Dual nationaility sponser and EEA route

[sadmanonatrain]

Hi. Keeping it short for the long timers on here.

I'm British wanting to live with my non-EU wife in the UK. Just to cross out all the potential options; if I were to get a German passport (I was born there and have a German parent, so can obtain it), could I just take my wife as a family member of an official(?) EU citizen (me) to the UK?

All while still retaining my British passport too? (while the UK remains an EU member state, UK nationals can apply for German nationality without the need to renounce UK nationality.)

We're likely going to actually try the 'rights to a family life violating 18,600 pound spouse route' but there's also the SS (where I pretend to be an EU citizen as a British person in Ireland or Malta for 6 months) and the silly sounding naive route above. All before brexit that is.

Hope you can conclusively answer either way.

Cheers.

[tmonaghan]

If you moved to the UK it will be as a British Citizen. Therefore your wife will have to enter the UK on the basis that she can apply for a Spouse Visa. Or you can go through the SS route preferably from Ireland because of the language and also you will be entering Ireland in compliance with the Resident Directive 2004/38/EC And you won't have to translate the evidence into English. The Home Office is making it hard to go through the SS route to the extent of refusing your application on the basis that you moved to Ireland to circonvent UK Immigration rules because you demonstrated that you know the Law too well.

[Wanderer]

Hi. Keeping it short for the long timers on here.

I'm British wanting to live with my non-EU wife in the UK. Just to cross out all the potential options; if I were to get a German passport (I was born there and have a German parent, so can obtain it), could I just take my wife as a family member of an official(?) EU citizen (me) to the UK?

All while still retaining my British passport too? (while the UK remains an EU member state, UK nationals can apply for German nationality without the need to renounce UK nationality.)

We're likely going to actually try the 'rights to a family life violating 18,600 pound spouse route' but there's also the SS (where I pretend to be an EU citizen as a British person in Ireland or Malta for 6 months) and the silly sounding naive route above. All before brexit that is.

Hope you can conclusively answer either way.

Cheers.

You might find it easier to find a way of earning the £18,600 pa, it's not much, and a certain path, all this SS stuff is already being actively targeted by the UKVI and with Brexit etc, always a chance there'll be not enough time and always a change of being marginalised after the event.

[sadmanonatrain]

Thanks for those replies. Yeah the UK spouse visa will likely be first bet, failing that, might as well try Ireland. It's useful to know that the mumurs I've heard over the last year or so look to be true; that route is almost closed due to exploitation. But technically still open right. Worst case scenario, we'll just be enjoying life in Ireland...close enough

This question sounds dumb but I hope someone will entertain it. Please tell me the UK spouse fee of 1,500 pounds only applies if your application is accepted? You don't pay it beforehand and if it fails, well tough luck.

I'm currently working over the income requirement in my current country to accrue the 6 months of proof in payslips. Am I right in saying there's a grace period of being able to return to the UK alone and apply/look for work above the financial limit? 3 months? It's going to be almost impossible getting work through Skype interviews.

I hope you're doing well wherever you are.

[Wanderer]

Thanks for those replies. Yeah the UK spouse visa will likely be first bet, failing that, might as well try Ireland. It's useful to know that the mumurs I've heard over the last year or so look to be true; that route is almost closed due to exploitation. But technically still open right. Worst case scenario, we'll just be enjoying life in Ireland...close enough

This question sounds dumb but I hope someone will entertain it. Please tell me the UK spouse fee of 1,500 pounds only applies if your application is accepted? You don't pay it beforehand and if it fails, well tough luck.

I'm currently working over the income requirement in my current country to accrue the 6 months of proof in payslips. Am I right in saying there's a grace period of being able to return to the UK alone and apply/look for work above the financial limit? 3 months? It's going to be almost impossible getting work through Skype interviews.

I hope you're doing well wherever you are.

The fee is non-returnable - success or fail.

Earning abroad won't count unless you have a firm job offer in UK as well...

