residence card or family visa?

[barbapapa]

Hi,

Background first :

I am dual citizen (british/french) and since my wife matches (as written below) the criteria pertaining to the Transitional provisions stated in schedule 3 (part 2, subparagraph 3 and 5) of the Immigration Regulations of 2012 (European Economic Area) (Amendment). I should be be regarded as an EEA national for the purpose of my wife's residence card application

- She and I were residing in the UK on 16th July 2012
- Her residence card (issued under the 2006 regulations) was valid on 16th October 2012
- None of the events described in subparagraph 5 apply.

My wife and I left the uk on August 2012 and came back in July 2013. Her length of continous stay in the UK is thus only almost 3 years.


We already sent the residence card application in Mars, got biometric data submited and got ackowledgement in April but as I learnt it is likely to take 6 month to get the residence card. (we execpt it to have it in October/November?


We want to go to India for 3 month in the winter and I want to quit my job before that, ideally in September. This is very important to us.

The thing is that if we do not get the residence card / the residence card becomes invalid due to brexit, we could still apply for a family visa (due to my british nationality).

My wife seems to be eligible for both the 5 year route and the 10 year route (not sure though, see below).
We would prefer the 5 year route since she already have 3 years behind and woudl allow her to settle later.
She needs to pass an english test which I think she will pass but we also need to prove that we have enough income.

If I quit my job, this would not be the case anymore.

The 10 year route is a possibility but this would require us to wait quite some time before she can settle definitely. And it seems to me the really last option. If it fails, we are in trouble.

My question are:

Should I do nothing and quit my job in September hoping to get my wife's residence card? If we do not get it we can fallback on the 10 year route which is costly.
Or should I apply for the 5 year route while I am still working (this would require us to ask for the document back which my cancel the residence card application) ? This option is also costly but seems to be the saftest.

What do you think?

Also if I go for the 5 year route, should I wait a bit (and hopefully get the residence card before)? or should I start requesting the document back

Currently my wife cannot even pass the english test as her passport is obviously not in her hand

[Casa]

If you apply outside of the UK for your wife's settlement visa you will have to show 6 months of earnings prior to submitting the application meeting the minimum annual income of £18,600. You will also have to submit the most recent 6 months of payslips + the corresponding bank statements which must be no older than 28 days on the date the application is submitted. You will also have to submit a letter from your employer on company letterhead confirming the terms of your employment. Your wife will need A1 level English from a UKVI approved test/test centre.

The application fee is £1,195 + £500 NHS surcharge. If successful, this will grant her an initial 2.5 year probationary period, which will require an further 2.5 year extension (with additional fees + NHS surcharge). She will be on a 5 year route to permanent residence (ILR) and will be unable to include the previous 3 year period spent in the UK. Her immigration clock will be set to zero.

As far as the plan to take a 10 year route, you should be aware that you can't jump ship from EU regulations to the UK Immigration route from within the UK. The 10 year route isn't applicable to your circumstances.

[barbapapa]

Hi Casa,

Thank you for your reply,

to be clear, we are in the uk,

I am a bit confused here:
looking at https://www.gov.uk/remain-in-uk-family
it seems that both 5 year and 10 year route are options for us

Where did you see that the 10 year route does not apply if in the UK?

Regarding fees, it seems to be 811 + NHS, not 1195 + NHS, I would be interested in knowing where did you get that info (could it be out of date)?

Also regarding

you can't jump ship from EU regulations to the UK Immigration route from within the UK

Where is it stated? This would means the 5 year route would not apply too?

[barbapapa]

any clarification would be appreciated
Thanks

[barbapapa]

any body?

[Casa]

The £811 fee is for a FLR(M) application when extending or switching from an existing visa category. Your wife doesn't have a valid visa to switch or extend under UK Immigration Rules. The previous 3 years in the UK under EEA Regulations can't be added to any current residence as she was absent for more than 6 months.