Schengen VISA for Spain in London!!

[BIGJIMMY]

We are in the process of getting all the crap together for a Spanish Schengen visa in London, Mrs E has had 2 of these before but were obtained in Bangkok, this time we’re off to a mates house out there, according to the document check list if we are staying at a friends etc then we need a letter of invitation from the police, problem is my mate won’t be in Spain between now and when we fly out, HELP, we didn’t have to do this on the previous occasions in Thailand, anyone have any experience??

 

Thanks

 

Jimmy

 

 

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[theoldgit]

If you’re wife is applying as the spouse of an EU National she shouldn’t need to provide details of your accommodation only evidence that you’re traveling together.
Looking briefly at their mobile website it does seem a tad confusing, it says that evidence of all accommodation, including that supplied by an employer, must be provided, but in the subsequent list of required documentation accommodation details aren’t listed
Under the free movement directive these details aren’t required but, at least in Bangkok, they are well known for not sticking to the rules.
On the application form the items required, or not required, are marked with an asterisk.


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[Jip99]

Can she apply in London?

 

 

Use Booking.com then cancel after the application.

[BIGJIMMY]

We will be applying in London in a few weeks once I get home from work.


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[BIGJIMMY]

I know that as the wife of an EU citizen etc you shouldn’t need to prove certain things but I always worry when they list things like this......aarrrhh.


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[BIGJIMMY]

I’ve emailed the helpline and have asked the question so I’ll keep you posted as to the reply.


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[Jip99]

I asked the question about applying in London because I was told Thais have to apply in Bangkok.

 

I think I have seen this crop up before where a Thai is visiting the UK and you suddenly want to pop over to France or Belgium. “Mai dai” was the response.... “cannot”.

 

I imagine it is different for a settled person.......

[BIGJIMMY]

As far as I’m aware you have to apply in your country of residence which in this case is now the UK.


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[Jip99]

1 hour ago, BIGJIMMY said:

As far as I’m aware you have to apply in your country of residence which in this case is now the UK.


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That is good Jimmy... as said, if your wife is settled then obviously she can apply in London..... saves dealing with BLS Spain here in Thailand.

[BIGJIMMY]

I’ve heard back, as we’re traveling together Mrs E only needs to apply for a spouse of an EU citizen visa which is basically proving we’re married and her status in the UK, so pretty straight forward.


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[Jip99]

1 hour ago, BIGJIMMY said:

I’ve heard back, as we’re traveling together Mrs E only needs to apply for a spouse of an EU citizen visa which is basically proving we’re married and her status in the UK, so pretty straight forward.


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Great news.

 

 

For anyone reading this, they should be aware that your wife lives in the UK and not Thailand.

[Donutz]

Residence status is irrelevant if applying under the freedom of movement rules (EU directive 2004/38. So with the OP being married it's indeed a matter of confirming that there is a legal and genuine marriage, ID of the both of them and that they plan to travel together or join eachother in the destination country. Mrs OP have be a resident in TH, UK or Antarctica, that matters not and the embassy should not ask for say a UK residence permit. Some embassies (Spain, France?) Do but they should not. A UK visitor visa is perfectly fine, hell even no legal status at all would be in theory be perfectly fine as it (residence starus) is not to be taken into account under D 2004/38.

 

But as always, if you can, comply with silly demands if it's not too much hassle and feel free to e-mail EU home affairs if it's not a smooth, hassle free and minimum paperwork experience.

 

JUST-CITIZENSHIP {at} ec.europa.eu

[BIGJIMMY]

Looking on the site now and choosing the EU spouse option it says it’s free and you only need to show minimal documents to prove status, at last something done as it should be regarding Schengen!!!!


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[rasg]

48 minutes ago, BIGJIMMY said:

Looking on the site now and choosing the EU spouse option it says it’s free and you only need to show minimal documents to prove status, at last something done as it should be regarding Schengen!!!!

