Non EEA spouse of British/Irish National EEA application

[Mark AJ]

Hi,

I am new to this forum so please bear with me.

I am Northern Irish and hold dual Irish British nationality and my Australian wife has been living in Northern Ireland with me for 12 years with all the required permits and visa's. However, she was refused our latest renewal through the treaty rights route due to the McCarthy case and again upon appeal. We have travel arrangements for Australia in March 2016 and have recently submitted a fresh application via eea RC in early December but we don't expect to receive approval or refusal before travel.

Note, we have two children aged two and eleven one of whom is British/Irish born and the other is Australian born.

My question is can my wife travel with us as a family without a current visa or permit and be allowed to return following our planned holiday in March. We both are and always have been in full time employment in Northern Ireland and we have been living together for in excess of twelve years. I have read that my wife is entitled to remain because we meet all criteria.

We are really worried as the HO are continually sending threatening e mails and letters whereby we respond with details of our fresh application.

Can anyone advise us of what our rights are in the long term and again we would really appreciate advice on our pending travels.

Thanks
Mark

[noajthan]

Hi,

I am new to this forum so please bear with me.

I am Northern Irish and hold dual Irish British nationality and my Australian wife has been living in Northern Ireland with me for 12 years with all the required permits and visa's. However, she was refused our latest renewal through the treaty rights route due to the McCarthy case and again upon appeal. We have travel arrangements for Australia in March 2016 and have recently submitted a fresh application via eea RC in early December but we don't expect to receive approval or refusal before travel.

...

My question is can my wife travel with us as a family without a current visa or permit and be allowed to return following our planned holiday in March.
...

We are really worried as the HO are continually sending threatening e mails and letters whereby we respond with details of our fresh application.

Can anyone advise us of what our rights are in the long term and again we would really appreciate advice on our pending travels.

Thanks
Mark

Australians can always enter UK without a visa as non-visa national. (Can't they?).

Thinking outside the box... Did your wife ever have a RC back in (from memory) 2011?
ie issued during or before 2011.

If so there was a transitional arrangement related to McCarthy that could help your situation.
(Assuming you have not explored that already?).

[noajthan]

Correction: critical date for McCarthy transitional was 2012.
If wife had RC then (or before) its worth digging into.

And if wife has been here since 2003/4 (?) are you sure PR was not acquired automatically already?
Eg sometime in 2008/9 (depending on her activity in that time period).

[Obie]

Hi,

I am new to this forum so please bear with me.

I am Northern Irish and hold dual Irish British nationality and my Australian wife has been living in Northern Ireland with me for 12 years with all the required permits and visa's. However, she was refused our latest renewal through the treaty rights route due to the McCarthy case and again upon appeal. We have travel arrangements for Australia in March 2016 and have recently submitted a fresh application via eea RC in early December but we don't expect to receive approval or refusal before travel.

Note, we have two children aged two and eleven one of whom is British/Irish born and the other is Australian born.

My question is can my wife travel with us as a family without a current visa or permit and be allowed to return following our planned holiday in March. We both are and always have been in full time employment in Northern Ireland and we have been living together for in excess of twelve years. I have read that my wife is entitled to remain because we meet all criteria.

We are really worried as the HO are continually sending threatening e mails and letters whereby we respond with details of our fresh application.

Can anyone advise us of what our rights are in the long term and again we would really appreciate advice on our pending travels.

Thanks
Mark

Did your wife live in Northern Ireland for 12 years and had Residence Permit through out this period? when did the recent Residence Card came to an end?

[chaoclive]

Hi,

I am new to this forum so please bear with me.

I am Northern Irish and hold dual Irish British nationality and my Australian wife has been living in Northern Ireland with me for 12 years with all the required permits and visa's. However, she was refused our latest renewal through the treaty rights route due to the McCarthy case and again upon appeal. We have travel arrangements for Australia in March 2016 and have recently submitted a fresh application via eea RC in early December but we don't expect to receive approval or refusal before travel.

Note, we have two children aged two and eleven one of whom is British/Irish born and the other is Australian born.

My question is can my wife travel with us as a family without a current visa or permit and be allowed to return following our planned holiday in March. We both are and always have been in full time employment in Northern Ireland and we have been living together for in excess of twelve years. I have read that my wife is entitled to remain because we meet all criteria.

