EEA family member - refusal to issue a perm residence card

[bielschmidt]

Hi,

I'm a german national and in Dec 2015 we applied for my wife's residence permanent card after her initial 5 years EEA family member visa.

Just yesterday we received a letter back with "refusal to issue a permanent residence card" with the reason that the EEA national sponsor (myself) have not provided enough evidence of exercising treaty rights for 5 years continuously in the UK.

Now, I have been in the UK for over 10 years and I assumed 1 P60 would ve enough and if they required some other information they would contact us back. I apreciatte that the UK Visas and Immigration department might ve very busy but taking 6 months to refuse an application for lack of evidence provided is beyond me.

The letter mentions that my wife should make arrangements to leave the UK, which is ridiculous hence that would leave me and 2 daughters on our own. They did offer an option to appeal, but my understanding is that can take as long as re-applying providing the missing evidence.

Can anyone provide any guidance on what would be the best thing to do?

Not only that but I have a bigger issue. Assuming that the aplication should not take more than 6 months we booked some flights due to family issues for next July.

My wife has 2 upcoming trips (1 to Italy on her own and 1 to Brazil with the whole family). Will she have issues with:

1: going and returning from Italy on her own

2: going and returning from Brazil with me

Appreciate any help and advice.

Many thanks

[secret.simon]

Is your wife an EEA citizen or non-EEA citizen? If she is the former, she can exit and enter the UK without having to worry about acquisition of PR.

The rules and the guides are very clear on the matter of evidencing the five years of exercising treaty rights of the sponsor that she must demonstrate. That is a very elementary mistake.

One the positive side, your wife has acquired PR automatically. The PR Card is only confirmatory in nature.

1: going and returning from Italy on her own

On what basis is your wife travelling to Italy? Does she have a Schengen visa to travel to Italy?

When she returns, she should be allowed in on the basis of of joining her EEA citizen spouse in the UK. So, she should carry proof that you are in the UK and that she will be joining you here. Suggest that she also carry her expired residence Card with her.

2: going and returning from Brazil with me

She has an automatic right of entry with her EEA spouse in all EEA countries, so long as the two of you are carrying proof of identity and that you are married (marriage certificate and expired Residence Card).

Reapply for the PR card when you are back.

[noajthan]

Hi,

I'm a german national and in Dec 2015 we applied for my wife's residence permanent card after her initial 5 years EEA family member visa.

Just yesterday we received a letter back with "refusal to issue a permanent residence card" with the reason that the EEA national sponsor (myself) have not provided enough evidence of exercising treaty rights for 5 years continuously in the UK.

Now, I have been in the UK for over 10 years and I assumed 1 P60 would ve enough and if they required some other information they would contact us back. I apreciatte that the UK Visas and Immigration department might ve very busy but taking 6 months to refuse an application for lack of evidence provided is beyond me.

The letter mentions that my wife should make arrangements to leave the UK, which is ridiculous hence that would leave me and 2 daughters on our own. They did offer an option to appeal, but my understanding is that can take as long as re-applying providing the missing evidence.

Can anyone provide any guidance on what would be the best thing to do?

Not only that but I have a bigger issue. Assuming that the aplication should not take more than 6 months we booked some flights due to family issues for next July.

My wife has 2 upcoming trips (1 to Italy on her own and 1 to Brazil with the whole family). Will she have issues with:

1: going and returning from Italy on her own

2: going and returning from Brazil with me

Appreciate any help and advice.

Many thanks

You seem to have some unfortunate misunderstandings about the whole process.
Submitting 1 P60 is completely inadequate evidence of exercising treaty rights continuously as a qualified person for 5 years.
And that is only part of what you needed to prove and submit.

The guidance is very clear and HO plays hard ball in this area:

If you do not submit sufficient evidence to show that you qualify for a document certifying permanent residence or permanent residence card, we will refuse your application

All you can really do is reapply with rock-solid (if not unimpeachable) documentary supporting evidence.

Suggest review and summarise your timeline and your activities since you arrived in UK.
(Your wife's activities,as a direct family member, are completely immaterial).
Look for potential 5-year qualifying periods.

Have you or wife enjoyed any prolonged absences from UK?
if a student at any time (in UK) did you have CSI?

Start with going through the guidance again - its quite comprehensive.
Then post any questions.

Regarding imminent trips abroad.
Does your wife have a valid RC?
Is she an EEA national?

1) May be problematic if not an EEA national. How will wife even board the flight back?

UK border may be problematic. You will have to be on end of phone in UK (if not in airport arrivals).
Wife would be well advised to carry marriage certificate, copy of your passport and proof of residence etc.

2) Again how will wife board flight home (if non-EEA) ?

If you do manage to board then you may face delays at UK border but should be permitted to enter in the end. Expect questions and delay.
Carry marriage certificate (and maybe a copy of Directive 2004/38/EC) with you.

If wife is an EEA national then all good. But with a PR refusal in her history she may be questioned.

