please look at this thread and let me know what you think. eea-route-applications/urgent-advise-eu ... 07894.html