Non EEA Retention Right of Residence. HELP!!!!!!

[dee1981]

Dear ALL,

I really need your help as i am EXTREMELY confused, based on the fact that i have been given different advise from different lawyers.

I have married an EEA for over 4yrs now and i am just recently in the process of initiating divorce. We lived together for two years.

I want to apply for my PR, but i am still confused.

The law says we must have been married for atleast 3 years before divorce proceedings were initiated, which is fine by me cos i filed after 4years.

But the law says we must have lived in the UK for atleast 1 year. I am now being told by an immigration lawyer that i must prove we lived together for 3 years and that 2yrs proof of living together is not enough. Another lawyer now tells me that 2yrs proof is enough. who do i believe?

Another lawyer now tells me that I need to prove that my eea spouse worked why we were married another lawyer tells me I dont have to as the HO will not expect me to have payslips of someone i am divorcing. so who do i believe?

Also my proof i might be submitting is a joint bank statement we both had, i was told this is not enough and i need more of my spouses proof of living with me, is this true?

can someone who has has experience or very knowledgable please help, because i am very confused.

[thsths]

The law says we must have been married for atleast 3 years before divorce proceedings were initiated, which is fine by me cos i filed after 4years.

But the law says we must have lived in the UK for atleast 1 year.

Indeed. I think this clause is meant for couples that lived together abroad before they came to the UK, so this 1 year would have to be the last year. However, this is not specified in the law, so it is open to interpretation.

BTW, case law says that not living under the same roof does not automatically mean that you are separated. In any case the significance of being separated is not made explicit in the law.

Another lawyer now tells me that I need to prove that my eea spouse worked why we were married another lawyer tells me I dont have to as the HO will not expect me to have payslips of someone i am divorcing. so who do i believe?

This is a necessary requirement. However, it is generally accepted that you may not be able to demonstrate that, so it is not unreasonable to ask the Home Office to check this using the National Insurance contributions.

Also my proof i might be submitting is a joint bank statement we both had, i was told this is not enough and i need more of my spouses proof of living with me, is this true?

It would be wise to have more than bills from a single bank account, although again you cannot be reasonably expected to have mail addressed to your former spouse.

can someone who has has experience or very knowledgable please help, because i am very confused.

I guess the first question is whether your spouse is still in the UK, and still exercising treaty rights. That is pretty much essential. All the other points are questions of interpretation, and you may have to appeal if the Home Office does not agree with your interpretation. Since you cannot change the facts, you will just have to chance it.

[jude]

Yeap
I think council tax bills for the whole 3 years should be ok , or what do you think ?