Possible barriers to Surrinder Singh – any solutions?

[Psychprincess]

Hello, everybody!

Thank you sincerely to this forum! I have been reading for about three days, and thanks to you lovely people I have discovered the Surrinder Singh route. Please do sympathise with me – I’m very new to this ‘route’.

Some background:
I am British and have been with my non-eu partner for 7 years. Have been a part-time student and have only been able to spend summers with him. I am planning to move to his country in May, when I finish my degree. However, he may be getting a job offer in Norway, subject to him passing an upcoming exam, which he will take up approx. one year from now. I am working on obtaining a teaching certificate in English Language. We were planning to settle there permanently, but since hearing about the Surrinder Singh route, settling in the UK has become more possible and I’m now doing my research.

Problems

1. We’re not yet married, and were hoping to save up over the next couple of years to do this. Does Surrinder Singh only apply if I marry him and take him to Norway on an EEA permit? He was planning to go on a work permit, not as my EEA spouse.

2. If the answer is NO, would marrying after we settle in Norway be considered ‘creating and strengthening family life?’.

3. Under requirement to ‘create and strengthen family life’, would we be in a better position if we don’t live together in his home country first? Such as, make Norway our first place of living together?

4. He will likely have a job offer before I do (I may not even get one!). Will this compromise my position as the ‘economic migrant’? From what I've seen so far, it looks like it must be the EEA national who is moving for the purpose of work, not the non-EU partner!

5. Very silly question, but you never know! Would I still be a qualified person if I studied in Norway rather than worked?

Thank you everybody,
Psych.

[Dirk]

The EEA national needs to exercise treaty rights, being a student does that.

Getting married massively helps and it would allow you to work while the UK RC is pending. Don't worry about living together before marriage it will have no effect at all. Where you get married is immaterial too. If you can't afford a big wedding do a simple ceremony and have a blessing or formal marriage ceremony later, the piece of paper is what counts for immigration.

Centre of life is not as daunting as it sounds it is a very weak test. In the past some people did 4 hours a week work or registered companies which never traded and spent the bulk of their time in the UK as visitors. It is designed to stop that. If you really did live in Norway you will have no trouble.

[noajthan]

Hello, everybody!

Thank you sincerely to this forum! I have been reading for about three days, and thanks to you lovely people I have discovered the Surrinder Singh route. Please do sympathise with me – I’m very new to this ‘route’.

Some background:
I am British and have been with my non-eu partner for 7 years. Have been a part-time student and have only been able to spend summers with him. I am planning to move to his country in May, when I finish my degree. However, he may be getting a job offer in Norway, subject to him passing an upcoming exam, which he will take up approx. one year from now. I am working on obtaining a teaching certificate in English Language. We were planning to settle there permanently, but since hearing about the Surrinder Singh route, settling in the UK has become more possible and I’m now doing my research.

Problems

1. We’re not yet married, and were hoping to save up over the next couple of years to do this. Does Surrinder Singh only apply if I marry him and take him to Norway on an EEA permit? He was planning to go on a work permit, not as my EEA spouse.

SS is perhaps more straightforward if married.
However unmarried partners can use SS if they have been in a durable relationship akin to marriage for at least 2 years.

(Note: that does not simply mean being boyfriend/girlfriend for 2+ years)

2. If the answer is NO, would marrying after we settle in Norway be considered ‘creating and strengthening family life?’.

The SS path would not have started until you marry. But possibly.

Note: All these centre of life type requirements are part a UK framework (or 'complications') that HMG have put up around SS.

Be aware the UK rules & regulations (tests to meet) may change over time; UK seems to be tightening up in this area.

3. Under requirement to ‘create and strengthen family life’, would we be in a better position if we don’t live together in his home country first? Such as, make Norway our first place of living together?

My understanding is it makes no difference.

Many already married couples & families ship out from UK (or a.n.other 'home' country) & take this route. They don't start their whole life in the new country.

4. He will likely have a job offer before I do (I may not even get one!). Will this compromise my position as the ‘economic migrant’? From what I've seen so far, it looks like it must be the EEA national who is moving for the purpose of work, not the non-EU partner!

Correct - it is the EEA national's economic activity (exercising treaty rights as a qualified person) that counts.
The non-EEA national's activity is relatively unimportant (in immigration terms & for SS).

You will need to be working in the host country for this to work out.

5. Very silly question, but you never know! Would I still be a qualified person if I studied in
Norway rather than worked?

The UK (at least) appears to only accept & recognise the worker (or self-employed) category of qualified person on the SS route.

Thank you everybody,
Psych.

Some answers above.

About shifting your centre of life. Some people undertake SS for a relatively short time, maybe 3-6 or 9 months.

So if you are contemplating living/working abroad for a year or more it should be quite straightforward to prove you have moved your whole centre of life to the host country.

It also involves integrating with the local populace & community so could include, for example:

• taking host country language classes;
  joining a church or other religious entity; a gym; a community organisation (etc etc);
  buying or renting property;
  starting a business;
  putting (any) children into local nursery / schools
  & etc

Bon voyage & viva free movement!

