EEA Family Permit: Do I need to enter the UK with my spouse?

[nordsee]

Hi everybody,

is it required to enter the country together? I will come to the UK a few days earlier in order to sort out living etc and my non EU spouse would join after that. Moreover, I'm currently in Germany making family visits and my spouse is in China finishing her job.

Can I pick her up at the airport?

What if entrance clearing is done in London, but her final destination is Edinburgh?

Thanks in advance

Nordsee

[piyachanbocsa]

Hi everybody,

is it required to enter the country together? I will come to the UK a few days earlier in order to sort out living etc and my non EU spouse would join after that. Moreover, I'm currently in Germany making family visits and my spouse is in China finishing her job.

Can I pick her up at the airport?

What if entrance clearing is done in London, but her final destination is Edinburgh?

Thanks in advance

Nordsee

I'm speaking from personal experience having joined my partner earlier this year (he was already in the UK). If she has the EEA Family Permit sticker in her passport already there shouldn't be any problems with her joining you later. Waiting for her at the final destination is reasonable.

[nordsee]

Thank you very much, piyachanbocsa.

Does someone know where I could find official information since it says "need to travel together"?

EDIT:

I have just found this

"If the family member is not travelling with the EEA national or will not be joining them in the UK, they will not qualify for an EEA family permit and would need to apply for entry clearance under the Immigration Rules and pay the relevant fee if they want to come to the UK."

Source: https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... ily-permit

So all fine then?

[vinny]

All fine.

(b) a family member of an EEA national with a right to accompany that EEA national or join that EEA national in the United Kingdom;

[nordsee]

All fine.

(b) a family member of an EEA national with a right to accompany that EEA national or join that EEA national in the United Kingdom;

Great. Thanks, Vinnie.

I just wanted to make sure, as I'm not a UK resident at the moment and will just move there a week or so before my wife does.

[vinny]

13 also applies to both.

[ElizabethApricot]

Speaking from personal experience, there shouldn't be a problem. I (non-EEA) joined my EEA husband in December with an EEA Family Permit. He couldn't get the day off to meet me at Gatwick. I explained this to the officer and she was fine with it.