EEA Permit Issues

[anahelen]

Me and my partner have been in a long distance relationship for a little over 2 years, he is an EU national living in the UK(working) and I am US citizen. We are planning to marry here in the US sometime this year and apply for the EEA spouse permit right after.

From what I've read online, it seems that is fairly normal to be declined this visa and even as a spouse, due to marriage of convenience and especially with Brexit going on which is a great worry of mine because I'd really like to be with him I have no idea what documents would be best to provide? If we should provide proof of relationship (FB chats etc.), we speak everyday and FaceTime daily. I've seen that people have been declined for not providing proof or providing something that the border control didn't like. Would hiring a legal service help? Are there any here in the US?

Please help me with this, any advice would be extremely appreciated or if you've been through this as well.

[Richard W]

I think it really depends on where your supporting documents are to be sent. If they are to be sent to Sheffield, then you should seriously consider just flying to the UK (no visa required) with your husband and declaring that to the Immigration Officer that you have come to live in the UK with your EU national spouse. He should then just place an 'EEA Regulations' stamp in your passport. One thing to consider is the downside of his suddenly concluding that yours is a marriage of convenience - a 50 year old American woman with a 20 year old Romanian husband might set off alarm bells.

At present, family permit applications from the US seem to be avoiding Sheffield and to be being processed promptly. It seems that they are actually being handled in Washington, but do check processing times closer to the time of marriage.

One of the big problems with applications is that the Entry Clearance Officers (ECOs) do not seem to be handling the application in accordance with the regulations. Immigration Officers have the advantage that they are easier to explain matters to.

[anahelen]

There are not significant factors of that may show a marriage of convenience, apart from the long distance relationship. I am 20 and he is 23. Wouldn't they have the right to refuse me at the border and send me back to the US? That sounds a bit scary :/

You can pick where your documents are sent to?

[Richard W]

There are not significant factors of that may show a marriage of convenience, apart from the long distance relationship. I am 20 and he is 23. Wouldn't they have the right to refuse me at the border and send me back to the US? That sounds a bit scary :/

They'd have the right even if you had a family permit. However, unless they believe you are an undesirable or you lack the right documents, they can only refuse to allow you two to enter the UK together if they can argue that your marriage is not demonstrated or is one of convenience. The right documents are passports (or alternatively a national ID card in his case) and matching marriage certificate.

It's your choice. You may prefer the relative reassurance of a family permit. The US seems to have avoided the problems that have plagued most of the rest of the world, and it looks as though Sheffield is getting its act together. The problems seem mostly to be incompetence rather than malice.

You can pick where your documents are sent to?

In principle, no. I must confess I was confused when I last looked at the instructions for applications from the US. Documents for a settlement visa were to be sent to Sheffield, and documents for other visas to Washington. I believe a family permit is an 'other visa' rather than a 'settlement visa', but I found the instruction confusing, and am open to correction.

[anahelen]

Yes, I suppose I would prefer the assurance of the EEA permit, that way I wouldn't waste the money on the flight just in case. Should I provide proof of the relationship(FB chats) etc.? I feel like there is a strong chance they would consider it marriage of convenience but I don't know what to do to get around that; the reason is because of the long distance relationship though in essence we just want to be together and it seems very difficult which is why I considered hiring legal service

[GMB]

I personally agree with Richard W. The main purpose of the Family Permit is to give Visa Nationals (those requiring visas to enter the UK) something to show the airline so that they'll be allowed on the plane to begin with. As a US citizen you're a Non-Visa National, so the airline won't care either way. At passport control in the UK, I've yet to hear anyone report that the Border Force officer tried to do a marriage of convenience evaluation, and I don't see how they could. Para.11(4) of the Immigration (EEA) Regulations is pretty clear. As long as you can prove you are the immediate family member of an EEA national exercising treaty rights in the UK, then you have to be admitted. Even if they don't believe you qualify for some stupid reason, you nonetheless have an in-country right of appeal, so you STILL have to be admitted. I've never heard of anyone protected by EEA law being put back on an airplane, and except for some extreme exceptions (person is a known terrorist) I do not believe it's legally possible. For you the only benefit of a FP is that it MAY allow you to take up employment immediately, although I've heard that some employers are reluctant to accept anything short of the 5-year residence card.

If you go the FP route, I wouldn't bother with a legal service. The ones here in the UK aren't that great at EEA law from what I can see, so I can't imagine the ones in the US would somehow be better. My experience is that you have a major advantage in that you're a US citizen. Whether it's right or wrong (and I think it's wrong), I firmly believe applicants from 'certain countries' get a much easier ride through the UK EEA process than others. I've been involved in 5 EEA applications since 2012; not a single problem with any of them, all completed well ahead of the normal timeline. I've had to re-enter the UK a couple of times without my residence card; they barely even want an explanation before I'm waved through. Not right, but that's the way it seems to work.

[anahelen]

Thank you both so much for your responses Definitely made me feel a bit less strained. Yes, I thought they probably wouldn't put too much pressure on it based on the country I am from though seeing Brexit is what made me a bit nervous.

That was one of the reasons to get the EEA family permit, to be able to work. Say I apply to the EEA family permit and am declined, would I still be able to go the route of just booking a plane and going to the UK with my marriage certificate?

If I was just to go straight to the UK without the EEA family permit, what duration would I be able to remain in the country? I know EEA is 6 months. Would my passport be stamped with EEA and am I able to apply for a residence card after being in UK through this route? And is there any documents I should take just in case?

Sorry for all the questions

[GMB]

Say I apply to the EEA family permit and am declined, would I still be able to go the route of just booking a plane and going to the UK with my marriage certificate?

Yes. People here have done exactly that. The FP is only recommended, not required.
A previous refusal might flag up in their system, so you might get extra scrutiny, but para. 11(4) still applies.

If I was just to go straight to the UK without the EEA family permit, what duration would I be able to remain in the country?

For as long as you are the immediate family member of a qualified EEA national, so conceivably the rest of your life, BREXIT notwithstanding. EEA rights are derived directly from your nationality (for EEA citizens) or your relationship with a qualified person, not from any piece of paper or card. Which is why EEA-related residence docs are never called visas.

Would my passport be stamped with EEA and am I able to apply for a residence card after being in UK through this route?

Yes, on first entry only you'd receive the new EEA family member stamp or whatever they're calling it now. But how you got into the UK has no relevance on being able to apply for a residence card. Even people in the country illegally can apply for an EEA RC if they now have status under EEA law.

And is there any documents I should take just in case?

If you turn up at the border without an FP, have with you (in your carry-on) an original copy of your marriage certificate and proof that he is exercising treaty rights in the UK (last few months of payslips should do the trick). Obviously also your and his passports, but you wouldn't have made it that far without those anyway. Go to the UK/EEA citizens queue, and state in no uncertain terms that you are seeking to enter under the EEA regulations due to your status as the spouse of an EEA citizen. I think you have to fill out a landing card the very first time, but that should be the last time you ever have to do one of those.

[anahelen]

Thank you both for your responses and forgive my tardy one

I think I've decided that I will take the attempt to simply go without the FP, as due to the circumstances of our relationship, I feel that we would be possibly declined the FP so I think in some way just going to the UK feels the safer route.

So basically, buy a ticket, take out passports(of course ), marriage certificate and payslips or proof that my spouse resides in the UK, then head to the EEA line and ask for entry. Apart from that,
Will we be interviewed after I go through the EEA queue with my partner? Do you have any recommendations on what I should or should not say just in case? Also, if they ask how long I am planning to stay, what would be the best answer? Just want to make sure I have everything down and don't miss a thing