EEA PR card to Naturalisation timeline

[dynax]

Hi all,

I am currently applying for the EEA PR card and I am slightly confused about how long I have to wait to then apply for Naturalisation to become a British citizen.

Below is an extract from the AN booklet:
But remember that, unless you are married to or the civil partner of a British citizen, you should normally have held permanent resident status for 12 months before applying for naturalisation. This means that you may need to wait until you have been in the United Kingdom for 6 years before you can apply. When you apply for a permanent residence document the evidence that you supply for your EEA(PR) application must be for a 5 year period that ended at least a year before you want to apply for citizenship.

For example:
If you apply for Permanent Residence on 1st December 2015 and want to apply for Citizenship once that application is decided, you should send evidence that shows you were exercising Treaty rights as a qualified person or family member from 1 December 2009 to 1 December 2014.

Assuming the following:
- I send off my EEA PR application in November 2016
- The evidence provided is for my continuous 5 year residency period spans the dates between September 2011 - September 2016
- I receive my EEA PR card in May 2016

I believe the date stated in the EEA PR card is the date of issuance, i.e. in the situation above it would be May 2016.

Does this mean I would have to wait for May 2016 + 12 months to apply for naturalisation? This is what I was told on the UK Visas and Immigration helpline for Enquiries for European citizens.

I find this strange though, what if someone has lived here for 20 years and only applies for the EEA PR card now? will they then also need to wait an extra 12 months after receiving the card to apply for naturalisation?

Thanks for your help!

[noajthan]

Its very simple.
Date of issue of DCPR/PRC is immaterial.
Date of acquisition of PR status is key.

It also depends on whether you are making a section 6(1) or 6(2) BNA naturalisation application - which is yours

Its the same for your hypothetical 20 year veteran friend and whether s/he is making a 6(1) or 6(2) application. Again date of DCPR is irrelevant.
Ofcourse there was no 'PR' 20 years ago and such a migrant may well have been gifted ILR under different rules in force at the time.
Their application would also depend on the quality of supporting evidence they retained over a 20 year period.
Pro applicants(/power users) would ofcourse keep everything on file.
It all depends in which parallel universe they inhabit.

[LilyLalilu]

The relevant date is the date PR was acquired by operation of law after 5 years of exercising treaty rights, not the issue date of the DCPR. The date PR was acquired is normally recorded on the Caseworker Information Database and you should apply for a fast-track SAR or make an NCS appointment to establish which date has been recorded.
If someone has been in the UK for 20 years +, they may have been granted ILR upon arrival (or upon application later on) - check old passports for ILR stamp and relevant dates.

[dynax]

Hi noajthan,

I wasn't aware of the 6(1) and 6(2) BNA application, but a quick google search yielded that to apply under 6(2) one must be married to a British citizen, is this correct? If so, I would be applying under 6(1).

Either way, what you say makes perfect sense. Nonetheless, the following questions remain:

- If there is only the date of issue printed on the EEA PR card, how do the people evaluating your naturalisation application actually know when you have acquired PR status? Assuming this is actually recorded in some government system somewhere, how do I know/find out myself which date they have officially granted me PR status for?

- Why did the person on UK Visa helpline say she advises everyone to at least wait 12 months after the EEA PR card is issued before applying for naturalisation?

Many thanks!


*EDIT*: I believe LilyLalilu answered my first question with the following:
--> The date PR was acquired is normally recorded on the Caseworker Information Database and you should apply for a fast-track SAR or make an NCS appointment to establish which date has been recorded.

Why don't they give out this information with the EEA PR card directly as opposed to one having to request this again via a different procedure?! (more of a rhetorical question)

With regards to my second question: Are these UK Visa people just terribly misinformed then? It appears that half the time the information they give out is inaccurate..?

[LilyLalilu]

Why don't they give out this information with the EEA PR card directly as opposed to one having to request this again via a different procedure?! (more of a rhetorical question)

Believe me, I have asked myself the same question so many times - just causes more work for everyone involved. They can't include it on the card as I believe it comes in a prescribed format according to EU regs but a simple note with the application would certainly not do any harm.

With regards to my second question: Are these UK Visa people just terribly misinformed then? It appears that half the time the information they give out is inaccurate..?

The helpline is notorious for given out wrong/misleading advice. Maybe it is staffed with underpaid agency workers who do not get the required training, it certainly appears so.

