Denied boarding with EEA Family Permit

[esamjones]

Hi,

I am UK citizen resident in Denmark. My wife is a third country national. We travelled to the UK together no problem at Easter with her EEA family permit in hand. Yesterday, I had to travel to the UK for a meeting and my wife was due to join me in UK later that day. She was denied boarding by EasyJet as I was not accompanying her (she intended to travel under the same EEA family permit as used before). Note that I provided evidence that I was already in the UK. She had a return ticket and has permanent Danish residence.

The reason given for her being denied boarding is that her EEA family permit includes a vignette or endorsement with words to the effect: "To accompany [my name]." (This endorsement was relevant to the application made for our first trip, but it is unreasonable to expect it to apply for all visits to the UK in a 6 month period during which the permit is valid). See here for information about these endorsements: https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... ly-permits

I cannot find any public reference or statement that says an EEA family permit is issued EITHER to accompany OR to join BUT NOT BOTH (i.e., that you can ONLY accompany but NOT join, or vice versa). All material indicates a simple "either". Indeed after long discussion, including with the UK Border Agency in Gatwick (where I was waiting), I was informed that we need to enquire why the endorsement was placed on her permit. (To their credit, they were willing to make an exception for her "just this once" ... but that was only after hours of discussion and, by that stage, her flight had left and our day trip was lost.). One might also quibble with the definition of "accompanying" -- does that require a physical presence or can that be extended to getting flights on the same day?

My questions:
(a) what is the legal status of the "vignettes" or "endorsements" placed on EEA family permits?
(b) can anyone advise what actions I should take both with respect to the UK Border Agency (e.g., where/who to contact for clarification) and/or with respect to Easy Jet (e.g., refunds). It is not clear where liability lies or even if we have good grounds for a complaint.

While I am here, I might also mention the point that, at least in Denmark, getting an EEA family permit for the UK takes at least 2-3 weeks and costs approx. 60-70 Euros in administration fees + DHL costs (due to biometric scanning and processing overseas). This is hardly in accordance with the EU Directives.

Thanks for your help.

[Obie]

I dont think there is any legal basis for them to refuse your spouse boarding. The purpose for that is for immigration officers. So long as there is a valid EEA family permit, I see no reason why airline are undertaking the role of an immigration officer.

[esamjones]

Many thanks. The airline claims that they spoke with the UK Border agency / UK embassy for clarification and were advised the endorsement is in some way "mandatory" rather than informative.

So, when I complain, I am almost certain that the airline will tell me that I should take up the issue with the UK Border agency, leaving me in a void given the difficulties of eliciting a response out of that system. Any suggestions in that vein are welcome.

[esamjones]

A quick update: EasyJet are claiming they rightly refused carriage since they sought guidance from the UK Border Agency who informed them that the endorsement on the family permit "to acc [my name]" is in fact binding/obligatory (and therefore cannot be used in a "to join" situation).

I am disputing this on the following grounds:

(a) I can find no evidence that there is written guidance to this effect from the UK Border Agency. From what I can see the endorsement indicates merely the "type" of EEA family permit not an obligatory condition for travel. Conditions for travel are either to accompany or to join. (Moreover, "to accompany" needs to be defined since I was intending to accompany her on arrival in the UK).

(b) Guidance over the phone to EasyJet by Border Agency staff is not a legal opinion, just informed guidance. So, in unclear situations (such as here) the company should honour the booking. Moreover, EasyJet's terms and conditions state that any fine levied by the UK government for transporting passengers with incorrect documentation will be passed on to the client. So, they have even weaker grounds to refuse as they have no risk.

I'd be very grateful for any further insights / thoughts, please.

[liane25]

If she's traveling on her own she needs a visa to enter UK. As you know UK is not part of Schengen Area.
I am a family of EEA national and every time we travel to EU countries I always been asked by the airline staff if I am traveling with my husband.

[toofan]

it would be a lot easier if sticker was issued as join eu spouse rather than accompany eea spouse with name .
was that mention on visa application that applicant will be joining /not travelling accompany the eu citizen.