Your best bet is to come to UK, find a job or two or three, six months later apply for spouse visa - it won't be refused if there's no skeletons in the cupboard.

Ireland might be fun but it's expensive here and seems the UK and Ireland are working together to block attempts at circumvention of local immigration routes, old Empire still prevails! Ironic that the UK and Ireland's close pre-EU immigration policies came into being to prevent Russian Jewish emigres from heading West escaping persecution. Then a period of rebellion and terrorism, now bosom mates again preventing emigres from the East....

[sadmanonatrain]

Thanks for those replies. Yeah the UK spouse visa will likely be first bet, failing that, might as well try Ireland. It's useful to know that the mumurs I've heard over the last year or so look to be true; that route is almost closed due to exploitation. But technically still open right. Worst case scenario, we'll just be enjoying life in Ireland...close enough

This question sounds dumb but I hope someone will entertain it. Please tell me the UK spouse fee of 1,500 pounds only applies if your application is accepted? You don't pay it beforehand and if it fails, well tough luck.

I'm currently working over the income requirement in my current country to accrue the 6 months of proof in payslips. Am I right in saying there's a grace period of being able to return to the UK alone and apply/look for work above the financial limit? 3 months? It's going to be almost impossible getting work through Skype interviews.

I hope you're doing well wherever you are.

Earning abroad won't count unless you have a firm job offer in UK as well...

Your best bet is to come to UK, find a job or two or three, six months later apply for spouse visa - it won't be refused if there's no skeletons in the cupboard.

Ireland might be fun but it's expensive here and seems the UK and Ireland are working together to block attempts at circumvention of local immigration routes, old Empire still prevails! Ironic that the UK and Ireland's close pre-EU immigration policies came into being to prevent Russian Jewish emigres from heading West escaping persecution. Then a period of rebellion and terrorism, now bosom mates again preventing emigres from the East....

Thanks for replying again. Appreciate your time to offer your thoughts as you have.

Yeah there's no harm trying to get that job offer while abroad and come 'back' together. If that doesn't yield any fruits then I'd have to physically come back. Which leads me to my last question not directly related but relatively important to us, and that's being together during all this shite. Is there a reason why my wife could not come with me on a Visitor visa and apply for the Spouse visa from within the UK using the "Extend or switch in the UK premium service"? But then on the Visitor visa's page it states "you must always show that you’ll leave the UK at the end of your visit" :S

Ironic history indeed. I have a co-worker from Ireland. He said his sister went to the same school as Dara O'Briain. That kinda 'small world' situation renforced the stereotype for me that all Irishmen know each-other lol.

I just wanted Labour to win so badly. Their manifesto specifically promised to scrap the current financial thresholds with something fairer. Specifically.

[Wanderer]

You can't switch from visit visa plus it's highly unlikely one would be granted anyway - with a spouse in the UK the UKVI assumes the intention will be to plead human rights etc, and apply to remain. Which to be fair is not without justification - it's why the no-switching rule was imposed in the first place.

Seems you like the idea of Ireland, why not just do that and worry about SS possibilities later? Although it's expensive here it's nothing like as stressful as the UK (I'm British BTW) - indeed within 20 mins of driving on the M62 back home I was stressed-out, road-raging - again....

Dublin will mop up all the Brexit flighters jobs etc, can already see it happening, counted over 40 cranes building in the financial district, just have to hope housing etc can keep up, because historically it hasn't, even a room in flat in the City centre is €2000 a month..

[sadmanonatrain]

You can't switch from visit visa plus it's highly unlikely one would be granted anyway - with a spouse in the UK the UKVI assumes the intention will be to plead human rights etc, and apply to remain. Which to be fair is not without justification - it's why the no-switching rule was imposed in the first place.

Seems you like the idea of Ireland, why not just do that and worry about SS possibilities later? Although it's expensive here it's nothing like as stressful as the UK (I'm British BTW) - indeed within 20 mins of driving on the M62 back home I was stressed-out, road-raging - again....

