Unmarried Partner visa - legal and other issues

[tomh6269]

My question regards eea unmarried partner visa for my girlfriend. I am an eea citizen and she is from Vietnam. We have already consulted a solicitor but I would like get further advice.
We want to apply for the above visa. We have bank statements and letters adressed to us at the same adress covering the last 13 months. However, my girlfriend has not actually lived at my address only stayed here very often. My landlord has agreed to add her to my tenancy agreement as permitted occupier. We have been told to apply for the visa even though we haven't been together for 24 months because under EU law 18 months may be enough.

I have the following questions

1. The solicitor advised us that even if Home office finds out we haven't been living together at the same adress there won't be any legal consequences for myself because I am an eu citizen.

2. Is adding my girlfriend as permitted occupier by the landlord legal? My landlord can give us a backdated tenancy agreement in my name with her as permitted occupier of the room I'm renting. My landlord knows she is my girlfriend since last year and that she has been staying at the property where I'm living.

3. After making an application and during the time the visa is valid will we need to physically live together or can we live apart and have a tenancy agreement in both our names?

4. Can Home Office make an unannounced inspection to check if we're living together. I know this happens for married couple but I'm not sure about unmarried partners?

5. Can Home Office check if a person has been living at an adress? I'm afraid they may check we haven't been living together.

6. My girlfriend has been renting a room somewhere else. Would that be an issue when proving that our relationship is durable?

[Casa]

My question regards eea unmarried partner visa for my girlfriend. I am an eea citizen and she is from Vietnam. We have already consulted a solicitor but I would like get further advice.
We want to apply for the above visa. We have bank statements and letters adressed to us at the same adress covering the last 13 months. However, my girlfriend has not actually lived at my address only stayed here very often. My landlord has agreed to add her to my tenancy agreement as permitted occupier. We have been told to apply for the visa even though we haven't been together for 24 months because under EU law 18 months may be enough.

I have the following questions

1. The solicitor advised us that even if Home office finds out we haven't been living together at the same adress there won't be any legal consequences for myself because I am an eu citizen. Correct, providing you haven't made any false statements/documents.

2. Is adding my girlfriend as permitted occupier by the landlord legal? My landlord can give us a backdated tenancy agreement in my name with her as permitted occupier of the room I'm renting. My landlord knows she is my girlfriend since last year and that she has been staying at the property where I'm living. There is no 'girlfriend/boyfriend' category. Providing a back-dated tenancy is NOT a good idea. You need 2 years documented proof of living together....not visiting/staying over.

3. After making an application and during the time the visa is valid will we need to physically live together or can we live apart and have a tenancy agreement in both our names? NO See my comments above.

4. Can Home Office make an unannounced inspection to check if we're living together. I know this happens for married couple but I'm not sure about unmarried partners? YES

5. Can Home Office check if a person has been living at an adress? I'm afraid they may check we haven't been living together. Yes, easily.

6. My girlfriend has been renting a room somewhere else. Would that be an issue when proving that our relationship is durable? YES. See my comments below.

Your solicitor should have advised you that qualifying as 'durable' partners calls for far more evidence than simply living together. The Case Worker will want to see documented evidence of a relationship 'akin to marriage', such as shared finances, both names on bills, tenancy agreement or mortgage and a joint bank account. The 2 year period of co-habitation is only reduced under exceptional circumstances, such as having a child together.

[szuh4607]

Hi Dear,
I am not a lawyer or solicitor. I do understand your circumstances here. I have experience just from the applications I made.
Leave alone that you're not actually living together for now.
read below
do You guys have any other proof like her bank statements and yours showing same address?
Any utility bills, not joint but at least they have the same address.?
The alone tenancy agreement is no good. You need at least at least proofs from 3-4 different sources.
better joint but sole are okay too.
coming to your questions about 24 Months, Yes if you don't have a baby together it is the main thing to consider that it should be 24 months with fewer proofs.
Home office looks each and every application separately, If you have the burden of proof of address for each month at least from 3-4 different sources go ahead and try even it is not full 24 Months.
But not alone on the tenancy agreement.
Pictures of you together are important but they give less priority to these kind of things.
utilities, Bank statements are main.
you also need proof of you exercising treaty right.

summary:
assumption: Your partner has a valid Visa.
If you just have a tenancy agreement, nothing else like utilities. don't apply.
If you have utility bills showing the same address at least over year, go ahead and start to live together.

