HELP LOST PASSPORT WITH PR INSIDE AND I'M STUCK OUTSIDE UK.

[soulqueeng]

I received my permanent residence in my passport in Dec last year valid for 10 years. I'm a nigerian married to a german citizen and am resident in the UK. However I've just travelled on business and have had my passport stolen from my hotel room. I'm now in process of trying to get a new passport but need to know if anyone has info on how I get back into uk and also process of getting PR in my passport again.

Unfortunately, me and my spouse are seperating something which occurrred in the last few weeks. So it feels like the world is crashing around me. I probably will not have their support during this predicament.

I've only been able to briefly speak to home office enquiry line and have been told they cannot simply transfer PR and I will have to re-apply. I'm in shock over this and cannot believe I have to go through the application process all over again especailly as my ex may not be willing to co-operate. In a few months I would have been entitled to apply for ILR but now i'm stuck.

If anyone can help me then please respond i'm in desperate need of some information.

[Obie]

Sorry to hear about your predicament.

As you are someone who has acquired the right of Permanent Residence, I believe you will not need your wife or ex any longer. Hopefully the HO will not exploit the situation. The law will be on your side in any case, just that the time that could be wasted, might be costly.

Firstly, you will not be able to apply for PR from the country in which you are stranded. I believe you will need to apply for an EEA family permit, in your new passport. This will allow you to enter the UK. Once you are in the UK, apply for confirmation of your right of permanent Residence. I am really unsure, which authority gives the UK power to say that people who get a new passport should reapply again, with all the necessary documents. They were silent, incidentally on people who lost their passport, or had it stolen, but i believe the same rule applies. Needless to say, i don't think this restrictive measure, which does not apply to people who wants ILR transfered to a new passport, will not hold up to Judicial Scrutiny.

Write a cover letter with the EEA family permit, stating that you are someone who has acquired a right of PR, which does not become invalid unless you stay beyond 2 years out of the UK.

If you can find the copy of the Letter notifying you of your PR, and a copy of your old passport, that will help hugely.

I wish you the best and hope your matter get resolved soon.

If they start getting difficult, which i hope will not be the case, get your MP involved, and complain to the EU commission.

[Guerro]

How can they ask you to reapply again?
What i hate with pr is that it should be permanent but it is valid for ten years unlike the ilr. Once lost, they ask you to reapply and start from scratch and always rely on your partner or ex.
I'm sorry to say that they might make it difficult for you and be prepared for bad news and long wait

[Obie]

Assuming they have any sense, which i hope they have. Then maybe, just maybe, some part of their brain might still be open for reasoning, one can only hope. I believe in those circumstances, they will come to the realisation that it is not in the interest of them or UK taxpayers, for this matter to be settled in the High Court, by means of a Judicial Review. Which is something i will strongly recommend if they refuse to issue an EEA family permit, without EU sponsor.

[Guerro]

What about applying as a returning resident?

[Obie]

OP cannot apply as a Returning Residence for two reasons.

1. He does not have an ILR, and his PR was not issued under national law.

2. He has not been out of the UK for such a long period, for him to apply as a returning resident. He only went on holiday, and his travel document got stolen.

Unfortunately he will not qualify, for the reasons stated above.

[fysicus]

the following quote from the ECI (chapter 6), based on Regulation 15(2) of the Immigration (European Economic Area) Regulations 2006, may be relevant in this case

Once an EEA national (or their family member) has acquired permanent residence in the UK it can only be lost if they leave the UK for more than 2 consecutive years. This right is subject to Regulation 19(b) concerning Public Policy, Public Security and Public Health.

@Guerro: Re-applying for PR should therefore be fairly straightforward and independent of his EEA family member. Unfortunately, however, given the reputation of UKBA, the word "should" in the previous sentence has to be strongly emphasized.

I think it would certainly help OP if he knows some details of his PR application, e.g. an Home Office reference number, but given the circumstances as outlined, I would expect all such information he has at home in the UK and not with him on holiday.

[mcovet]

one way i see, which is far-fetched, is-

get a new passport and then post it to a friend in the UK who will apply internally, as if you are in the UK and if you could ask someone to report that your passport was lost/stolen in the UK to get the police crime reference number. If that is possible, then in the letter accompanying your application you will ask to expedite the process due to the fact you already have had to go through the application process, and attach your copy of previous PR.

It obviously is faster to fight to get an EEA FP from Nigeria, which should be quick, but if they give you hard time, my strategy could work better in the long term.

Good luck and let us know what happens, as this is another problem people with RCs or PRs losing their passports outside UK face, weird treasured thing that passport becomes.

[Plum70]

one way i see, which is far-fetched, is-

more like - criminal!

get a new passport and then post it to a friend in the UK who will apply internally, as if you are in the UK and if you could ask someone to report that your passport was lost/stolen in the UK to get the police crime reference number. If that is possible, then in the letter accompanying your application you will ask to expedite the process due to the fact you already have had to go through the application process, and attach your copy of previous PR.

