Changes to EEA Family Permit

[stuckinaust]

My partner has ILR for the UK and I am not eligible for any ancestry visas. At this stage we are ineligible for spouse and do not intend to get married. We do not believe that getting married purely for visas purposes is the right thing to do.

We have found out that at the end of April changes to the EEA Family Permit come into effect that enable spouses of EU members to work in the UK.

We are trying to found out what the immigration definition of spouse will be and how they will determine this.

Is anyone able to assist with this?

Many thanks.

[Dawie]

We have found out that at the end of April changes to the EEA Family Permit come into effect that enable spouses of EU members to work in the UK.

The spouses of citizens of EU countries have always been able to work in the UK under the EEA rules. Nothing is changing to enable this as it already exists!

Also, as neither you or your partner are citizens of the EU, what relevance are you hoping this will have for you?

[tt]

Dawie - I'm assuming one of them is a EU citizen, otherwise the whole thing is moot - agreed. Perhaps the ILR holder is on the verge of citizenship. I'm also assuming that stuckinaust is referring to the change in rules relating to the spouse/family member definition, and how it might affect them, compared to the earlier rules.

stuckinaust - You are referring to the EU Directive 2004/38/EC, which does and will apply to the UK. Here are a couple of guidelines on this (click on the following references) http://europa.eu.int/scadplus/leg/en/lvb/l33152.htm http://www.ecas.org/file_uploads/1008.pdf .

If either of you is a EU/EEA citizen, then the other (if not one) should be able to get the 5 year EU family member residence permit (look at the conditions) if you are indeed a family member.

"Family member" includes (generally speaking) the spouse; the registered partner, if the legislation of the host Member State treats registered partnerships as equivalent to marriage; the direct descendants who are under the age of 21 or are dependants and those of the spouse or partner as defined above; the dependent direct relatives in the ascending line and those of the spouse or partner (Article 2 of the EU Directive).

However, your relationship appears to fall into the Article 3 definition (if that) - a "partner with whom the Union citizen has a durable relationship, duly attested" - and here, the host Member State shall, in accordance with its national legislation, facilitate entry and residence - having undertaken an extensive examination of the personal circumstances and shall justify any denial of entry or residence to these people.

So it's not assured, but is considered.

The EU Directive itself spells it out in black and white. http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/pri/en/oj/ ... 350048.pdf

[stuckinaust]

Thanks TT. You got it in one. My partner holds Irish citizenship and we are referring to this directive.

What we are really wondering is what is going to be considered a durable relationship? We consider ourselves to be in a durable relationship but this entails spending a lot of time apart for work reasons.

We are concerned that the UK would apply their current unmarried partner criteria (which we do not qualify for) to these EEA Family Permit changes. Gaining entry using the EEA Family Permit would enable us to qualify for the unmarried partner visa.

Many thanks.

[JAJ]

Thanks TT. You got it in one. My partner holds Irish citizenship and we are referring to this directive.

What we are really wondering is what is going to be considered a durable relationship? We consider ourselves to be in a durable relationship but this entails spending a lot of time apart for work reasons.

We are concerned that the UK would apply their current unmarried partner criteria (which we do not qualify for) to these EEA Family Permit changes. Gaining entry using the EEA Family Permit would enable us to qualify for the unmarried partner visa.

Many thanks.

If you have a "durable relationship" then why can you not qualify for a spouse visa on (unmarried partner) grounds.

And if you can't, then why do you think the rules are going to be any different for an EEA Family Permit - I can't see the UK allowing casual dating to be grounds for a permit, for example.

Another point to ponder. With a spuse visa it would be 2 years to UK permanent residence, but with an EEA Family permit it's five years.

Do you qualify for a working holiday visa, work permit or HSMP?

[stuckinaust]

Hi

Now that these changes have been in place for a while, can anyone provide any light on definitions for the following. I have been scouring the net for stuff but cannot seem to find anything clear.

Just to confirm - I am the unmarried partner of an Irish citizen. He has ILR for UK and we are not eligible for any other UK visa at this point in time.

Can anyone tell what what the UK Immigration Dept are defining as a durable relationship and spouse?

Thanks.

[SunBlue]

They define a durable relationship in the same way than unmarried partners.
In the pages of the UK visas even says that: http://www.ukvisas.gov.uk/servlet/Front ... 5892139936

It is the same in the Home Office.

[John]

Given the broken link in that ukvisas webpage I shall post the exact wording :-

What is a "durable relationship"?

A durable relationship exists where an EEA national is in a relationship similar to marriage with a non-EEA national. A durable relationship should be considered under the same criteria as the Unmarried Partner of a British citizen. If the applicant meets the criteria for an Unmarried Partner, they can be issued an EEA Family Permit if it seems appropriate in all circumstances.

However, what it does not say there is the length of time that such a durable relationship needs to have existed. For an UPV it is at least two years, but trying to get away with imposing such a hard and fast rule for EEA applications will not IMHO work at all.