We are really worried as the HO are continually sending threatening e mails and letters whereby we respond with details of our fresh application.

Can anyone advise us of what our rights are in the long term and again we would really appreciate advice on our pending travels.

Thanks
Mark

Wouldn't your wife already be eligible to apply for Irish citizenship (as long as she meets the requirements in this link: http://www.inis.gov.ie/en/INIS/Pages/WP11000014)? It takes quite a while for the application to be approved but it's probably a good thing to get an application in.

It's not very expensive to apply ('An application fee of €175 is required for every application for a certificate of naturalization') but then you pay €950.00 if the application is accepted.

[Mark AJ]

Guys,

Thanks for your reply and the Irish neutralisation is an interesting prospect in the longer term.

I received a COA from the HO who wouldn't confirm my wife's right to work nor did they state that she couldn't because of a shortage if information and proof that I have since submitted.

Following further research my new query is does my Australian wife have a right to work in the UK given the fact that she and I have always resided in UK. Say excluding the fact that I am Irish and if I was a UK citizen only and we always resided in Northern Ireland has she a right under eea law, irrespective of approved visas or permits, to travel to and work in the UK.

I am reading that this is the case but all examples of cases researched are in relation to third country nationals.

.??

[secret.simon]

if I was a UK citizen only and we always resided in Northern Ireland has she a right under eea law, irrespective of approved visas or permits, to travel to and work in the UK.

If you were solely a British citizen, EEA law does not apply. Your relationship to the UK via your citizenship is more proximate than your relationship to the UK via EEA treaty rights as an EEA citizen (that is the broad summary of the McCarthy judgment).

You may wish to look at the thread Renouncing British Citizenship to use EEA FP route.

[noajthan]

...

Did your wife ever have a RC back in 2012?

If so there was a transitional arrangement related to McCarthy that could help your situation.

Did you get round to checking whether a RC was ever issued to your wife, circa 2012 (or before)
If she had a RC the transitional arrangement should kick in & you will be in clover.

And, if your wife has been here since 2003/4 (?), are you sure PR was not acquired automatically already
Eg sometime in 2008/9 (depending on her economic activity in that time period).

[Mark AJ]

My wife's first 'residence permit' was issued for period between January 2006-08 allowing her to work but with recourse to public funds. Then in September 2008 she was issued with a 'Residence Documentation' that was valid until September 2013.

In clover sounds good and whilst I have here'd whimpers of a transitional arrangement but I don't fully understand what this is and would really appreciate a brief explanation and advice on how I can take this forward. In clover definitely sounds a nice place to get too.

Regarding obtaining PR automatically how do I find out if my wife has obtained this or how do I get this confirmed. Albeit I have very limited knowledge in this I always assumed that PR would be automatic.

If it is automatic again how would I get this confirmed and what is the process...

Ps your posts are stirring up questions that I should have considered in more depth previously but I really appreciate you guys taking the time to respond and hope that your will continue to educate me in my journey to sorting out the issues at hand.

Secret.simon

I think I hear what you are saying about renouncing British citizenship. I don't really see any real downsides to doing so but in the longer term might this cause us detriment outside the whole immigration saga given the fact that I am and probably will always reside in the UK.

By the way during my appeal to the Upper Tribunal the Judge concluded that whether I hold an Irish passport or not by law I am considered a UK citizen by virtue of the fact that I was born in Northern Ireland. Although I stated on my initial status that I hold dual nationality I must state that I have never held a UK passport and considered myself Irish. For the record we also pointed out to the judge that I obtained my Irish passport through decent via my mother who was born in the republic and not through the more recent uk/Irish agreements. Again he stated that this was irrelevant and I was by law British.

If you have any more thoughts or responses on this issue I would be obliged to hear.

Thanks

[noajthan]

I'm on my cellphone so tricky to type.

I suspect wife has PR already & if not then, with that 2008-2013 RC, she is probably covered by transitional Schedule 3 of revised Immigration regs, 2012.

It means you can be considered as EEA despite the 'retrograde' 2012 McCarthy case as transposed into UK law.

Will fill you in when I get to laptop so you can dig into this matter further.

[Mark AJ]

No a,

I really appreciate you taking the time to advise.

