Entry to Netherlands for wife, kid + mother-in-law under EEA

[craig_in_china]

I am a British citizen, my wife is Chinese and we currently reside in Beijing with her mother and our baby daughter. We were hoping to be able to return to the UK as one family unit because my mother-in-law provides daytime care for our daughter (as is tradition here). It was disappointing to find out that UK immigration requirements would penalise us in several ways:

(1) I am just shy of the required income, looking at my past year of earnings in China (meeting the requirement in the UK wouldn’t be a problem, but why should I be separated from my 8-month-old for half a year?). According to the formula I’ve seen posted here for making up for missing income, our savings are not adequate to make up for the shortfall.

(2) The requirements for bringing an elderly dependent relative make it sound like the relative has to be virtually on her deathbed - and over 60 to boot (my mother-in-law is 58 and while she does suffer from diabetes, liver function issues and other complaints is not dependent on us to feed or bathe her and so it would appear isn’t sufficiently near death for UK immigration).

The “Surinder Singh” method appears to be something worthy trying in our situation. Practically everything I’ve learned about it is from reading the Directive itself and posts on this forum. It seems to be that by working first in another EEA country I’d be able to:

(1) earn a better salary, potentially giving us more options in future;

(2) exercise my Treaty rights should I wish to take my wife and kid back to the UK, and at least attempt to do the same for my mother-in-law;

(3) enjoy visa-free travel around the Union, once we were issued with Residence Cards.

The Netherlands seems like a good choice for us. Their English proficiency is high and Amsterdam is developing a reputation as a hub for mobile app development - that’s my field. I’ve identified some employment opportunities there that would suit me very well.

There are a few details I’ve yet to figure out. Can somebody help me with these queries?

(A) Would my wife be able to travel to the Netherlands visa-free from China, if she travelled with me? I’ve seen postings to indicate this is the case, but it seems risky for such a long-haul trip.

(B) Assuming she needs a visa, is Schengen the right choice? I’ve read that it’s only for short trips, whereas our purpose would be a longer stay in order for me to exercise Treaty rights. If we entered on Schengen, could we then apply for a Residence Card for her? There appears to be a long-stay visa called “mvv” but it has requirements including Dutch proficiency, which certainly aren’t compatible with the rules laid out in the Directive.

(C) My daughter is a British citizen with a “Certificate of Entitlement to the Right of Abode” (in the UK) in her Chinese passport. Without a UK passport, would she be able to enter the Netherlands visa-free? Would she also need a Residence Card once in the Netherlands?

(D) My mother-in-law will be the trickiest case. On this embassy website page - https://ind.nl/en/individuals/residence ... -nationals - I’ve found a section that looks promising. As a third-country family member you qualify if:

You are a (grand) parent, a child older than 21 or grandchild of an EU citizen.
You must meet the following conditions:

You are a (grand) parent, a child over 21 or a grandchild of an EU citizen
You are not a risk to public order or national security
You have a valid travel document (for example a passport)
Your (grand)father or (grand)mother, (grand)child or his/her spouse, partner or registered partner must meet the following conditions:

He/she has an EU/EEA or Swiss nationality
He/she has lawful residence in the Netherlands

My mother-in-law is of course the grandparent of my daughter, who is a British citizen! The part I don’t understand is that it requires my daughter to then have “lawful residence in the Netherlands”. Does this mean that our best bet would be for me, my wife and baby to move to the Netherlands first and then apply for my mother-in-law to join us on this basis?

I realise it’s a lot to ask anyone to read through this rather lengthy screed and answer all of my questions, but any advice at all is much appreciated!

[confusedinpakistan]

(A) Would my wife be able to travel to the Netherlands visa-free from China, if she travelled with me? I’ve seen postings to indicate this is the case, but it seems risky for such a long-haul trip.

Technically yes, she can travel visa free to the Netherlands as long as she travels with you. It will be a big headache because your first hurdle will be the ticketing agent in China and than the airlines and than immigration in China. The process should take no longer than 10 business days in China, and the application is free.

(B) Assuming she needs a visa, is Schengen the right choice? I’ve read that it’s only for short trips, whereas our purpose would be a longer stay in order for me to exercise Treaty rights. If we entered on Schengen, could we then apply for a Residence Card for her? There appears to be a long-stay visa called “mvv” but it has requirements including Dutch proficiency, which certainly aren’t compatible with the rules laid out in the Directive.

Yes, when you get to the Netherlands she should along with yourself apply for a residence card.

(C) My daughter is a British citizen with a “Certificate of Entitlement to the Right of Abode” (in the UK) in her Chinese passport. Without a UK passport, would she be able to enter the Netherlands visa-free? Would she also need a Residence Card once in the Netherlands?

Best bet would be to get her visa as well, I believe Norway is okay with the ROA but dont know about the Netherlands, and again the visa application is free so avoid the hassle.

My mother-in-law is of course the grandparent of my daughter, who is a British citizen! The part I don’t understand is that it requires my daughter to then have “lawful residence in the Netherlands”. Does this mean that our best bet would be for me, my wife and baby to move to the Netherlands first and then apply for my mother-in-law to join us on this basis?

She will also be granted a visa, they will need birth certificates from your wife, your daughter and mother in law.

The best advice I can give you is to email the embassy about the visas before applying. You may want to cc in the head consular in Malaysia as they seem to be on their toes with regards to EU law. I dont know what will happen with your mother in law once she gets there, I was actually interested in finding out the same.

[chaoclive]

We've got a Schengen visa from the Dutch Embassy in Beijing before. Civil Partners, UK passport holder, Chinese partner. Totally smooth service: 2 passports (returned mine on the spot), a copy of our civil partnership certificate, an application form, a copy of our flight reservation (this was the odd thing). 3 days later my partner had already received his passport with the visa inside (courier service about 45RMB. No visa fee though.). Total processing time: 1 day! We only went on holiday so we didn't encounter any issues with residence cards etc.

However, when in the country, things are a little more complex apparently. This is someone else's experience: worth a careful read! http://immigrationboards.com/viewtopic. ... 8e7d65c2c6

[craig_in_china]

The best advice I can give you is to email the embassy about the visas before applying. You may want to cc in the head consular in Malaysia as they seem to be on their toes with regards to EU law. I dont know what will happen with your mother in law once she gets there, I was actually interested in finding out the same.

I e-mailed them... and wouldn't you know it, they've contracted out all visa questions to a private company. I'm starting to see quite a few similarities between the Dutch and British authorities!