So We Got The Visa, What's Next..?

[Castor83]

Hey all,

So my wife has been granted her EEA permit, along with my step daughter and the flights are booked.

They will be here next week and I'm just trying to get a solid idea of what to do next and in which order.

The EEA Permit is valid for 6 months. I recieved a letter from my solicitor, basically sayin congratulations and that the permit can be extended for 5 years, then she can apply for ILR. (or words to that effect, can;t find the letter at the moment :S)

I've been looking into what to do next and it seems she should apply for a Residence Card using EEA2 form. It says this card is valid for 5 years, so I assume this is what my solicitor meant. However I;ve read it can be a wait of up to a year for a residence card and they will need all of our passport for the whole time. This seems weird as the permit is valid for 6 months and i presume you need the residence card before the permit runs out. (??)

The whole thing has me very confused. And before I pay over a couple of hundred pound for an hour with the solicitor I thought it would be worth asking on here in case anyone else has gone through this.

Also I was wondering what everybody has done with regard to bank accounts/NI number/Driving License etc.

I figured I will first go to the GP to get them registered, then add her name to my bank account, then apply for a NI number and provisional driving license. My wife has an international DL, although she doesn't actually have one. And won;t have time to get one now before she comes to England. This is kind of the least important though as my mother is a driving instructor, so she can just take some lessons for free with an english license.

I don;t think I'm making much sense now, lol. This all just hs my head a bit pickled.

Thanks in advance for any help/ideas..

[7by7]

Congratulations, enjoy your future life together.

For residence cards, permanent residence etc, see European citizens.

[dmax]

my wife is on an eea family permit so i know what you need to do, make sure you apply for her 5 year resident stamp before her 6 mths are up, as long as uk border agency have it in before the 6 mths then you will be fine. it usually takes a couple of months to process, make sure you send via recorded delivery. good luck

[dmax]

dont worry too much, as i told you as long as her application is in the (home office) or the uk border agy i forget which but it should say on your application form where to send it ,,before her 6 mths is up your flying, just to make sure , as soon as she gets here then send your application off by first class post and then call home office 2-3 days later making sure they recieved it, if they have then it dont matter if it takes 4-6-9 mths to process , just as long as it is in their hands is all thats needed.

Edited January 28, 2010 by dmax

[Eff1n2ret]

Send any valuable documents to UKBA by Recorded Delivery, not just first class post.

[7by7]

Doing so also means that you can use Track and Trace to see if it's been received.