Schengen visa for spouse of EEA national: new rules?

[cinnamon]

Hi

Today my husband (non-EEA national married to EEA national, resident in the UK) went to the VFS in London to apply for a Schengen visa to travel Germany. He was told the rules had changed and that he needed to a apply for a normal tourist Schengen visa. He insisted and got them to process the application as a non-EEA national travelling with their EEA spouse. I initially thought they were making everything up but after re-checking the VFS website it turns out they were right and I had misinterpreted that when preparing the application.

My husband has Residence Card of a Family Member of an EEA National and this is the third Schengen visa we apply apply for (the first one was obtained in 2014 and the second one in January 2016). All visas were applied for with intention of him travelling by himself as, when travelling together, a visa was not required.

I am now trying to understand a few things regarding the new requirements.
1) When did everything change? (at the visa centre they said about 3 months ago)
2) Does my husband now require a visa when we travel together? I checked different countries' VFS sites and some say a visa is not required but then list the documents required to obtain one.
3) When not travelling together, does he really need to apply for a normal tourist visa, pay for the standard fee and show all the standard required documents (bank statements, travel insurance, tickets, accommodation details)?

Thank you for your help.
Cinnamon

[mgb]

Nothing changed. There was always the rule that a family member need a tourist/visitor/business visa if he don't accompany or join the eu citizen.
Only for the schengen area is a exemption for holders of residence cards from schengen countries travelling alone but the uk is not a schengen member.

[cinnamon]

Sorry, I don't quite understand your response.

Things seems to have changed for by husband (UK resident).

1) Travelling WITH the EEA national
BEFORE: we could travel together, no visa required. We just needed to go to the airport together (we always carried our marriage certificate but were never asked for it)
NOW: he needs to apply for a visa. The required documents are passports and marriage certicate. No visa fee but only service charge.

2) Travelling WITHOUT the EEA national
BEFORE: he needed to apply for a visa. The required documents were passports and marriage certicate. No visa fee but only service charge.
NOW: he needs to apply for a visa. The required documents are his passport, bank statements, return tickets, hotel booking or letter of host plus copy of their passport. Visa fee of GBP46.80 plus service charge.

Thanks.

[mgb]

1.
As long as the UK is member of the EU the Residence Card of a Family Member of an EEA National is the visa exemption for your spouse if accompanied by you.
2.
Misinterpretation by you or the VFS.
"NOW" were always the rules.

[RoselovesRomania]

Hi,

I applied a schengen visa as a EU family member in London recently (June 2016). It was for free. And the schengen visa doesn't state if the non-EEA is traveling with or without EEA national. This means that I can travel to schengen area without my EEA spouse, and there is no need to apply for a normal tourist visa.

In other words, the scenario could be:
A. Traveling with EEA spouse
1) visa not required, if preventing proof of marriage
2) apply for schengen visa as a EU family member, for the sake of insurance

B. Traveling without EEA spouse
apply for schengen visa as a EU family member

Well, this is how I understand the schengen visa for family member and a bit my experience. And I always prefer to contact the embassy or consulate instead of VFS. Hope it helps.

Regards

[mgb]

If you have no visa and no residence card for a family member of a eea citizen no airline let you boarding for a flight to the schengen area. Theoretically you can get a visa at the schengen border if you have the marriage certificate with you. But you cannot reach the border via the air.

The germans write family member of a EEA citizen in german to the remarks section of the schengen visa sticker. If you land in Germany the first questions of the border officer is where is the corresponding EEA citizen. If there is none entry can be denied.

If you get a visa without text at the remarks sections on the visa sticker you are simply lucky.