Excuse my ignorance but I take it McCarthy means that I am no longer able to avail of the eea route? Does that mean that my pending eea PR application is more than likely doomed. HO asked for proof of exercising treaty rights and I sent them this thinking they meant UK Northern Ireland HMRC proof. By me working in UK even as a UK citizen per say am I exercising treaty rights?

I look forward to your reply on my previous and this post as I am now learning something lol.

Thanks

[Mark AJ]

Hi,

I am new to this forum so please bear with me.

I am Northern Irish and hold dual Irish British nationality and my Australian wife has been living in Northern Ireland with me for 12 years with all the required permits and visa's. However, she was refused our latest renewal through the treaty rights route due to the McCarthy case and again upon appeal. We have travel arrangements for Australia in March 2016 and have recently submitted a fresh application via eea RC in early December but we don't expect to receive approval or refusal before travel.

Note, we have two children aged two and eleven one of whom is British/Irish born and the other is Australian born.

My question is can my wife travel with us as a family without a current visa or permit and be allowed to return following our planned holiday in March. We both are and always have been in full time employment in Northern Ireland and we have been living together for in excess of twelve years. I have read that my wife is entitled to remain because we meet all criteria.

We are really worried as the HO are continually sending threatening e mails and letters whereby we respond with details of our fresh application.

Can anyone advise us of what our rights are in the long term and again we would really appreciate advice on our pending travels.

Thanks
Mark

Wouldn't your wife already be eligible to apply for Irish citizenship (as long as she meets the requirements in this link: http://www.inis.gov.ie/en/INIS/Pages/WP11000014)? It takes quite a while for the application to be approved but it's probably a good thing to get an application in.

It's not very expensive to apply ('An application fee of €175 is required for every application for a certificate of naturalization') but then you pay €950.00 if the application is accepted.

Chao

Would this be a solution in that my wife could then move freely as an eea national and work in the UK? Could there then be a query from ukba or HO to state that my wife is Australian firstly and this presides in some way over the dual nationality thing and then insinuate that we are playing the system and halt us from living the life we want in some way.

Ps I convinced my poor wife to leave australia for me but I think I definitely would get my marching orders if I had mentioned renouncing her Australian citizenship lol

The more I think about this it does make sense and sounds increasingly attractive.

I can't see any downsides and would ask can you think of any pitfalls?

Many thanks

[Mark AJ]

Nojthon

Regarding the transitional arrangement does the fact that our appeal was refused in October 2015 then time bar us from using this.

[noajthan]

No a,

I really appreciate you taking the time to advise.

Excuse my ignorance but I take it McCarthy means that I am no longer able to avail of the eea route? Does that mean that my pending eea PR application is more than likely doomed. HO asked for proof of exercising treaty rights and I sent them this thinking they meant UK Northern Ireland HMRC proof. By me working in UK even as a UK citizen per say am I exercising treaty rights?

I look forward to your reply on my previous and this post as I am now learning something lol.

Thanks

Treaty rights

No! You working in UK is not exercising (EU) treaty rights,
You are on the wrong track 'applying for PR' on that basis as citizens in their own country cannot (usually) use the EU rules.

Yes, McCarthy C-434/09 (ie the original McCarthy case, there has been another one more recently) is the case that led to the Immigration Regulations being updated in 2012.

The regulations no longer treat a dual national (EEA who is also British) as an 'EEA national'.
So such a person cannot use EU rules (unless they take the Surinder Singh route (& that is a different kettle of fish).

Ref: Immigration (European Economic Area) (Amendment) Regulations 2012

However there is a conditional transitional arrangement.

See https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/s ... w_v2_0.pdf
- ref page 20

You have not shared full details of your "refusal due to McCarthy" but I assume you did not invoke the transitional arrangement.
(Is that the case?)

In a nutshell, my understanding of this transitional arrangement is as follows...

if your wife had a RC in 2012 you can continue to be treated as an EEA national & so operate under EU rules after all. You are then able to be the sponsor of your direct family dependent, your wife.

Meaning that, through you as an EEA national exercising treaty rights, your wife can reside, work, study in UK under the auspices of free movement & treaty rights.
(This essentially applies as long as you remain married, to each other).

She should therefore be eligible for a RC (which will serve to confirm the rights) & she can eventually acquire PR.
Note the RC does not grant the rights but simply confirms them.