If you're going to disseminate advice on a public forum please let it be sensible and responsible. Encouraging the OP to involve a 3rd party in deceiving and lying to the authorities is in no way helping!

To the OP: Write a covering letter to the British embassy in Lagos (or wherever you ill be applying from) explaining the situation and include photocopies of you and your spouse's passport bio data page, PR vignette and proof of residence in the UK. This should be sufficient in securing you a EEA Family permit to return to the UK and, once in, you can reapply for PR.

[soulqueeng]

Hi everyone, thanks so much for all the responses they have been helpful. It is very disheartning to think I have to go through this whole PR thing again. I thought i'd reached the end of that long road.

However i'm now in process of getting a new passport will re-apply for family permit but on my return to UK i'm considering whether I can simply apply for ILR instead of PR.

Despite not having the PR vignette in my new passport i'm hoping the HO letter confirming it would suffice. Not sure if I should open new post to get views on this but any opinion on this route would be helpful.

Anyone with more ideas please keep them coming whatever they may be. Need all the help I can get.

Thanks all

[Plum70]

on my return to UK i'm considering whether I can simply apply for ILR instead of PR.

Why ILR? Are you or have you resided in the UK under UK immigration rules?

[soulqueeng]

Hi not sure you've read my original post but i've already completed more than 5 years in UK married to an EU national and received my PR last year. However i've been left stranded overseas having had my passport taken from my hotel room. HO have said that I cannot get my PR simply replaced into my new passport but must re-apply. To avoid having to go through this all over again I wanted to know whether I can simply apply for ILR as I would have been entitled to do so at end of this year being a year from the date I received my PR but I would be doing so without a PR vignette in my passport.

I want to know if it is possible and likelihood of success?

[BLK235]

I would think it's very rare for a person with PR to also qualify for ILR.

The only thing that springs to mind is 10 years legal stay route. But I don't think it's an option as these 10 years legal stay has to be within immigration rules and as you probably aware time spent under EU route is outside of immigration rules.
Have you considered applying for British Citizenship?

[mamag]

Hi not sure you've read my original post but i've already completed more than 5 years in UK married to an EU national and received my PR last year. However i've been left stranded overseas having had my passport taken from my hotel room. HO have said that I cannot get my PR simply replaced into my new passport but must re-apply. To avoid having to go through this all over again I wanted to know whether I can simply apply for ILR as I would have been entitled to do so at end of this year being a year from the date I received my PR but I would be doing so without a PR vignette in my passport.

I want to know if it is possible and likelihood of success?

Sorry to hear about your trouble, my advise for you is to get a new passport get temporary EEA family permit to get to UK, when you are in UK , look at the option of applying for British citizen , if you PR was issued in December'09 then you should now be qualify for naturalisation . All you need to prove to HO is 6years of residence as EEA family member in UK plus a pass in life in the UK test . ILR option is long thing . U can use ur driving license to take life in the UK test . Then finally , back it up with prayer

[soulqueeng]

Hi everyone,

I think I may have got my wires twisted but that's why this forum is so amazing. I was under the impression that in order to apply for british citizenship after having received PR as an eea national's family member, I would first have to apply for ILR then naturalisation. But I see that's not the case, so apologises for this mistake.

I guess my question then is if anyone has experience as an EEA national family member applying for UK citizenship without actually having the PR in their passport but having done 6years in UK.

[JA13I]

soulqueeng, sorry to hear about your plight. I am sure that everyone here feels for you.

Your initial steps unfortunately seems irreplaceable. But once you have applied for a new passport and a new EEAFP, there is a way out from having to re-apply for your PR. You should be able to get proof of your current PR status using the SAR http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/navig ... sonal-data

Once you have letter that the HO considers you to have PR, having seen in the other thread that you intend to apply for naturalisation, you can do so without the PR vignette, 1 year after the date that the PR was granted.

Sorry for the late reply as I hardly visit these boards lately. Hope you get to see this reply early enough.

[Directive/2004/38/EC]

HO have said that I cannot get my PR simply replaced into my new passport but must re-apply. To avoid having to go through this all over again I wanted to know whether I can simply apply for ILR as I would have been entitled to do so at end of this year being a year from the date I received my PR but I would be doing so without a PR vignette in my passport.

I want to know if it is possible and likelihood of success?

Be very clear. You have PR already. You already have it. End of story.

You most likely need to apply to Home Office to put the new PR sticker in your new passport, to prove you can work or if you want to travel in the next while. Unless you have been away from the UK for a long time, they WILL put the new sticker in the new passport. End of story. The application for a new PR sticker is just a confirmation of rights you already hold - it is not anything else.