Dublin will mop up all the Brexit flighters jobs etc, can already see it happening, counted over 40 cranes building in the financial district, just have to hope housing etc can keep up, because historically it hasn't, even a room in flat in the City centre is €2000 a month..

Thanks for your time and info man. I heard the rent's pretty expensive in Dublin. But we've experienced Auckland city centre too so I'm not sure.

We're thinking of Ireland as an option more and more tbh. Even if it's been targeted supposedly by officials as a circumvention. Is it legal to be rejected this way? Can you appeal? Are there recent examples on this forum with quoted rejection replies? What can you do to not be rejected? 6 months enough? I remember reading an official UK document with case studies and rejected ones included examples people staying for 3 months in hotels regularly visiting the UK etc etc. Does having a child in the EU country help strengthen your application or weaken it?

The thinking goes that the EU route will officially close in the next few years regardless. Might as well try and see another country while I still have the right (though with Ireland it was always relatively easy like AU-NZ). And due to the worst company policy in history my 4.5 month salaried streak of earnings over the threshold has been broken due to being late once. Losing $240 next pay... Breaking the consecutive chain need to apply under CAT A Salaried. But honestly i have no idea if my work is salaried or non-salaried.

Tell me about Dublin, you sound knowledgeable. I heard there's no sun in winter ..lol.. You also sounded like one could get two jobs and work many many hours a week to meet the UK financial threshold?

[Wanderer]

You can't switch from visit visa plus it's highly unlikely one would be granted anyway - with a spouse in the UK the UKVI assumes the intention will be to plead human rights etc, and apply to remain. Which to be fair is not without justification - it's why the no-switching rule was imposed in the first place.

Seems you like the idea of Ireland, why not just do that and worry about SS possibilities later? Although it's expensive here it's nothing like as stressful as the UK (I'm British BTW) - indeed within 20 mins of driving on the M62 back home I was stressed-out, road-raging - again....

Dublin will mop up all the Brexit flighters jobs etc, can already see it happening, counted over 40 cranes building in the financial district, just have to hope housing etc can keep up, because historically it hasn't, even a room in flat in the City centre is €2000 a month..

Thanks for your time and info man. I heard the rent's pretty expensive in Dublin. But we've experienced Auckland city centre too so I'm not sure.

We're thinking of Ireland as an option more and more tbh. Even if it's been targeted supposedly by officials as a circumvention. Is it legal to be rejected this way? Can you appeal? Are there recent examples on this forum with quoted rejection replies? What can you do to not be rejected? 6 months enough? I remember reading an official UK document with case studies and rejected ones included examples people staying for 3 months in hotels regularly visiting the UK etc etc. Does having a child in the EU country help strengthen your application or weaken it?

The thinking goes that the EU route will officially close in the next few years regardless. Might as well try and see another country while I still have the right (though with Ireland it was always relatively easy like AU-NZ). And due to the worst company policy in history my 4.5 month salaried streak of earnings over the threshold has been broken due to being late once. Losing $240 next pay... Breaking the consecutive chain need to apply under CAT A Salaried. But honestly i have no idea if my work is salaried or non-salaried.

Tell me about Dublin, you sound knowledgeable. I heard there's no sun in winter ..lol.. You also sounded like one could get two jobs and work many many hours a week to meet the UK financial threshold?

Sun is out right now! It's a mind-boggling 17c and we are all in shirtsleeves and shorts! Sweat is pouring off!

Winter not to bad, snowed once last time I was here in 2013.

The one thing about these parts, Northern Europe in general is there is work, lots of people who don't want to do it and live off the state as well, certainly here because the benefits are better than UK. If you are willing to work anything is possible, trust me.

Added to that there's always going to be a route to/from UK/Ireland, they were co-joined for nearly 1000 years, EU won't change that. When I was a kid in the 60's there was no EU (for Uk) no FoM but Irish people everywhere, no visa required...