See details here:
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2012 ... 547_en.pdf
- in particular pages 12/13

It appears that subcriteria 3 applies in your case as you state your wife had a RC from 2008-2013.

(3)
The criteria in this subparagraph are met where F—
(a) was on the 16th July 2012 a person with a right to reside in the United Kingdom under
the 2006 Regulations; and
(b) on the 16th October 2012—
(i) held a valid registration certificate or residence card issued under the 2006 Regulations;

(F represents family member & P represents sponsor).

Therefore it appears your wife should be eligible for a RC even now, as you should be treated as an EEA national (from Eire) who is living in UK.

Treaty rights & PR

See this EU guide to understand more about treaty rights:
http://ec.europa.eu/justice/policies/ci ... nt_low.pdf

In (another) nutshell, an EU national exercises treaty rights as a qualified person (eg worker, self-employed, student, self-sufficient or jobseeker).
Do this continuously for 5 years & they automatically acquire PR.
Of course you don't need PR, you are also a BC already.
But by virtue of marriage (not even co-habiting) your dependent family member can acquire PR too, via you as sponsor.
It is immaterial (at least in immigration terms) what they do whilst residing in UK.

It is 'optional' to apply for a 'confirmation of PR' card (just as a RC is optional).
Except that UK has (controversially) just made possession of such a card mandatory for EEA nationals (& their dependents) to be able to apply for the privilege of citizenship.

I do wonder if your wife has acquired PR already, by virtue of your dual nationality, and by you working from the period when wife entered UK (as you were already married).

You can apply for confirmation of PR citing any suitable 5-year time period for which you have adequate documentary supporting evidence;
(it doesn't have to be for the last 5 years).

Next steps
1) Suggest you explore whether wife's PR has been acquired already & just needs the confirmation card.

&/or

2) Also suggest considering re-applying for a RC and this time quoting/using the transitional arrangement to back your case.

Best of luck. (I can almost smell the clover).

[noajthan]

Nojthon

Regarding the transitional arrangement does the fact that our appeal was refused in October 2015 then time bar us from using this.

I don't know about time-barring but I believe there is nothing to stop you re-applying with fresh evidence (as explained & suggested above).

Here's another member who is applying for confirmation of PR based on a time period in the past - it may be informative if you want to track its progress.

See http://www.immigrationboards.com/eea-ro ... 00754.html

[Mark AJ]

Noajthon

I really appreciate you taking the time to advise and clarify.

So I am thinking this is my plan.

1) Speak to HO and tell them that I understand that my wife has automatic PR rights and ask them what conduit of form to use to prove this or how do they recommend I apply. Do you have any suggestions of form I should use? I assume that I simply provide a covering letter detailing that that due to us having lived together for approx 13 years, me as the sponsor having always been employed, and my wife having had working rights and full time work from 2006, and having been married since 2011. Please advise of which eea form should be complete? Please note we only married in 2011 and I trust this is ok?

2) Complete an EEA FM pro for a and quote the following from the HO guidance notes on eligibility and make an application on this basis.
"Transitional arrangements
Transitional arrangements were put in place following amendments to the regulations in July 2012, which allowed family members of dual EEA and British citizens who had already relied upon a right of residence as the family member of that dual national to continue to enjoy a right of residence where the conditions set out below were met.
Persons residing in the UK on 16 July 2012
Persons already residing in the UK on 16 July 2012 as family members of dual EEA and British citizens, and who held a valid registration certificate or residence card confirming this right on 16 October 2012 will continue to be treated as the family member of an EEA national for as long as they continue to be the family member of that dual national.
This arrangement also applies where a person had a right of residence on this basis on 16 July 2012 and had submitted an application for a document confirming this right on or before 16 October 2012. Such persons will continue to have a right where a document is subsequently issued on the basis of this application."

For your information my daughter was born in 2013 and is an Irish citizen firstly but we have since applied and obtained Australian citizenship for her. My son was born in Australia in 2004 and I got him an Irish passport immediately and he and my wife came back in April 2015.

Regarding supporting evidence that you allude to I have everything with regards to living together and working etc.

Also note I didn't invoke the transitional arrangement nor, seemingly disappointingly, neither did my legal representatives mention this at the time as this may have helped.

Anymore comments and direction will be welcomed and explored

I will clarify on cover letter that wifey had a Residence Document under the non eea family member route and provide proof of this and all employment and living arrangements. I would provide proof of work right up to present time also for both?

