Obtaining Residency Card for EU Citizen Family Member URGENT

[Daveman]

Hello everyone

I want to ask about obtaining a Residency Card for EU Citizen Family Members, or in Spanish a Tarjeta de residencia de familiar de ciudadano de la Unión.

Having asked numerous sources I have come across a lot of confusing information, and I would be so appreciative if you would take the time to help answer the questions that I have.

Firstly, to offer some insight into our situation, I am a British national and my wife is a citizen of the United States of America, we both currently live in Japan, which is where we got married. We wish to move to Madrid in September this year, where I am currently looking for work. I have researched the process of her obtaining the residency card (visa?) required for her to be able to reside in Spain with me for the period of one year.

As a British national, it is my understanding that I can simply travel to Spain, (and once I have found employment and accommodation) apply for and obtain a Spanish Police Residence Certificate (green document/card which bears your NIE number and your address) and Certificado de Empadronamiento.

With these documents and others, and once my wife has arrived in Spain, we can obtain a Certificate of Foreign Marriage Recognition from the British Embassy. This, along with:
•Her Passport
•My Passport
•My Spanish Police Residence Certificate
•2x Completed EX-19 Form
•Stamped Modelo 790 Form for around €10,50
•Medical Insurance for the year (Seguro Medico Completo)
•Proof of my Employment
•Photocopies of everything
•Three passport-sized photographs in color
...allows us to apply for the Residency Card for EU Citizen Family Members at a local Oficina de Extranjeria, or Tarjeta de residencia de familiar de ciudadano de la Unión.

However, I wish to check a couple of things about this:

1. My wife has booked a flight to Spain arriving September 23rd, and currently has no return flight booked. Is she able to enter Spain essentially visa-less (as part of the Schengen Zone 90-day rule) or does she need some kind of visa to actually enter Spain? Which leads me to my next question...
2. Does my wife need some kind of pre-visa, as in some kind of Family Re-grouping Residence Visa, to actually enter Spain and seek the follow-up Residency Card for EU Citizen Family Members? She is from Georgia, and I read on the Consulate of Spain in Miami's website about such a visa, and am now worrying that particular visa is also necessary for her to even be allowed to apply for the EU Citizen Family Member card in Spain as planned.
3. Due to the fact that my wife will be applying for the Residency Card for EU Citizen Family Members during October time, and that I have read it can takes months for the actual card itself to arrive, will that be a problem? As in, will she receive some kind of documentation to prove that she has applied for residency and is not no longer subject to the Schengen Zone 90-day rule as a tourist? I have read you receive a copy of your EX-19 officially stamped, is this true?

Here is the Consulate of Spain in Miami's website page with the information that I read on it:
http://www.exteriores.gob.es/Consulados ... -Visa.aspx

My main concern is number 2.
It seems as though my wife needs to apply for and receive a Family Re-grouping Residence Visa to actually enter Spain on if she wants to apply for the Residency Card for EU Citizen Family Members in Spain which would grant her the freedom to stay for longer than 90 days. Is this true?

Thank you very much everyone. Any information/advice would be greatly appreciated.

[liksah]

No, she does not need to apply for any visa beforehand. Just enter as a normal tourist and then apply for the residence card.

You should get some document proving that you have applied for the residence card which will exempt you from the 90/180 rule. I don't know what this document will be in Spain but usually the receipt or some sort of signed/stamped document from the department will suffice.

I heard that in Spain it does take up to 6 months (which is the maximum allowed anyway..) to get a residence card. I suppose this greatly varies depending on the city but Madrid probably has a high volume of applications to process. I'd imagine smaller places are faster.

Flying without a return ticket is totally legal for your wife's case but the airline might create problems. It might be better to have a refundable one way booked to the UK just in case if you want to show that to the airline at the time of boarding (basically proof that she's leaving the Schengen region within 90 days of arrival). Or if you're planning to visit the UK any time in the middle, you could have that ticket on hand as proof that you're leaving the schengen zone within the stipulated time. Hope this helps.