Asylum seeker, spouse of EEA

[leenaa]

Hi,

1st, I want to say : I read the posts on this forum and this forum is wonderful and really helpful !!!

I actually have a query.

I am a French citizen in the UK since 1 year. I get married 6 months ago. My husband is Asian, he came to the UK in 2001 and he is an Asylum Seeker. He has been rejected but his case is still in appeal.
We are both working.
Our marriage is now recognized by my french government and therefore I now have my french passport with my married name.

After reading on your website, I wonder if I can apply for residence cards : EEA1 for myself and for EEA2 for my husband. But can I apply for those cards as he is an aylum seeker ? I noticed on the EEA2 form that I can give his driving licence as he hasn't got passport.

I also have an other question. On the forum, people said they are sending bank statements, utility bills, letters with those forms. But on the forms, they are only asking 2 photos, IDs, mariage certificate and payslip so why to send those extra papers? will it really help?

My last question : on the forum, there is the advice to send the forms together but which address do you put on the envelope : the address with EEA1 or EEA2 ?

Thanks in advance to your answers,
Leena

[John]

Hi Leena, welcome to this Board. The two of you are married. Can I ask where you got married? In the UK? In a Church of England Church?

Anyway, both of you are in the UK at the moment? For you, as a citizen of an EU country, you can use your Treaty Rights to live and work etc in the UK. This begs the question ... in what way are you using your EU Treaty Rights? Are you employed? Self-employed? Or what are you doing in the UK?

The revised EU regulations that came into force on 30.04.06 assist you and your husband considerably. It is no longer compulsory for you to make an application for a Residence Permit, and neither is it compulsory for your non-EEA citizen husband to apply for a Residence Card. That is, if you are exercising your EU Treaty Rights in the UK, your non-EEA family member also has those same EU Treaty Rights to live and work in the UK.

BUT just because it is no longer necessary to apply for those documents does not mean that it is not a good idea to apply for them. Indeed only by your husband using form EEA2 to apply for a Residence Card will he get written confirmation that he is legally in the UK and can work here. But he can only possibly get his Residence Card if you are exercising your Treaty Rights, so yes, you applying on form EEA1 for a Residence Permit ... which will only be issued if they accept you are using your Treaty Rights in the UK, and not merely as a visitor .... can only help your husband's EEA2 application.

Just to expand upon what I have written above .... both of you have your Treaty Rights already. The Residence Permit to be issued to you, and the Residence Card to be issued to your husband .... are merely confirmatory. They don't actually give you any additional rights at all ... but it is nevertheless very useful, especially to your husband, to have that confirmation.

How long have you been living in the UK and exercising your Treaty Rights?

[leenaa]

Thanks a lot John for your answer !!!

We are both in the UK. I came to the UK 1 year ago to live with my husband and we get married in the UK in a Church Of England Church 6 months ago.
I joined NHS 3 months ago and I am employed on a permanent contract (it tooks me lots of time to get my french health diploma recognized in the UK)

My husband is an asylum seeker still waiting for the decision of his case (already 6 years in the UK). After reading all your post on this forum, I thought it could be nice for him to have an EEA2 residence card so he will have a real legal status to be in the UK and therefore he can stop being an asylum seeker waiting for decision. I hope I am right on this point.

Many thanks,
Leena