[esamjones]

Thanks for the input. The initial application for the EEA permit was "to accompany" as we were indeed travelling together on that occasion. The question, of course, is whether this is a binding requirement for all subsequent journeys, meaning that the visa is not valid in "to join" situations. This is not clear in any official guidance that I have read on EEA family permits.

Note, as predicted, EasyJet are refusing compensation claiming that my wife's travel documentation was "wrong/inadequate" for travel. It appears in this case that EasyJet are acting as as proxy immigration authority since they are now determining whether the visa is substantively valid rather than simply identifying whether or not there exists a non-expired visa (permit) emitted by the competent authority for the individual to travel.

Interestingly, advice from the TIMITIC datasbase is as follows: Visa expemtion applies for "Holders of an EEA Family Permit issued by the UK, providing the holder is travelling with, or to join the EEA or Swiss national.". Since that condition clearly applied in our case, the refusal of carriage does appear problematic.

*** Not sure of my next steps following formal refusal of compensation from EasyJet. Again, advice welcome!! Please. ***

[el patron]

If family permit endorsed to 'accompany', the EEA national did not need for the purposes of the family permit application to prove they were a qualified person, as they could rely upon the initial right to reside, in that case however, as exercising treaty rights was not a requirement that needed to be statisfied, subsequent re-entry would arguably need to be under the same terms, i.e. accompanying. An unreasonable rwquirement in my view, but there is a small degree of merit in the Home Office's contrary view I'm afraid. Unless there is a problem evidencing the qualified person status of the EEA national, in such cases were re-entry unaccompied may be required at a later date, forethought should be given to applying to join eea national even when in reality the family member will be accompanying the non-eea family member.

[esamjones]

If family permit endorsed to 'accompany', the EEA national did not need for the purposes of the family permit application to prove they were a qualified person, as they could rely upon the initial right to reside, in that case however, as exercising treaty rights was not a requirement that needed to be statisfied, subsequent re-entry would arguably need to be under the same terms, i.e. accompanying. An unreasonable rwquirement in my view, but there is a small degree of merit in the Home Office's contrary view I'm afraid. Unless there is a problem evidencing the qualified person status of the EEA national, in such cases were re-entry unaccompied may be required at a later date, forethought should be given to applying to join eea national even when in reality the family member will be accompanying the non-eea family member.

Thanks, but I don't quite get the point. We have no interest in residing in the UK, just visiting. My wife holds permanent Danish residency so really there should be no problems in travel to the UK. (I am a UK national resident in Denmark as well).

[el patron]

Republic of Ireland should allow her entry without a visa, on the strength of the Danish residence card, thus gaining entry to the Common Travel Area at least. Of course the UK should accept the Danish card too, but as yet they do not. You do raise a point though as in effect the Surinder Singh rules as I see them may not be easily applicable to short visits back to the UK. That will take some more thought...!

[allenboo]

El patron.

Is it true that Ireland recognised and accept eea family member residence cards from other countries. Please do you have the link where this is stated.

[el patron]

Locate timatic visachecker and input details (this is used by the airlines), you can access it via star-alliance website. I also know this as I have had clients return to the UK from Malta via the Republic of Ireland after undertaking 'Surinder Singh', without an Irish visa or UK family permit, they subsequently received EEA2 residence cards from the Home Office.

[singh09]

Hi!

I got EEA Permit(to acc ... name of wife) as my wife is norwegian. I have some question:

1. That measn for first time to enter to uk my wife should be. Bez i m thing i will travel to India first and then to uk

2. If i will go to uk with my wife then can i go to india and come back to uk or my wife need to be with me for every visit?


Please help me

[el patron]

If she remains in the UK you can make the return trip from India on your own to join her again in UK (provided she has been there for less than three months or if longer is exercising treaty rights )

[singh09]

Thanks for reply i really appreciate!

But i got 'EEA family permit to accompany' so can i make return trip at my own?

Please guide me..

[Sleiman]

I have just been denied access through Ryanair to Birmingham and I wanted to enquire about the rightfulness of Ryanair's decision.

