Travelling whilst applying for an EEA Residence Card

[arianaaa]

Hello everyone,

I am currently living in the UK on a Tier 4 student visa (expiring in May 2019, my course finished in January 2019). I have made an application for the EEA Family Member Residence Card in the UK on the 31st of January (on the basis of my German husband working and studying in the UK).

I am currently working full time (as permitted by my Tier 4 student visa outside of term time) and am required to travel for work at the end of February for a week (this also happens to be to Germany). I have made a request for the return of my passport and current BRP so that I can travel and they should come back in time (10 working days).

I wanted to ask -
Am I allowed to travel outside of the UK whilst my application is with the Home Office?
Does this in any way undermine my application?
Will I have any problems with entering the UK on my return?

I would appreciate any help or personal experiences with similar situations.

Thank you!

[kamoe]

Am I allowed to travel outside of the UK whilst my application is with the Home Office?

Yes, you are. In the letter they send with your passport back, the HO will advise you to apply for a Family Permit abroad to facilitate your entry back in the UK. This will be the surest thing to do, but I gather that since you will be travelling for work, you'll only stay a few days in Germany and will probably be very busy, so is probably not an option?

Does this in any way undermine my application?

Not at all. Also, you do not need to resend your passport to the HO, you can keep it.

Will I have any problems with entering the UK on my return?

Since you are married to a EU citizen exercising treaty rights in the UK, they can probably ask you a few questions, but they can't deny you entry. Now, if you are not travelling with your husband, to be on the safe side, take with you proof that he's exercising treaty rights (maybe a recent letter of employer, or payslip), copy of his passport, and your marriage certificate.

The other tricky bit might be the airline. Different airlines have different policies, and some deny boarding to people for all sorts of reasons if you do not hold a visa for the country you are travelling. I don't have personal experience doing this, but I'm sure many people have posted answers to similar cases somewhere else in this forum.

Good luck!

[arianaaa]

Thank you so much for your help, in terms of entering the UK on the way back - so along with the return of my passport i also requested the return of my Tier 4 (which is still valid until May 2019) - presumably this is still okay to enter on? Or do you think they will only return my passport and not my current BRP-Tier 4 (even though i requested both)?

[kamoe]

so along with the return of my passport i also requested the return of my Tier 4 (which is still valid until May 2019) - presumably this is still okay to enter on?

Oh sure! Sorry, for some reason I misread your post and thought your Tier 4 visa would expire before you travel. Yes, if your Tier 4 is still valid, you can use it to re-enter. But as they can probably tell your course has already finished (by the end of the last academic year), is best if you also have all your marriage documents at the ready to back up your case.

Or do you think they will only return my passport and not my current BRP-Tier 4 (even though i requested both)?

In theory they can and should give the documents you requested back. This is what I did and I received my BRC back with my passport. But you never know, you can have a clumsy caseworker who forgets some documents!

[arianaaa]

Oh great, thank you so much for your help. Will make sure to carry the marriage certificate/payslips with me just in case!