[Casa]

@noajthan The gov.uk site updated Nov 15 still shows the only qualifying family members for Surinder Singh as:
spouse or civil partner
child or grandchild (or the child or grandchild of their spouse or civil partner) and under 21 years of age or dependent on them
parent or grandparent (or of their spouse or civil partner) and dependent on them

It doesn't appear that there has been any new concession for 'unmarried durable partners' to use the Surinder Singh route, unless I've missed something?

[noajthan]

Thoughts on SS as a student - it appears the jury is still out on that one:
http://www.immigrationboards.com/eea-ro ... 73229.html

[noajthan]

@noajthan The gov.uk site updated Nov 15 still shows the only qualifying family members for Surinder Singh as:
spouse or civil partner
child or grandchild (or the child or grandchild of their spouse or civil partner) and under 21 years of age or dependent on them
parent or grandparent (or of their spouse or civil partner) and dependent on them

It doesn't appear that there has been any new concession for 'unmarried durable partners' to use the Surinder Singh route, unless I've missed something?

Casa, my understanding is that the case of law of Cain extends SS rights to citizens in a durable relationship.

Kamila Santos Campelo Cain v Secretary of State for the Home Department IA/40868/2013:

The Upper Tribunal noted: notwithstanding that Surinder Singh… concerns family members as defined by the Directive, we cannot see any distinction in principle between [it] and the case of the appellant before us.

In our judgement, the exercise of the right of free movement by an EEA national is as likely to be adversely affected by the inability of a durable partner to reside with the EEA national in the host State, as it would be were his or her spouse to be denied residence status. … we do consider that the Surinder Singh principle does extend to persons such as the appellant who are in a durable relationship…

Ref: https://www.ein.org.uk/blog/judges-thwa ... gh-applied

An example from the forum:
http://www.immigrationboards.com/eea-ro ... ml#p911121

[vinny]

The UKVI are apparently appealing the judgment.

[Casa]

The UKVI are apparently appealing the judgment.

Thanks Vinny. Can we assume then that anyone applying under SS as a 'durable partner' at present would be refused and then need to appeal?

[noajthan]

So, for original poster, the best bet may be something like:

• get married;
  move to target EU country;
  start a language school in target country or otherwise get a job;
  (as, under UK interpretation of SS, exercising treaty rights by being a student may not be enough);
  spouse operates as the dependent family member of an EEA national, may work if he chooses;
  have a great life whilst accumulating documentary evidence supporting re-entry into UK via SS;

- you may do so well you decide to stay on instead of returning to UK.

[vinny]

The UKVI are apparently appealing the judgment.

Thanks Vinny. Can we assume then that anyone applying under SS as a 'durable partner' at present would be refused and then need to appeal?

Yes. They are still expecting applicants to satisfy Regulation 9. They have not yet amended it to include extended family members. They also expect the British citizen to be exercising treaty rights as a worker or self-employed person or was so residing before returning to the United Kingdom.

[Psychprincess]

Hello all, thanks very much for all the excellent advice! I am extremely impressed with all your knowledge!

I am guilty of causing some confusion here. My issue about getting married is - do we have to be married prior to moving to Norway (ie. not prior to moving to the UK)? Would it still be applicable if we married in Norway?

Example:
Move to his non-EU country in May, stay there six months as planned.
Move to Norway, get married (we don't know when).
Stay there 6 months to 1 year, move back to the the UK, as a married couple on an EEA family permit.

You all have much better knowledge than me about SS, is our timing of marriage deterimental to us being able to use this route? Will we need to be brave and marry whilst in his country?

Very grateful,
Psych.

[noajthan]

Hello all, thanks very much for all the excellent advice! I am extremely impressed with all your knowledge!

I am guilty of causing some confusion here. My issue about getting married is - do we have to be married prior to moving to Norway (ie. not prior to moving to the UK)? Would it still be applicable if we married in Norway?

Example:
Move to his non-EU country in May, stay there six months as planned.
Move to Norway, get married (we don't know when).
Stay there 6 months to 1 year, move back to the the UK, as a married couple on an EEA family permit.

You all have much better knowledge than me about SS, is our timing of marriage deterimental to us being able to use this route? Will we need to be brave and marry whilst in his country?

Very grateful,
Psych.

Marriage in immigration terms is a very clinical & unemotional affair.
All HO needs to know is that you are married and they will want to be sure it is not a marriage of convenience. (Under EU rules there is not even a hard & fast requirement to be co-habiting).

For SS route to work you just need to be:
living in a.n.other EU country;
undertaking some economic activity (work or self-employment as UK don't seem to accept students on this route)
married - so that your spouse is classed as a dependent family member with you whilst you exercise treaty rights.

The order of those things including when you marry does not (afaik) actually matter.

As soon as all the conditions are in place the SS clock will start.
So I believe your example outline plan is perfectly acceptable.

[Raj5]

The UKVI are apparently appealing the judgment.

Vinny, any news on status of the appeal of the Home Office in Santos Campelo Cain v Secretary of State for the Home Department: IA/40868/2013 (17 October 2014)?