[bielschmidt]

Hi Simon, she is non-eea (brazilian).

I assumed the application was easier and simpler, my mistake.

How can we prove that she has the automatic PR?

She doesn't have a Visa, she will enter Italy for 4 nights as a tourist.

That's what I thought, she would be travelling with the expired family visa + marriage certificate, and I will be at thr airport waiting fir her.

To be honest, I'm not too worried about returning from Brazil as we epuld be together, I hope they don't try stopping us even boarding.

Thabks

[bielschmidt]

Hi noajthan,

Her EEA family member visa expired in 01/2016 while the documents were with the HO. I understood the error on the application and can re-apply when we're back.

For her Italy trip, she can prove residence here, we even have hot a house on her name, I don't see how they can avoid her coming back in to her husband and kids?

Thanks

[noajthan]

The challenge wife will face when travelling is lack of a visa.
Is Brazil visa-free for UK?

Airlines will be looking for visas that are compliant with the rules shown to the check-in clerk (via their pan-industry Timactic database);
they will only board a passenger if "Docs OK".

Regarding acquisition of PR - it's all about you...

Suggest review and summarise your timeline and your activities since you arrived in UK; (post it here if you wish).
Your wife's activities, as a direct family member, are completely immaterial.

Look for a potential 5-year qualifying period.
Collate your related documentary supporting evidence to see how it all stacks up. It needs to be rock-solid (if not unimpeachable).

Have you or wife enjoyed any prolonged absences from UK?
if a student at any time (in UK) did you have CSI?

Start with going through the PR guidance again - its quite comprehensive.
Then post any questions.

[bielschmidt]

I forgot to ask another key point. Up to now she was eligible to work in the UK, does that change with the refusal?

Thanks

[noajthan]

I forgot to ask another key point. Up to now she was eligible to work in the UK, does that change with the refusal?

Thanks

Not if you are still a qualified person ie exercising treaty rights.

All these various documents (RC, PR card) are merely confirmatory, they don't confer any rights.

Ofcourse whether a hard-pressed and poorly-briefed employer (or HR department) will be aware of and understand that is the $64,000 question.
See https://www.freemovement.org.uk/sponsor ... dismissal/

[bielschmidt]

Thanks Noajthan.

Reading other posts about submitting an appeal, some people did but also requested a new 6 month POA.

Assuming that on my case I shouldn't really appeal as I didn't provide enough evidence? Or can I add evidence onto an appeal?

Just trying to think what will best going forward, for her wntitlement to work, and travel tickets booked.

[noajthan]

Thanks Noajthan.

Reading other posts about submitting an appeal, some people did but also requested a new 6 month POA.

Assuming that on my case I shouldn't really appeal as I didn't provide enough evidence? Or can I add evidence onto an appeal?

Just trying to think what will best going forward, for her wntitlement to work, and travel tickets booked.

If you submitted so little evidence you don't really have grounds for an appeal.
Suggest filing a new application backed with comprehensive evidence.

It seems Brazil is a visa-free country in terms of UK. So wife should be permitted to board a returning flight.
But she should not be stamped into UK as a visitor; she needs to be clear to IOs that she is a returning EEA family member.

[vinny]

This page gives you an example scenario of how to apply the permanent right of residence test for direct family members of a European Economic Area (EEA) national worker.
Mrs B, a Jamaican national, lives in the UK with her husband, a German national, who works full time in the UK. Five years after entering the UK, Mrs B applies for a document to confirm her right of residence. Mrs B was granted a residence card 4 and a half years ago.
In support of her application she sends in:
 her own Jamaican passport
 her husband’s German passport
 their marriage certificate
 her husband’s P60’s for the last 5 years and a letter from his employer
 utility bills and bank statements in joint names covering the last 5 years
You accept that Mrs B has provided proof of her own and her husband’s identity. You also accept they are related as claimed and that Mrs B’s husband has been a qualified person for the last 5 years.
You also accept that Mrs B and her husband have been continuously resident in the UK for 5 years. Therefore you issue a permanent residence card to Mrs B.

[ohara]

Don't bother appealing - they didn't make a mistake. It'll be cheaper and probably much faster to just apply again.

Just for information, the bundle of evidence I submitted for my PR card application weighed half a kilogram.

[Noetic]

Don't bother appealing - they didn't make a mistake. It'll be cheaper and probably much faster to just apply again.

Just for information, the bundle of evidence I submitted for my PR card application weighed half a kilogram.

Ditto. I really wish there was an NCS option for PR applications too so you don't have to risk so many important documents getting lost in the post!

[ohara]

Ditto. I really wish there was an NCS option for PR applications too so you don't have to risk so many important documents getting lost in the post!

I agree. Not only would it help people make sure their application is correct (especially if using that awful EEAPR form), you wouldn't have to part with a ton of important documents for months.

[bielschmidt]

On the re-apply, do I have to re-submit all docs again or just the ones missing?

Thanks

[vinny]

All.