CoA no right of work but married

[Ale23]

I presume your husband is suspended without pay. Does the contract of employment allow him to accept a temporary job while suspended?

Has he contacted the local job centre? You may be eligible for benefits. Your husband is the spouse of an EEA national who is a 'qualified person', and is therefore legally allowed to work. "Possession of an RC [...] may under no circumstances be made a precondition for the exercise of a right or the completion of an administrative formality." (2004/38/EC Article 25(1).)

Hi Richard,

Yes we know that and he tried to explain that to his head office. He showed the written laws, all of the articles of EU, however they still cannot allow him to work as with no actual proof they are probably scared to be fined.
He has been suspended without pay, that's correct. They told him he can go back once he will have a CoA confirming his right to work but at this stage they say if HO cannot confirm not even them can, therefore he has to be suspended.
Unluckily the laws are tricky, requesting a RC is not mandatory but at the same time it is since without it employers do not allow you to work.

[khers]

Hey all
the most dramatic moment expected arrived. My husband's employer found insufficient proof for him to keep working and yesterday they decided to send him home until he provides a CoA.
We are quite frustrated to say the least, we sent email to HO and we just received exactly the same copy of previous short CoA, sent a letter to case worker (no answer so far) and yesterday we decided to send them further email and also wrote a complaint to their address.
We are unsure on what to do now. It would be very difficult for him not to work until the decision taken and also in that case, if they decide not to issue him with a RC that would have been time waste.
If my husband goes back to Italy (my home country) waiting for them to decide (it should take 3 more months now since we applied in June) could that affect their decision? Leaving UK for 3 months would be a reason for them not to grant him a RC?
Also, is there anything else we can do to obtain this damn CoA with right to work?
Thanks to anybody who is helping with that!

Don't forget to send the complaint to the "complaint team" because if you write to the caseworker regarding that most probably you won't receive any answer.

https://www.gov.uk/government/organisat ... -procedure

If you get back to Italy it will depend on the nationality of your husband. If he is a visa national but he has a valid EEA family permit or the Code 1A stamp valid for six months he wouldn't have trouble coming back to the UK, and it will not have effect on the application. You should always have the documents regarding your application and support papers in the case these are required by the immigration officers when arriving to the UK.

If he is a visa national without EEA family permit, Code 1A stamp or a residence card of a family member of an EEA citizen issued by other member state (for instance the permesso di soggiorno di familiare di citadino UE issued in Italy), he will have to apply for an EEA Family Permit to come back to the UK.

The application is ongoing so at least you cancel it, this will continue until it's decided.

Keep trying to get the revised CoA.

Best Regards,

James

Ciao James,

Thanks for your info and support. Unluckily we haven't been as lucky as him. I sent an email to them after a few days of receiving the biometrics and CoA but all we got was a copy of first CoA even dated the same. Hence, I wrote a letter to the case worker addressed to the same address there was on our letter. This happened on the 9th but no reply yet.
Also, a couple of days ago I sent a further email to nweuro but addressing it to the name of caseworker (this time the automatic reply was: please allow us 21 days for a reply and you want to appeal for a CoA your request will be addressed to the specific team). Therefore, on the same day I also wrote an email to the complaint team requesting a CoA because of providing enough proof of exercising treaty right and bla bla bla.
I called a few times their Visa Query number but they were extremely reluctant and rude to say the least.
Concerning my husband's visa, yes he has an Italian 5 years permesso di soggiorno and to come to UK a 6 months FP which he was using to work. However, that expired in July and he was hoping to get CoA in order for him to keep working. His company's hr already have all of the docs of our requests to HO but they said it is not enough for them so they suspended him.
That's why we are thinking at this stage is better for him to go back to Italy and wait until decision has been made. We are aware that it would be impossible for him to be back to UK, but he will stay there for the length of 3(4?) months until he (if?) gets the RC. That's why I was asking if staying out of the country for 3 months will affect the decision. The helpline wasnt helpful, he said he wouldnt know and also that if he applied for a UK document why would he have to leave? That would mean according to them that he doesnt want to stay. Once I told him he would have wanted to stay but only if he was allowed to work-how do you think we gonna live??-and that we thought that UK was gonna follow EU regulations he just said: -Thats a private decision you need to take, you were supposed to come with higher funds, your husband can reside according to the law but its up to the government to decide who can or cannot work in its country.
I just wanted to smash the phone but hey! Thats the law so who am I to go against it???
Anyway, the plan is, if he gets the RC I dont think he will need another permit to come back to UK am I right?
If he will not get it, well that means that was not destiny for us to be here.
I am just thinking maybe is it because I applied for a QP and he for a RC just after 3 months I was here?
It is probably not enough for them to see I am a qualified person (even though its not what it states on their website). And obviously the previous 5 years dont even count as I was away for 2 years.
I dont really know what to think, we are just overwhelmed and extremely frustrated!

Buongiorno Alessandra,

I don't think that's the law, but the interpretation they are trying to give to the law. It's not scaremongering as someone said before, but the reality. They are giving a hard time to the EEA family members and the process is changing each day to make it more restrictive. That's clear.

Your husband will be able to come back to the UK if he is a visa national through Code 1a stamp at the port of entry and showing his Italian EEA family member residence card plus the documents (CoA, birth certificate). They say that if the applicant leave the country that could affect their application, but as far as I know I haven't seen an application denied because the person has temporarily travelled overseas. They only tell you that if he is a visa national he will need to apply for an EEA family permit to re-enter. So your husband can go to Italy, and the procedure will continue until they have reached a decision.