Does this Lund correct or do you have any suggestions to sharpen up application or form to use?

[Mark AJ]

To be honest I am still slightly confused as both my suggestions above bring me back to an eea application and I thought that this wasn't the right track? Am I a qualified person under the respective applications?

[noajthan]

To be honest I am still slightly confused as both my suggestions above bring me back to an eea application and I thought that this wasn't the right track? Am I a qualified person under the respective applications?

It is confusing.

Short answer is:
Since the Regulations changed in 2012 (ie after the 'original' McCarthy case), dual nationals (from EEA/EU) who are also British are only considered to be British nationals by UK government (for immigration purposes).

That means unless the BC has (at some time) moved to exercise treaty rights as a qualified person in a.n.other EU country (ie the ubiquitous Surinder Singh route) the BC cannot invoke or operate under EU rules when residing in UK.

HOWEVER, based on what you have shared in this forum, it appears that you can invoke the transitional arrangement (based on wife's possession of 2008-2013 RC).

So you can be considered an EEA national and invoke EU rules & thus sponsor your dependent family member (spouse).

Unless any other members can help by further developing it (or shooting this analysis down), you just have to prove all this to satisfaction of HO.

[noajthan]

Noajthon

I really appreciate you taking the time to advise and clarify.

So I am thinking this is my plan.

1) Speak to HO and tell them that I understand that my wife has automatic PR rights and ask them what conduit of form to use to prove this or how do they recommend I apply. Do you have any suggestions of form I should use? I assume that I simply provide a covering letter detailing that that due to us having lived together for approx 13 years, me as the sponsor having always been employed, and my wife having had working rights and full time work from 2006, and having been married since 2011. Please advise of which eea form should be complete? Please note we only married in 2011 and I trust this is ok?

2) Complete an EEA FM pro for a and quote the following from the HO guidance notes on eligibility and make an application on this basis.
"Transitional arrangements

...

Regarding supporting evidence that you allude to I have everything with regards to living together and working etc.

Also note I didn't invoke the transitional arrangement nor, seemingly disappointingly, neither did my legal representatives mention this at the time as this may have helped.

Anymore comments and direction will be welcomed and explored

I will clarify on cover letter that wifey had a Residence Document under the non eea family member route and provide proof of this and all employment and living arrangements. I would provide proof of work right up to present time also for both?

Does this Lund correct or do you have any suggestions to sharpen up application or form to use?

1) Married in 2011 - so transitional arrangement still holds good - it is couched in terms of spouse.
An application for confirmation PR on basis of marriage won't fly until 2016 then (ie 5 years).

However there is the concept of a durable relationship 'akin to marriage'.

The rules & requirements around this are ambiguous.
HO cops out and (controversially) applies its UK rules in this EU arena.

However it usually requires at least 2 years of evidence of the relationship 'akin to marriage'.
Co-habitation is not actually laid down in the rules but proof of living together (plus any children) certainly helps seal the deal, as does joint life plans, joint finances & etc.

So, if you have appropriate evidence, an application for confirmaion of PR on the basis of a durable relationship (that, in your case, later morphed into marriage) may fly.

It won't help by just speaking to HO (and btw suggest never ever rely on any discussions or advice from or agreements made with HO helpline).

You will need more than a generic letter, you will need a stack of undisputable & unimpeachable documentary supporting evidence.

The application form for 'confirmation of PR' is here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... orm-eea-pr

You will note it is a bit of a monster.
it is a generic form that covers a multitude of circumstances.

Cynics & critics may argue it's also rather offputting & asks for way too much information non-relevant/inappropriate (eg benefits claims).

Note it is not compulsory to use this form, a letter with fee (& adequate evidence) may be accepted.
(There is another thread on this specific point somewhere in the forum).

Suggest printing off the relevant sections of form & trying to fill it in to see how it shapes up.
Continue the exercise by collating all your supporting documentary evidence - take a steer from the guidance notes.

Your wife's economic activity is actually immaterial;
she just has to prove her identity, your joint relationship & her residence in UK.

You can decide later whether to actually apply using the form or going by letter.

2) Yes all your thoughts and plans regarding RC sound appropriate, correct & on track.
Yes build as strong a case as possible around the transitional arrangement to show it applies.
It is your 'golden ticket'.

