Travelling to Europe with ILR

serengetiuk · Post by **serengetiuk** » Fri May 18, 2012 11:37 am

My daughter is a UK citizen, and is married to a South African who has applied for ILR. When he has his ILR visa, does he also need a residence card to visit Europe, or is it sufficient to carry his wedding certificate, provided he is travelling with his wife?

Post by **linkers** » Fri May 18, 2012 11:42 am

As UK is not part of Schengen, your son in law still needs a valid visit visa to go anywhere in in EU.

Having indefinite leave to remain in the United Kingdom does not affect whether you require a visa or not as visa requirements are based on the passport that you travel on.

ILR would give him Permanent Residence for UK only (not for the whole Europe).

cs95tdg · Post by **cs95tdg** » Fri May 18, 2012 12:14 pm

serengetiuk, what linkers has mentioned is correct. Your son-in-law would need to find out what the visa requirements are for a South African national (& passport holder) to enter the EU country he is planning to travel to. Note also that not all EU countries are part of the Schengen region (i.e. and therefore would not be covered by a Schengen visa).

This question would best be moved to the EU Immigration forum.

Post by **linkers** » Fri May 18, 2012 12:32 pm

South African citizens require a visa to enter the Schengen territory.

Post by **Jambo** » Fri May 18, 2012 12:49 pm

serengetiuk wrote:My daughter is a UK citizen, and is married to a South African who has applied for ILR. When he has his ILR visa, does he also need a residence card to visit Europe, or is it sufficient to carry his wedding certificate, provided he is travelling with his wife?

As pointed out, having ILR or not having will not grant him visa free travel to other countries in Europe.

However, being married to a EEA national would grant visa free travel within the EEA (so not all of Europe but most of it) according to the Directive of free movements as long as they travel together.

However, the tricky part is convincing the airline that he is allowed to travel and hence it is advisable to apply for a visa which is issued free of charge.

See more in Travel to Schengen, without visa, for EEA-family members. The relevant section under part 2.

cs95tdg · Post by **cs95tdg** » Fri May 18, 2012 2:07 pm

Jambo wrote:
serengetiuk wrote:My daughter is a UK citizen, and is married to a South African who has applied for ILR. When he has his ILR visa, does he also need a residence card to visit Europe, or is it sufficient to carry his wedding certificate, provided he is travelling with his wife?
As pointed out, having ILR or not having will not grant him visa free travel to other countries in Europe.

However, being married to a EEA national would grant visa free travel within the EEA (so not all of Europe but most of it) according to the Directive of free movements as long as they travel together.

However, the tricky part is convincing the airline that he is allowed to travel and hence it is advisable to apply for a visa which is issued free of charge.

See more in Travel to Schengen, without visa, for EEA-family members. The relevant section under part 2.

Thanks, that was useful. I wasn't aware of this particular directive.

Post by **Casa** » Fri May 18, 2012 2:58 pm

I wouldn't risk travelling without a Schengen visa. Apart from the fact that airlines are unlikely to allow boarding without a valid visa, Spanish immigration for example are notorious for ignoring EU/EEA directives.

serengetiuk · Post by **serengetiuk** » Fri May 18, 2012 4:38 pm

So if I understand correctly, although theoretically he has the legal right to travel provided he is with his wife, in practice to be safe he would need to have a Schengen visa, which I believe costs 65 euros and lasts 6 months. Otherwise, would a residence card be sufficient? If so, does anybody know how long it takes to get a residence card, given that he has already been without his passport for 4 months waiting for his ILR to come through?

Post by **EUsmileWEallsmile** » Fri May 18, 2012 5:01 pm

serengetiuk wrote:..which I believe costs 65 euros...

No, it will be free for his particular case.

Post by **Jambo** » Fri May 18, 2012 5:02 pm

If he travel with his British wife, the visa is free. If he travel alone, he needs to pay.

He can't apply for a Residence Card. These are granted under a different visa category (they are called Card but function in a similar way to a visa/ILR).

serengetiuk · Post by **serengetiuk** » Fri May 18, 2012 5:33 pm

So how and where can he apply for a free Schengen visa?

Post by **Jambo** » Fri May 18, 2012 6:24 pm

Fro the same place you would get a paid visa - a consulate of a Schengen country.

Post by **EUsmileWEallsmile** » Fri May 18, 2012 8:27 pm

Most EU embassies in the UK have a website that has special information for EU family members.

Immigrationboards.com: Immigration, work visa and work permit discussion board

Travelling to Europe with ILR

Travelling to Europe with ILR

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