Your complaint will be answered, it takes a couple of weeks but they will. You could escalate the complaint.

The CoA they have sent you is a duplicate not a revised CoA with right to work, so they are still considering your request. As I said before, now they have established a 21 days period to answer a request for a CoA or revised CoA.

Best Regards,

James.

[Ale23]

Buongiorno Alessandra,

I don't think that's the law, but the interpretation they are trying to give to the law. It's not scaremongering as someone said before, but the reality. They are giving a hard time to the EEA family members and the process is changing each day to make it more restrictive. That's clear.

Your husband will be able to come back to the UK if he is a visa national through Code 1a stamp at the port of entry and showing his Italian EEA family member residence card plus the documents (CoA, birth certificate). They say that if the applicant leave the country that could affect their application, but as far as I know I haven't seen an application denied because the person has temporarily travelled overseas. They only tell you that if he is a visa national he will need to apply for an EEA family permit to re-enter. So your husband can go to Italy, and the procedure will continue until they have reached a decision.

Your complaint will be answered, it takes a couple of weeks but they will. You could escalate the complaint.

The CoA they have sent you is a duplicate not a revised CoA with right to work, so they are still considering your request. As I said before, now they have established a 21 days period to answer a request for a CoA or revised CoA.

Best Regards,

James.

Buon pomeriggio James,

How could we escalate the complaint? Do you think it will speed up the process of getting a revised CoA?
Also, are you really positive on us getting it for real? As both the letter we received and the helpline insisted they do not revise it until a decision has been made. It is a bit confusing. I just hope that keep stalking them and complaining wont affect badly our application.
You mentioned the British Ombudsman which I had never heard before to be honest. I had a look on the internet but I quite cannot find a specific address where I could send our complaint.
Thanks for all your help and support, I am glad we found someone like you on this forum that knows exactly what he's talking about.
Immigration lawyers are so freaking expensive and they don't even ensure your application would be considered. I tried to look for free lawyers services but nothing came up. So I am very happy we have found you!

[khers]

Buongiorno Alessandra,

I don't think that's the law, but the interpretation they are trying to give to the law. It's not scaremongering as someone said before, but the reality. They are giving a hard time to the EEA family members and the process is changing each day to make it more restrictive. That's clear.

Your husband will be able to come back to the UK if he is a visa national through Code 1a stamp at the port of entry and showing his Italian EEA family member residence card plus the documents (CoA, birth certificate). They say that if the applicant leave the country that could affect their application, but as far as I know I haven't seen an application denied because the person has temporarily travelled overseas. They only tell you that if he is a visa national he will need to apply for an EEA family permit to re-enter. So your husband can go to Italy, and the procedure will continue until they have reached a decision.

Your complaint will be answered, it takes a couple of weeks but they will. You could escalate the complaint.

The CoA they have sent you is a duplicate not a revised CoA with right to work, so they are still considering your request. As I said before, now they have established a 21 days period to answer a request for a CoA or revised CoA.

Best Regards,

James.

Buon pomeriggio James,

How could we escalate the complaint? Do you think it will speed up the process of getting a revised CoA?
Also, are you really positive on us getting it for real? As both the letter we received and the helpline insisted they do not revise it until a decision has been made. It is a bit confusing. I just hope that keep stalking them and complaining wont affect badly our application.
You mentioned the British Ombudsman which I had never heard before to be honest. I had a look on the internet but I quite cannot find a specific address where I could send our complaint.
Thanks for all your help and support, I am glad we found someone like you on this forum that knows exactly what he's talking about.
Immigration lawyers are so freaking expensive and they don't even ensure your application would be considered. I tried to look for free lawyers services but nothing came up. So I am very happy we have found you!

Ciao Alessandra,

When the complaints team answer your enquiry then they will explain you how to escalate the complaint if they not uphold it. There are two or three stages in the complaints procedure, until you reach the independent team who will decide to uphold or not your complaint, and then you will be able to escalate it to the Ombudsman.

https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/consu ... n-england/

In this case you will have to escalate the complaint to the Parliamentary Ombudsman:

https://www.ombudsman.org.uk/

You don't have to feel threatened by the caseworker or any other person working for the UKVI when complaining. The process must be strictly followed by law, and after an internal review, the complaint is considered by an independent team, which is something like internal affairs a section of the Home Office that even the UKVI officers are afraid of, like it is the case of many public institutions. So they will follow the rules strictly when handling the complaint, because not doing so could derive in a difficult legal process.

You are only requesting your rights to be respected according to the regulations, and the caseworker hasn't got any reason to feel stalked and when you submit your complaint they clearly state that it will have no effect on your application. Since is handled by an independent team, this will be followed.

First you've got to exhaust all the complaint procedure through the HO and then you can escalate to the Parliamentary Ombudsman.

It will be a good idea if you can contact your local Member of Parliament, and ask him for his support in this matter, use your postcode to find which MP is the one responsible of the constituents in your area:

http://www.parliament.uk/mps-lords-and-offices/mps/

You can explain him that your husband has been suspended at his job because the HO is not granting you the CoA with right to work and has not answered your request to replace the CoA. Hopefully he will be able to resolve this issue.

I am seeing more and more cases of issue of CoA's with no right to work even in the case of direct EEA family members, it's not scaremongering, but I think it's part of an internal guideline restricting as much as possible the issue of documents allowing to work. Just my humble opinion.

In your case, I think it's the only way you can have your CoA revised. I don't find any legal justification for them to deny you a revised document.

Best Regards,

James.