But it's Spain we are talking about here and they will expect you to jump through few more hoops than you normally should. They are notorious for it.

 

It will be free but you need to book directly at the Embassy (not TLS or VFS) and they make that difficult.

[BIGJIMMY]

BLS is the site, only an admin fee to pay of £12, minimal documents required as per their checklist!!!!


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[BIGJIMMY]

Www.uk.blsspainvisa.com


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[rasg]

Good luck with it. Maybe something has changed in the last few weeks but many people applying for a Schengen visa for Spain have had to supply documents, bookings etc that they should not be asking for.

 

I just had a look at the requirements for the wording on the BRP on the Embassy website. It states the following:

 

Please note that the UK Residence Permit/BRP card must state the exact following wording

1* “Residence Card of a Family Member of an EEA/EU National”

2 * “Residence Card of a Family Member of a Union Citizen”

 

The problem is that your wife's BRP does not state that exact wording.

 

Do a search on here for a Schengen visa for Spain to see what I mean. Or email the Embassy again and explain that your wife's BRP doesn't state that exact wording and ask if it makes any difference.

[BIGJIMMY]

Yes I just read that!!!!

I’ll email them again now.

I’ll have a look at previous posts.

Thanks


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[rasg]

All I am saying is that it may not be quite as simple as you first read. Other EU countries abide by the rules but they all seem to put their own twist on things and Spain is the main country that most complain about.

 

My wife had no issues at all with a visa for Iceland provided by the Danish Embassy and they completed it while we waited. They still made it a little difficult to get the appointment in the first place though.

Edited August 2, 2018 by rasg

[Donutz]

13 hours ago, BIGJIMMY said:

BLS is the site, only an admin fee to pay of £12, minimal documents required as per their checklist!!!!


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BLS is entirely optional, if you apply via the embassy directly there is no service fee. The embassy must give such an appointment within 2 weeks of the request bring made.

 

 

13 hours ago, rasg said:

Good luck with it. Maybe something has changed in the last few weeks but many people applying for a Schengen visa for Spain have had to supply documents, bookings etc that they should not be asking for.

 

I just had a look at the requirements for the wording on the BRP on the Embassy website. It states the following:

 

Please note that the UK Residence Permit/BRP card must state the exact following wording

1* “Residence Card of a Family Member of an EEA/EU National”

2 * “Residence Card of a Family Member of a Union Citizen”

 

The problem is that your wife's BRP does not state that exact wording.

 

Do a search on here for a Schengen visa for Spain to see what I mean. Or email the Embassy again and explain that your wife's BRP doesn't state that exact wording and ask if it makes any difference.

The bit about the residence card saying specifically  that only applies to people who wish to travel visa free (=without visa) around the EU.

[7by7]

20 hours ago, BIGJIMMY said:

Looking on the site now and choosing the EU spouse option it says it’s free and you only need to show minimal documents to prove status, at last something done as it should be regarding Schengen!!!!

 Make the most of it while you can!

 

Post Brexit she will no longer be the spouse of an EU citizen and so will have to supply all the documents and pay for her visa!

 

You may have to as well if some agreement on free movement can't be made.

[Jip99]

11 hours ago, 7by7 said:

 Make the most of it while you can!

 

Post Brexit she will no longer be the spouse of an EU citizen and so will have to supply all the documents and pay for her visa!

 

You may have to as well if some agreement on free movement can't be made.

 

 

No point in me getting married then.............?

[BIGJIMMY]

I’ve had a reply back from them and they are basically just quoting the website. I don’t mind providing tickets etc or even paying the fee, my wife has had 3 Spanish Schengen Visa’s before when we were traveling to my parents place in Tenerife so I had the deeds etc in this case we’re going to a friends rented house in Malaga and it’s talking about police letters and he’s not there now until the month after we go, so I think we’ll go for the Spouse version and (as I’ve done with all my wife’s visa applications) just add in everything to the application that we have even if it’s not officially required, bank statements, tickets, insurance etc etc, we’re only going for 10 days, we have 2 kids that have British passports, the wife is on an FLR and has had 5 different Schengen visa’s in the past - 3 for Spain..............surely!!!!!