If there is only the date of issue printed on the EEA PR card, how do the people evaluating your naturalisation application actually know when you have acquired PR status?

They check the Caseworker Information database. But I will also send them my SAR which shows the PR date, better safe than sorry
As explained above, you should submit a Fast-track SAR to find out which date they have recorded for you or make an NCS appointment (NCS has a direct line to the HO and can find out but the appointment obviously costs £40-£65 so I'd rather go for the free SAR if I were you.

[noajthan]

Hi noajthan,

I wasn't aware of the 6(1) and 6(2) BNA application, but a quick google search yielded that to apply under 6(2) one must be married to a British citizen, is this correct? If so, I would be applying under 6(1).

Either way, what you say makes perfect sense. Nonetheless, the following questions remain:

- If there is only the date of issue printed on the EEA PR card, how do the people evaluating your naturalisation application actually know when you have acquired PR status? Assuming this is actually recorded in some government system somewhere, how do I know/find out myself which date they have officially granted me PR status for?

- Why did the person on UK Visa helpline say she advises everyone to at least wait 12 months after the EEA PR card is issued before applying for naturalisation?

Many thanks!


*EDIT*: I believe LilyLalilu answered my first question with the following:
--> The date PR was acquired is normally recorded on the Caseworker Information Database and you should apply for a fast-track SAR or make an NCS appointment to establish which date has been recorded.

Why don't they give out this information with the EEA PR card directly as opposed to one having to request this again via a different procedure?! (more of a rhetorical question)

With regards to my second question: Are these UK Visa people just terribly misinformed then? It appears that half the time the information they give out is inaccurate..?

Because she has made an elementary school girl error.
STEP AWAY FROM THE PHONE. Do not rely on helpline.
As you have discovered adequate training has not yet made it to telephone 'advice' call centres.

UK has rolled out an ill-thought out and not-joined up policy;
- it is based on making what is an optional EU document (DCPR/PRC) mandatory for EEA applicants who are naturalising.

The design of EU card does not accommodate UK's use of the card (so no acquisition date is shown on it). Its an EU standard document after all - not a UK one, so why would it.

Yes, HO use 'CID' database system no doubt whirring away in bowels of HO HQ.
No you can't access it directly; NCS can (or else you can request a SAR).

And yes, the one benefit of a BC spouse (in migration context) is to make a 6(2) application; no extra wait and 3 years residence.
(It still takes 5 years to acquire PR though).

You'll be able to laugh about all this - one day.

[cecilenice]

Hello,

I am an EEA national. I applied for my PR card in July and received it last week (it took just over 4 months). The PR card is dated last week. However, when I applied for my PR card, I covered over 6 years (as indicated in a cover letter I added to my application).

I applied for citizenship this morning (I had already passed the Life in UK test + English test).

I used the checking service (I did not want to send my passport). The employee checking my paperwork was slightly concerned that my PR card was not back dated so she called a contact at the PR services end. She gave my PR number and they confirmed that in their file I was granted permanent resident status in Aug. 2014 (and not Nov. 2016 as indicated on the PR card).

For information, the date to put in your citizenship application (section 1.3) is that on the PR card.

Hope this helps.

[noajthan]

Hello,

I am an EEA national. I applied for my PR card in July and received it last week (it took just over 4 months). The PR card is dated last week. However, when I applied for my PR card, I covered over 6 years (as indicated in a cover letter I added to my application).

I applied for citizenship this morning (I had already passed the Life in UK test + English test).

I used the checking service (I did not want to send my passport). The employee checking my paperwork was slightly concerned that my PR card was not back dated so she called a contact at the PR services end. She gave my PR number and they confirmed that in their file I was granted permanent resident status in Aug. 2014 (and not Nov. 2016 as indicated on the PR card).

For information, the date to put in your citizenship application (section 1.3) is that on the PR card.

Hope this helps.

Welcome.

The issue date on DCPR/PRC is nothing to do with date of acquisition of PR status.
AN Q1.3 relates to ILR not PR.
Using PR 'issue date' in AN form is only going to confuse poorly-trained and/or overworked (time-poor) caseworkers.

[ohara]

You should not have completed the question in 1.3 as you have not been granted ILR.

Technically all PR cards and DCPR's are backdated; due to the nature of how PR works you can only apply for one once you have acquired PR so your PR date will always be some time in the past.