It is most unfortunate any advisors you used in the past (& for the appeal you went through) did not explore the transitional arrangement;
even if only to consider it & then consciously discount it for some specific reason.
Not sure what you can do about that now.

As with any application for PR, your wife's economic activity is actually immaterial;
she just has to prove her identity, your joint relationship & her residence in UK.

Once you have completed dry-runs for both approaches you should be in a good position to assess which is the strongest and most likely to succeed.
This should give a steer on which approach to file first with the second option as a possible fallback position.

Best of luck.

[Mark AJ]

Noajthan

I am no confident in my preparations for preparing both arguments and assessing best way forward with whichever comes second sounding like a positive contingency.

My current application is pending so I will collate my information and ammunition whilst it is still cooking and at least I can remain positive with option outlined if/when it is refused.

I must thank you again for your help as you have provided me with angles, insight, and advice that I have been unable to glean in the past. Your posts have definitely been refreshing and enlightening.

Many thanks and, although it will take a while, I will hope to keep you and the forum updated on progress.

[noajthan]

Noajthan

I am no confident in my preparations for preparing both arguments and assessing best way forward with whichever comes second sounding like a positive contingency.

My current application is pending so I will collate my information and ammunition whilst it is still cooking and at least I can remain positive with option outlined if/when it is refused.

I must thank you again for your help as you have provided me with angles, insight, and advice that I have been unable to glean in the past. Your posts have definitely been refreshing and enlightening.

Many thanks and, although it will take a while, I will hope to keep you and the forum updated on progress.

I have attempted to play Devil's Advocate & find any flaw in the above.

The only point I can think of is your wife must have received her RC in 2008 as a 'non-married' person.
I can't find any guidance to say she should have reapplied for a new RC on getting married in 2011.

So on that basis submitting the existing RC under 2012 transitional should still be acceptable.

However, "forewarned is forearmed".
I just mention it in case HO take that angle and argue against the RC you present.

And you know your timeline best in order to choose the most appropriate period for the start of your durable relationship.

Apart from that, all the best & yes, keep forum posted so all interested members can benefit.

[joneeboy]

Noajthan

I am no confident in my preparations for preparing both arguments and assessing best way forward with whichever comes second sounding like a positive contingency.

My current application is pending so I will collate my information and ammunition whilst it is still cooking and at least I can remain positive with option outlined if/when it is refused.

I must thank you again for your help as you have provided me with angles, insight, and advice that I have been unable to glean in the past. Your posts have definitely been refreshing and enlightening.

Many thanks and, although it will take a while, I will hope to keep you and the forum updated on progress.

I have just read through the posts on this subject and am not surprised you are confused. However, I faced the same dilemma of being dual Irish/UK citizen,(born in England but Irish father!) with a non-EEA wife who had been in and out of the UK on an EEA Family permit under the old system. But first, about your wife's Australian Citizenship. She won't lose if she obtains another citizenship.Australia scrapped that law back in 2002, and now, like most advanced countries allows dual or even multiple citizenships and coud not care less. Here is the link to the Australian Government page that confirms. Of course, the UK and the Irish Republic also allow dual citizenship.
It seems you have more than one choice, as I did, so what did I do. I took the quickest an easiest route by renouncing my UK citizenship which meant I could immediately go back to relying on my Irish citizenship by which I once again became an EEA national exercising Treaty Rights in the UK. There is no disadvantage, because under the Ireland Acts, Irish citizens have almost all the rights in the UK that British citizens have. About the only one I can think of that they don't have, is the right to a UK passport. Hahaha. Also, several countries regard Irish citizens as more 'friendly' than UK citizens. If you are wanting to go to Australia in March, renouncement is the way to go, because the others are far too slow (and expensive), and you don't need to spend weeks, perhaps months researching. You cam leave all that until you get back from Australia.
Renouncement is quite simple. Instructions are here:
https://www.gov.uk/renounce-british-nat ... y/overview
Renouncement costs £223 . I applied and a couple of days later got a telephone call asking me to comfirm I wanted to renounce. I said yes, and about a week later got my certificate, which consisted of a copy of my application with a stamp confirming renouncement.
No need to worry about renouncement. It is easy to get back your UK citizenship later if you want to. (But I haven't bothered). If you apply to renounce, send your birth certificate or an Irish passport as proof of your Irish citizenship, not your UK passport. Just keep that.
My advice would be to apply for an Irish passport if you don't already have one.That is the easy part and it doesn't take long. Under Irish law, all persons born on the island of Ireland before 2005 are Irish citizens by birth. Once you have your Irish passport and your certificate of Renouncement, you can both go off to Australia. However,to come back, your wife would need to apply for a free EEA Family Permit from a UK diplomatic mission in Australia, but that again would be simple. On return to the UK, your wife could immediately apply for Permanent Residence under the EEA route, and one year later for British Citizenship.

