PeterM wrote:
1) I know my wife is not a visa national, but when she is entering the UK, she is comming here to work. So being a non-visa national is not really of any help, because she cannot use the visitor route.
No one said she should enter as a tourist. She should enter as a spouse of a EEA national. The same way she entered with the EEA Family Permit. Having a Family Permit is not mandatory. The regulations allow family members of EEA national to prove their status at the border. There is no need to get entry clearance from the consulate beforehand.
The advantage of being non-visa national is the ability to board a flight and get to the borer. If you are visa national you can't get to the border so you need a Family Permit to be able to board a flight.
2) To me it seems the CoA does not really prove anything? Someone could apply for it who has no right to live and work in the UK, and with the CoA get a 6-month free ticket. Nobody checked our application yet.
The CoA is issued after initial check of the documents (for example checking that a passport, marriage certificate were submitted). Only if applied as married, the CoA would state eligibility to work. You are right that someone can try and abuse the system but employers are required to call the HO to verify the CoA when presented by the employee so this abuse can't last for long. If you plan to be illegal in the UK, you would probably not bother sending your passport to the HO to try and get a free ticket for a maximum of 6 months.
3) Jambo says: "As your wife, she can travel together with you visa free in Europe." Okay, but what if she travels alone, without me?
Well, that depends on her nationality. If she can travel to Schengen visa free, then she doesn't need a visa. If she does require visa for Schengen, she will need to apply for one.
4) UKBA wrote my wife a letter saying (after wa asked for our passports back): ""family members of an EEA national, who are not themselves EEA nationals, wishing to return to the UK should apply for an EEA family permit a British diplomatic post abroad ..." Why are the giving out wrong or misleading information?
Is this an exact quote of the letter ? "should apply" doesn't suggest you must apply. The reason they stated that is for visa nationals. They prefer to give an advice that fits all (even if not necessary for some nationals). In addition, the HO also prefer to have control on immigration and it is easier for them to refuse/delay applications if made in the home country than when someone shows at the border. It is practically, almost impossible to refuse entry under EEA regulations at the border.
