Can My Thai Wife Return With Me To The Uk Holding Spanish Permanent Residence?

[a99az]

Can a Thai wife holding a Thai passport and a permanent (5 years+) Spanish residence / id card accompany her (English) husband back to the UK from Spain?

I thought I had read it some where that she could even without a visa.

What would she/they need to show other than passports and Spanish residence / id card.

Not sure how long we would need to be there for yet could be a few months or a year.

Any helpful information would be very welcome.

[theoldgit]

As far as I'm aware it's only spouses of EU Nationals who can apply for an EEA Family Permit to spend the amount of time in UK that you have indicated.

As you are a UK Citizen I believe that your wife would still need a visa to join you in the UK, though I stand to be corrected.

[Eff1n2ret]

If the OP has been working in Spain and his wife has been living there with him, they benefit from the 'Surinder Singh' provision of the EEA Regulations, which is explained in the UKBA Caseworking Instructions as follows:-

2.5.1 Family Members of a British national (Surinder Singh)

The ECJ case of SURINDER SINGH ruled that where a national of a Member State goes with his/her non-EEA national spouse to another Member State to exercise an economic Treaty right, on return to his/her own Member State the non-EEA national spouse is entitled to join the EEA national under EC law.

Under regulation 9 of the 2006 Regulations, the family members of a British national returning to the UK will be treated as if they were the family members of an EEA national under the following conditions:

• After leaving the United Kingdom, the British national resided in an EEA state and –

o Was employed there (other than on a transient or casual basis); or

o Established him/herself there as a self-employed person; and

• If the family member is his/her spouse, the marriage took place, and the parties lived together in an EEA state, before the British national returned to the United Kingdom.

Strictly speaking, the European Directive (and the UKBA's instructions) state that if someone arrives at a Border Control and seeks admission as a Family Member, they should not be turned away without being given the opportunity to establish their bona fides. Therefore, theoretically, the OP could turn up at a UK port or airport and seek entry as a 'Surinder Singh' case. In practice, however, any airline or ferry company is likely to refuse to allow her to board because of their liability to a penalty for carrying her without the requisite visa.

She therefore has to apply to a British Embassy or Consulate in Spain for an EEA Family Permit. The good news is that the only grounds for refusal are that they have contracted a marriage of convenience (which is unlikely to apply if the Spanish authorities have already recognised her status) and the application is free of charge. See this page for how to apply:-

http://www.ukba.home...ermit/applying/

[a99az]

If the OP has been working in Spain and his wife has been living there with him, they benefit from the 'Surinder Singh' provision of the EEA Regulations, which is explained in the UKBA Caseworking Instructions as follows:-

2.5.1 Family Members of a British national (Surinder Singh)

The ECJ case of SURINDER SINGH ruled that where a national of a Member State goes with his/her non-EEA national spouse to another Member State to exercise an economic Treaty right, on return to his/her own Member State the non-EEA national spouse is entitled to join the EEA national under EC law.

Under regulation 9 of the 2006 Regulations, the family members of a British national returning to the UK will be treated as if they were the family members of an EEA national under the following conditions:

• After leaving the United Kingdom, the British national resided in an EEA state and –

o Was employed there (other than on a transient or casual basis); or

o Established him/herself there as a self-employed person; and

• If the family member is his/her spouse, the marriage took place, and the parties lived together in an EEA state, before the British national returned to the United Kingdom.

Strictly speaking, the European Directive (and the UKBA's instructions) state that if someone arrives at a Border Control and seeks admission as a Family Member, they should not be turned away without being given the opportunity to establish their bona fides. Therefore, theoretically, the OP could turn up at a UK port or airport and seek entry as a 'Surinder Singh' case. In practice, however, any airline or ferry company is likely to refuse to allow her to board because of their liability to a penalty for carrying her without the requisite visa.

She therefore has to apply to a British Embassy or Consulate in Spain for an EEA Family Permit. The good news is that the only grounds for refusal are that they have contracted a marriage of convenience (which is unlikely to apply if the Spanish authorities have already recognised her status) and the application is free of charge. See this page for how to apply:-

http://www.ukba.home...ermit/applying/

Many thanks, this is indeed good news as we would be entitled to a EEA Family Permit having worked and lived in Spain for many years. As they say sorted.