[tomh6269]

My question regards eea unmarried partner visa for my girlfriend. I am an eea citizen and she is from Vietnam. We have already consulted a solicitor but I would like get further advice.
We want to apply for the above visa. We have bank statements and letters adressed to us at the same adress covering the last 13 months. However, my girlfriend has not actually lived at my address only stayed here very often. My landlord has agreed to add her to my tenancy agreement as permitted occupier. We have been told to apply for the visa even though we haven't been together for 24 months because under EU law 18 months may be enough.

I have the following questions

1. The solicitor advised us that even if Home office finds out we haven't been living together at the same adress there won't be any legal consequences for myself because I am an eu citizen. Correct, providing you haven't made any false statements/documents.

2. Is adding my girlfriend as permitted occupier by the landlord legal? My landlord can give us a backdated tenancy agreement in my name with her as permitted occupier of the room I'm renting. My landlord knows she is my girlfriend since last year and that she has been staying at the property where I'm living. There is no 'girlfriend/boyfriend' category. Providing a back-dated tenancy is NOT a good idea. You need 2 years documented proof of living together....not visiting/staying over.

3. After making an application and during the time the visa is valid will we need to physically live together or can we live apart and have a tenancy agreement in both our names? NO See my comments above.

4. Can Home Office make an unannounced inspection to check if we're living together. I know this happens for married couple but I'm not sure about unmarried partners? YES

5. Can Home Office check if a person has been living at an adress? I'm afraid they may check we haven't been living together. Yes, easily.

6. My girlfriend has been renting a room somewhere else. Would that be an issue when proving that our relationship is durable? YES. See my comments below.

Your solicitor should have advised you that qualifying as 'durable' partners calls for far more evidence than simply living together. The Case Worker will want to see documented evidence of a relationship 'akin to marriage', such as shared finances, both names on bills, tenancy agreement or mortgage and a joint bank account. The 2 year period of co-habitation is only reduced under exceptional circumstances, such as having a child together.

Thank you for your answer..

Let me explain what documents we have. She has bank statements, GP letters, University letters and letters from her employer addressed to my house. The're addressed separately to her, though. She also can show that she has been transferring money into my account and I was transferring the money back when she needed them. She's a student and from what she told me she can't have a joint bank account with someone else. Currently she's in the UK on a student visa.

The plan is to apply for the visa and if we get refused and HO gives us the right to appeal we will then appeal. And here comes my other question, in case of refusal can we take our case to court? By the time of the appeal we would have acquired close to 24 moths of living together.

Re 2. I realize it's not a good idea. However, It would make our case stronger. The landlord would only confirm what was a fact since he knew she was using my room. (Apologies if this sounds silly..I'm just considering the options)

Re 5. How can HO check if she has been living there since last year?

Regards

[Casa]

The onus is on you to prove she HAS been living with you for the required period of time with supporting documents. In my honest opinion, 12 months of co-habitation won't cut it with the Case Worker.

[kamoe]

Hi Tom

I thought I'd give you my two cents here. This feels like a philosophical question, as more than answering how to apply, you should be asking if you are eligible to apply.

As casa said, there EFM does not include a girlfriend/boyfriend category, and from what you tell us, it looks like that is exactly what you are. You guys are not married. If you have not made the official move to have one sole residence that is shared between the two of you and that is socially validated by your friends, family, and other social and commercial entities as such; your relationship isn't really aking to marriage.

In other words: unmarried people do not normally qualify as extended family members. A special provision is made for couples who have lived together for two years, as that is what uniquely replaces and symbolizes the act of marriage. If you have not officially shared an address for that period of time, then chances are that to the caseworker, that stage of 'akin to marriage' has simply not been reached.