I'm a Lebanese citizen, married to a Spanish citizen and holder of a Spanish permanent residency card.
I have applied and obtained an EEA Family permit
We are both physicians and have job offers from the NHS starting in 2 weeks.
We have a very young baby girl and my wife cares for her and so cannot accompany me to look for house, furnish it, etc etc..
I traveled without her on the 29th of November with a prior EEA Permit, with no problems,
Today i wished to travel again to receive the keys of the house, furnish it, contract all the utilities... , before my wife and our baby girl move in to the house this same week.
However, on the passport control desk of Ryanair in Barcelona (Spain), they denied me right to boarding, alleging that I cannot travel if i'm not accompanied by my wife during the trip (In contradiction to what had happened on the 29th of November, when I entered the alone, also traveling with Ryanair) They supported this decision to a call they supposedly made to the immigration authorities at Birmingham, these same authorities that let me pass without any hindrance or resistance on the 29th of November. They haven't provided any proof of this decision nor the call, and didn't even allow me to explain myself to the immigration authorities they supposedly called.

Are Ryanair right in their decision? can I present a claim against them? I have sent an email to the Home Office and I'm waiting on their reply

[Obie]

The Immigration officer may well have been within their rights to refuse you entry if you had entered without your wife, but Ryanair has no right to, once it has been ascertained that you have a valid EU Residence card.

To facilitate what you are doing, you may require a visitors visa .

Your right to move and enter UK without a visa is dependent on you joining or accompanying your wife, non of which is happening in this case.

[Casa]

Airlines will probably weigh up the risk of being fined for permitting boarding which later results in a refused entry by border control officers, against the lesser cost of a claim by the traveller denied boarding. Budget airline staff in particular often have scant understanding of permits/visas. My husband almost missed his flight on returning from a short trip to Spain when travelling alone with a ILR visa and the Easyjet junior check-in staff queried his right to travel!
Having said that, in this case Obie has given you sound advice.

[Obie]

Ryanair will not be fined for anything if they allow a person with residence card to board and the UK immigration later find that the person was not joining a family member in the UK.

Ryanair are not required to do immigration checks neither are they required to guarantee that someone with right travel documents or visa will be certain to enter.

[Casa]

Having previously been employed (in the distant past) by a British airline, this was contrary to instructions regarding legal liability. Rules of course may change but I found this recent information interesting from the International Airline Passengers Association (IAPA)

With respect to passenger documentation in general, airlines can be fined for boarding passengers without the proper documentation in most countries, but carriers often state that it is the passenger's responsibility to carry the proper passports and visas for each country being visited and/or transited during a particular journey.

[Obie]

It will be perverse for me to dear to step into your area of expertise on airline boarding terms and conditions.

I am merely stating that Airline are not bound to ascertain a person will be granted entry before allowing them to board.

Provided the right documents are in possession of the passenger, that should be the end of the matter, should it not?

In this case the UK regulation states a person with a qualifying EEA state residence card is entitled to travel to the UK without a visa.

That right to enter without visa is not subject to a guarantee of right of admission..

The UK then put a condition on border official to ensure the EEA national has a right of admission under regulation 11 before allowing him or her family members a right of entry into the UK . This approach us consistent with the frontier protocol that exist between the UK and other memberstate, save for Ireland .

What the airline is doing is enquiring if a person will have a right of admission. That is the wrong question in my opinion.

The question should be, whether or not the person has a right to travel without an EEA family permit or a UK entry clearance.

[Casa]

It will be perverse for me to dear to step into your area of expertise on airline boarding terms and conditions.

I am merely stating that Airline are not bound to ascertain a person will be granted entry before allowing them to board.

Provided the right documents are in possession of the passenger, that should be the end of the matter, should it not?

In this case the UK regulation states a person with a qualifying EEA state residence card is entitled to travel to the UK without a visa.

That right to enter without visa is not subject to a guarantee of right of admission..

The UK then put a condition on border official to ensure the EEA national has a right of admission under regulation 11 before allowing him or her family members a right of entry into the UK . This approach us consistent with the frontier protocol that exist between the UK and other memberstate, save for Ireland .

What the airline is doing is enquiring if a person will have a right of admission. That is the wrong question in my opinion.

The question should be, whether or not the person has a right to travel without an EEA family permit or a UK entry clearance.

"The question should be, whether or not the person has a right to travel without an EEA family permit or a UK entry clearance." ...and for the benefit of the OP, do they?