Thai Wife Travelling To Germany

[Clive sorts]

Hi all

We have been married in the UK since 2005 and she has ILR since early 2009.

We are planning to go to Germany later this year, does she need a Scnehgen visa or is she OK because she is married to a EEU citizen ( me) ?

If she doesn't need a Scengen visa do I always have to travel with her in the future so that they see I am with her or is the ILR stamp enough evidence ?

Thank you

C Sorts

[ThaiVisaExpress]

She requires a Schengen visa.

[Clive sorts]

She requires a Schengen visa.

Thank you for the reply.

I have read in the past that when a Thai has ILR & married she can travel on an EEU permit ?

[Bastian]

No, she does not need a visa for entering Germany if you two travel together.

An EEA family permit is only for the non-EU familymember of an EU-citizen, who is not a citizen of the UK, who wants to enter the UK. Since you are probably a UK citizen plus your wife already has a residence permit (ILR), an EEA permit would be completely wrong.

Once in Germany, if you want to stay longer (i.e. not just holiday), your wife can apply for a Residence Card of a family member of a Union citizen (Aufenthaltskarte), which is valid for at least five years and would allow her to travel to any EEA country (except for the UK) without a visa and without you accompanying her. The card is purely declaratory, i.e. she has the right independently of applying for the card, the card merely makes it more easy to prove that she does have that right.

edit: wikipedia says you can apply for a residence card in the UK too, but it takes Her Majesty's gornment nearly six months to deliver.

Edited December 5, 2010 by Bastian

[Clive sorts]

No, she does not need a visa for entering Germany if you two travel together.

An EEA family permit is only for the non-EU familymember of an EU-citizen, who is not a citizen of the UK, who wants to enter the UK. Since you are probably a UK citizen plus your wife already has a residence permit (ILR), an EEA permit would be completely wrong.

Once in Germany, if you want to stay longer (i.e. not just holiday), your wife can apply for a Residence Card of a family member of a Union citizen (Aufenthaltskarte), which is valid for at least five years and would allow her to travel to any EEA country (except for the UK) without a visa and without you accompanying her. The card is purely declaratory, i.e. she has the right independently of applying for the card, the card merely makes it more easy to prove that she does have that right.

edit: wikipedia says you can apply for a residence card in the UK too, but it takes Her Majesty's gornment nearly six months to deliver.

Thanks for reply.

Mmmm, I have two different conflicting views here. I am UK Citizen, born in London.

It seems to me she will need a Schengen visa because UK is not part of the Schengen agreement. We went to Paris in 2004 & she got her visit visa in Bangkok, we had " been together " 3 years at that time. Anyway, I have emailed the German Embassy so they should give me the 100% answer.

We are just going to Germany for 2 weeks so there is no settlement issues. Any other advice would be gracefully received.

Thanks

C Sorts

[personchester]

No, she does not need a visa for entering Germany if you two travel together.

An EEA family permit is only for the non-EU familymember of an EU-citizen, who is not a citizen of the UK, who wants to enter the UK. Since you are probably a UK citizen plus your wife already has a residence permit (ILR), an EEA permit would be completely wrong.

Once in Germany, if you want to stay longer (i.e. not just holiday), your wife can apply for a Residence Card of a family member of a Union citizen (Aufenthaltskarte), which is valid for at least five years and would allow her to travel to any EEA country (except for the UK) without a visa and without you accompanying her. The card is purely declaratory, i.e. she has the right independently of applying for the card, the card merely makes it more easy to prove that she does have that right.

edit: wikipedia says you can apply for a residence card in the UK too, but it takes Her Majesty's gornment nearly six months to deliver.

Thanks for reply.

Mmmm, I have two different conflicting views here. I am UK Citizen, born in London.

It seems to me she will need a Schengen visa because UK is not part of the Schengen agreement. We went to Paris in 2004 & she got her visit visa in Bangkok, we had " been together " 3 years at that time. Anyway, I have emailed the German Embassy so they should give me the 100% answer.

We are just going to Germany for 2 weeks so there is no settlement issues. Any other advice would be gracefully received.

