ILR: is it cancelled now?

[Manuchao]

Hi,

I've been lurking for a while in this very informative forum, became registered, I have a question regarding validity of ILR permit.

I got an ILR in 2007 which is indefinite (forever, no expiry date)
I recently applied for confirmation of being EU/EEA family member
so I could travel to the EU (Spain) without having to apply for visas
every time.

Instead of a confirmation I got a new 10-years Permanent Residence Card vignette on the passport.

However the ILR permit vignette was not stamped out (as with a CANCELLED stamp on it)

Does this mean the ILR is still in effect now and after the expiry date of the "permanent" residence card?

Thanks a lot

[geriatrix]

You have been issued the ILR equivalent under the EEA directives (i.e. - PR). Though both ILR and PR represent the same thing (settlement in the UK), PR will enable you to travel within the EU/EEA in accordance with the EEA directives.
You can either have PR or ILR, so your ILR is no longer valid.


A question - Does your EU/EEA partner hold PR?

[Greenie]

You can either have PR or ILR, so your ILR is no longer valid.

Not sure I agree with this, ILR, once granted can only be revoked if it was obtained by deception or if it deemed conducive to the public good by the Secretary of State (usually if the holder has committed a criminal offence).

PR is merely confirming that he has acquired settlement under the EEA regs, in my opinion the ILR is still valid and the date this was granted will be the relevent date the OP became settled in the UK, for the purposes of naturalisation for example.

[zahid.ali.anwar]

Do you want to say that a person with ILR can travel to EU/EEA without any ristrictions. Or he need visa to travel to EU/EEA?

[Jambo]

I agree with Greenie on this one.
One can be under UK immigrations rules and on EEA regulations in parallel.
Take for example an American on Tier-1 who is married to a French who is exercising treaty rights in the UK. He would be eligible for ILR after 5 years and also would obtain automatically PR under EEA regulations. The fact that he is on the costly UK route doesn't prevent him from qualifying under EEA regulations.

[Manuchao]

A question - Does your EU/EEA partner hold PR?

Not officially, but she can apply for a Certificate of Permanent Residence anytime since she has been exercising EU rights (working) more than five years here.

This will be done since the Permanent Residence Card vignette on my passport has nothing at all which can even remotely be related to the European Union: no "EU" or "EEA" initials or blue circle with golden stars, etc, nothing which a French, Spanish, German....etc border official will tell the card has been issued under any EU directive. So the more additional information in the form of letters we have the better/easier to demonstrate we are entitle to EU family mobility across the Union without having a visa (difficult/risky to do with a ILR alone).

In this sense the ILR permit and the PR card appear to be practically identical. Although the supporting information for their issue is different this fact is not reflected on what it's actually printed (perhaps the PR has more "UK"s at the top, middle, and bottom but would benefit from a "EU" embossed somewhere)

Thanks for your help!

[Greenie]

what does the document say next to 'type of document'

[Jambo]

The sticker should say ""Document Certifying Permanent Residence" and although the word EU or EEA is not mentioned on it, it should be recognised by the border control officers in Europe as any other official immigration document the UK issues.

[Manuchao]

ILR:

Top heading: RESIDENT PERMIT
Type of Permit: Settlement
Remarks: No time limit on holder's stay in the UK
(it looks pinkish overall)

PR:

Top heading: RESIDENCE DOCUMENTATION
Type of Document: Permanent Residence Card
Remarks: No restrictions on the holder's activity in the United Kingdom
(it looks greenish overall)

Some consulates (Spanish for example) requires the sentence "family member of a EU citizen" which I understand is written on the 5-years initial residence card vignette, but not on this permanent one.
Me too, hope and expect they are familiar with the documents.
Additional documentation can't do harm, though.