I got my Irish passport in only 8 days via the Irish Embassy in London.You can deal direct with the approprate office in Ireland which should be quicker.You only need your birth certificate, photos, fee and of course completion of the application form.

Regarding other routes. Yes, your wife probably could apply for UK citizenship on the grounds of marriage and/or long residence, but that is not a quick route. She could also apply for Irish citizenship at the discretion of the Irish Minister for Justice on the grounds of marriage and living on the island of Ireland for...I think its two years...and intends to continue living in Ireland. However, thats another lengthy route. It can take up to 18 months according to reports. So neither of these 'other routes' would be any good if you want to go to Australia THIS March!
Be interested to hear how you get on. As for me, I have not only got residence for my non EEA wife, but for my adult stepdaughter too.(as my dependent while at University), so I know it all works
They can apply for Permanent Residence in the UK soon, and the following year, citizenship.
Good luck with whatever you choose!

[Mark AJ]

Joneeboy

My problem previously was that I was that I felt cornered. Now I have a more welcome problem following posts from generous people like yourself on this forum. These include:

-Marriage/long residence and automatic residence;
-Transitional arrangement;
-Wife obtain Irish citizenship;
-Me renouncing British citizenship.

Regarding travel I have been told by the Home Office that my pending applications Certificate of Application allows us to obtain the required permit for my wife to return as long as I bring the other usual back up documents such as married certificates etc and I was intending to go this way and allow my current application to run its course without the worry of this being a final throw due to other avenues.

My slight reluctance with renouncing British citizenship route is that the judge of the upper tier tribunal, although not directly, stated that I am by law British and that I never crossed borders to exercise treaty rights from my home country, namely Ireland (though n Irish born), and as such I can't can't therefore have claimed to exercise TR's. Maybe the legal jargon was blinding me but I felt that if I was at the same hearing after having renounced British citizenship the resultant refusal would have been the same.

Could it have been that you were successful after having had a bit of new found Irish luck only?

I will do a bit of research on this as it sounds very attractive also, as with the other options, and if you can think of any other information that maybe useful please advise.

Have you applied under the EEA route for PR yet.

If I landed to British consulate or wherever in Australia with Irish passport and proofs etc, even without renouncing British citizenship, I reckon there maybe a fair chance that I would get a family permit but as I say I plan to show my COA as my primary currency for the application.

Thanks you again for taking the time to post and I by the way I am merely digging further with my post to learn and am not intending to contradict or undermine.

Nb I am and always have only ever possessed an Irish passport through both standard Northern Irish birth entitlement and via my mother as an ROI national.

Ps happy to hear all is going well for you and I am also happy to hear from someone who has experienced this horrible situation and processes.

[secret.simon]

If I landed to British consulate or wherever in Australia with Irish passport and proofs etc, even without renouncing British citizenship, I reckon there maybe a fair chance that I would get a family permit but as I say I plan to show my COA as my primary currency for the application.

That would be deliberate misrepresentation by concealment of your British citizenship and any visa granted on such deliberate misrepresentation is liable to be cancelled or declared null and void.

You can see more examples of renouncing British citizenship to exercise EEA treaty rights in this thread.

[Mark AJ]

If I landed to British consulate or wherever in Australia with Irish passport and proofs etc, even without renouncing British citizenship, I reckon there maybe a fair chance that I would get a family permit but as I say I plan to show my COA as my primary currency for the application.

That would be deliberate misrepresentation by concealment of your British citizenship and any visa granted on such deliberate misrepresentation is liable to be cancelled or declared null and void.

You can see more examples of renouncing British citizenship to exercise EEA treaty rights in this thread.

Thanks Simon.

And no worries I won't be making any misrepresentation as we have come to far to create our own trip.