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[kimamey]

This affects me to some extent as well.

 

I spend about 7 months a year in the UK, visiting family and working and the rest at our house in Thailand.  My wife stays in Thailand as she works in part of the Ministry of Labour. We're both going to the UK in September for nearly 3 weeks and had planned to visit her friend who lives in France. From what I'd read elsewhere as the spouse of an EU citizen she could travel with me without a visa. I tried emailing the French consulate to check and they directed me to the visa application site and it seems from what I can tell that as she will have a non Schengen UK visitor visa rather than a residence permit she will need one.  Unfortunately due to the fact that her passport is now with VFS awaiting her UK visa and lack of time to travel to Bangkok she won't be able to get one. 

 

She's applied for a 5 year visa as she will be visiting next year for a wedding and also in case something happens to me whilst I'm in the UK so we'll have to wait until then.  Unfortunately that won't be until September again so who knows what the situation will be by then. 

 

I have seen suggestions that EU laws allow her to visit any EU country with me but without a visa but I don't think I'll risk it.

 

I just remembered a question I wanted to ask.  When my wife does apply next year should she apply to France or can she apply to another Schengen country that would be easier? 

Edited August 3, 2018 by kimamey
Added question

[rasg]

1 hour ago, kimamey said:

I just remembered a question I wanted to ask.  When my wife does apply next year should she apply to France or can she apply to another Schengen country that would be easier? 

I would wait until after Brexit before applying for anything I think if you are going later next year.

[kimamey]

2 minutes ago, rasg said:

I would wait until after Brexit before applying for anything I think if you are going later next year.

Yes I would think I would have to anyway.  Not sure of the length of visas.  Anything could happen before then.

[7by7]

1 hour ago, kimamey said:

We're both going to the UK in September for nearly 3 weeks and had planned to visit her friend who lives in France. From what I'd read elsewhere as the spouse of an EU citizen she could travel with me without a visa

This is correct.

 

From Travel documents for non-EU family members

 

Quote

Arriving at the border without an entry visa

It is always best for your non-EU family members to be well informed in advance and have all the necessary documents before starting their journey (7by7 note: a visa).

However, if they arrive at the border without an entry visa, the border authorities should give them the opportunity to prove by other means that they are your family members (7by7 note: your marriage certificate, with a certified translation if not in an EU language). If they manage to prove it, they should be issued with an entry visa on the spot.

If your family members are having difficulties getting a visa, you can contact our assistance services

 

So you and she should be ok this September, but after Brexit the situation will be, of course, a lot different.

[Donutz]

Just to emphasize: 

- a british-thai (married) couple could get a visa an the spot at the border as detailed above (maritial papers etc)

- BUT !! It would be best to travel with a valid visa (to the Schengen area) if at all possible 

- since the border guards might tell you to **** off. As shared by a fellow forum member just recently:

https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/768812-thai-wife-uk-to-eu-via-ferry-without-schengen-visa/?page=3&tab=comments#comment-13187780

 

Where to apply? At the embassy of the EU country that is the main destination. See Schengen  sticky topic near the top of the forum for details.

 

 

[kimamey]

18 hours ago, 7by7 said:

This is correct.

 

From Travel documents for non-EU family members

 

 

So you and she should be ok this September, but after Brexit the situation will be, of course, a lot different.

Yes that the past that I read as well.  I've got a Thai marriage certificate and a certified English translation so that should make proving our marriage fairly simple. I may look into the possibility of obtaining a visa for my wife this time if I can. I can still do it next year but obviously I'll be doing it as a non EU citizen.

 

From what I've read it does seem easier if the non EU spouse has a residence permit. 

[BIGJIMMY]

I’m hoping so!!


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