Thanks

C Sorts

My Thai wife (I am a Brit) also has a resident permit for the UK, but each time we want to travel to say France, Belgium, Holland, Germany etc ... she needs a Schengen Visa, the application is no problem, thus your next target if you go by car is ... Channel Tunnel, and then ... "bonjour mon copain " ...

Edited December 6, 2010 by personchester

[ThaiVisaExpress]

The applicant your spouse requires a Schengen visa its as simple as that.

Documents required for spouses of EU nationals:

• EU-national's passport + copy
• applicant's passport + copy
• marriage certificate + copy
• address in Germany
• visa application form with one passport picture
  Application by post:
  If you are a spouse of an EU or German national, or if you have had a Schengen visa from the German Embassy London issued within the past 12 months, you may apply by post. In addition to the required documents please add a self-addressed "Special Delivery" envelope and the visa fee in postal orders. (There is no visa fee for spouses of EU or German nationals.) Please be aware that application by post can take 8 to 15 working days
  German Embassy
  
  

Edited December 6, 2010 by ThaiVisaExpress

[xjessie007]

She needs visa. The visa requirement does not go by whom you are married to, but it goes by your citizenship.

[the scouser]

No, she does not need a visa for entering Germany if you two travel together.

An EEA family permit is only for the non-EU familymember of an EU-citizen, who is not a citizen of the UK, who wants to enter the UK. Since you are probably a UK citizen plus your wife already has a residence permit (ILR), an EEA permit would be completely wrong.

Once in Germany, if you want to stay longer (i.e. not just holiday), your wife can apply for a Residence Card of a family member of a Union citizen (Aufenthaltskarte), which is valid for at least five years and would allow her to travel to any EEA country (except for the UK) without a visa and without you accompanying her. The card is purely declaratory, i.e. she has the right independently of applying for the card, the card merely makes it more easy to prove that she does have that right.

edit: wikipedia says you can apply for a residence card in the UK too, but it takes Her Majesty's gornment nearly six months to deliver.

Getting a Schengen visa (which should be issued gratis) would probably make life easier, but there is no absolute legal requirement for the OP's missus to have such, providing he is travelling with her.

Scouse.

[VisasPlus]

As Scouse says, the third country spouse of an EU citizen has the right, in law, to travel freely within the EU with his/her spouse. However, Scouse has simplified his response a little too much, I think. having the right to travel freely, and being allowed to do so, may be two different things. In practice, the non-EU spouse may find that airlines and shipping companies are not only reluctant to allow carriage but, more often than not, deny carriage if there is no visa. It may be all well and good knowing the law but that may not be much use when the carrier says no to allowing your spouse to travel. It could ruin your holiday, or worse. EC Directive 38/2004 is the legislation we are discussing.

Scouse is certainly right to say that getting a visa will probably make life easier.

This link may well shed some light on the subject. I think it does show that, even though the law states that there is freedom of movement for spouses of EU nationals within the EU, it is recommended that holding a visa might make travel easier - http://eumovement.wo...want-to-travel/

Edited December 26, 2010 by VisasPlus

[Maestro]

The provisions of EC Directive 38/2004 have made it into the IATA database of visa requirements but the check-in staff at Heathrow often has no clue how to read them and it may take some time for a supervisor to be called and give the green light for the boarding pass. I am talking from personal experience of travelling with a Thai national.

National Thailand (TH)

Residence United Kingdom (Great Britain) (GB)

Destination Germany (DE)

Germany (DE)

Passport required.

- Passports and/or passport replacing documents must be valid

for the period of intended stay.

- Passports must be signed by the bearer. However,

For details, click here

Visa required, except for Those, irrespective of nationality, for a max. stay of 90 days, holding "family member" residence permit issued by United Kingdom (Great Britain) to a family member of an EEA national TIRGL/EEA or national of Switzerland, provided travelling with or travelling to join the EEA national or national of Switzerland.

Source:http://www.delta.com/planning_reservations/plan_flight/international_travel_information/visa_passport_information/index.jsp

As others have said, best get a visa to travel with ease. (My relative had a visa and it still needed a supervisor to get the boarding pass)