You are reading different set of rules/regulations and in you mind you have created this jumbled mixed up ideas about indefinite leave to reman and PR etc.

I will try to give you a detailed reply on wednesday when I have bit of time to hand. But I can assure you that your wife will not qualify for naturalisaton before 2017.

You may browse my replies to other members about the similar queries and try to make sense of how the whole thing works.

Actually I meant to say your wife will not qualify for naturalisation before 2016.

(2017 was a typo)

Hi mrlookforward,

Thanks for reading my post. I had a look through other posts, of similar situations (but not identical), and its left me more confused than when I started! We were originally led to believe that after 3 years in UK, my wife would be able to apply for citizenship without the need for a prior separate application for the permanent right to remain.

Any help and guidance is greatly appreciated!

Thanks, Nick.

I was thinking about writing a lengthy reply, but I think it will only confuse you. So I have decided to write what is the position regarding your wives particular case.

So, to apply British Citizenship when applicant is married to a British Citizen, there are various requirements.

One of the statutory requirements (which your wife does not meet is) that the applicant must be free from "immigration time restrictions" on the date of naturalisation application.

Your wife is living in UK under eea regulations as "family member of eea national"  ( ie you are being treated as a EEA national rather than a British citizen because you lived and exercised treaty rights in Spain and your wife was with you).

You wife will only meet this requirement on the 5th anniversary of her arrival in UK.  To prove her residence from January 2011, she  will have her passport and the arrival stamps on the passport. When she applied for residence card, that application itself is a proof she was here.

Also please keep in mind, she will have to show that she meets Knowledge of  language and life requirement.

Right now the requirement to show KoLL is producing two proofs

1. Passing a life in the UK test and produce the letter.

2. Show a B1 Level cefr level qualification in English Speaking and Listening. (various way to show this)

These requirements might change or get amended by the time she applies. Right now, Life in the UK test has no expiry date. So, in all probability, if she passed this test now, it will still be valid at the time of application.

Naturalisation applications are expensive. Right now the fee is £874. So, my humble advice would be to apply on form EEA4 for PR when she is been here 5 years. This application costs £ 55. If she gets confirmation of PR after eea 4 application, then you will know she is has met all residence requirements for naturalisation too. She can then apply for naturalisation with exact same residence proofs that she submitted on EEA4 application.

Please note, to apply for EEA4, there is no KoLL requirements, but for naturalisation there is KoLL requirement.

PS: For other members who are reading this. Please note that the residence requirements and the calculation of dates of possible future applications is based on Nick's wive's particular circumstance. ie SPOUSE OF A BRITISH CITIZEN WHEN THE BRITISH CITIZEN HAS EXERCISED TREATY RIGHTS IN A EEA COUNTRY AND THE SPOUSE IN QUESTION HAS STAYED WITH THE BRITISH CITIZEN IN THE EEA COUNTRY.

For people in other circumstances, the residence calculation may be totally different.

regards

Hi mrlookfroward,

Thank you very much for your reply. I've a few questions, if you don't mind taking more of your time to answering them.

1) On the UKBA website it states that for "Requirements for naturalisation if you are married to or the civil partner of a British citizen" that the residential qualifying period is 3 years.  But if she cannot be free from immigration time restrictions for 5 years, then I don't understand under what circumstances could the spouse of a British citizen be naturalised after 3yrs?  Or should she have come to the UK on a different type of visa/residence card?

2) I am unsure why the fact that I was in Spain for a few years has anything to do with our situation now and my wife's current immigration status.  Please clarify.

3) Perhaps this is goes hand-in-hand with my previous question(s), but when you say that I am being considered as an EEA national rather than a British Citizen (ref. my wife's residence card), should we do (or have done) things differently in order that I am considered firstly as a British citizen, and that perhaps my wife would have no time restrictions on her residency? 

Many thanks for your help, much appreciated!

Nick.

PS Thanks for the additional info regarding EEA4 application. I was aware that my wife will have to take the KoLL and language tests for naturalisation- this will be no problem for her.

To tell you what it has to do with your living in Spain, I will have to impart you with a little bit of knowledge that I have, and it has took me 15 years to gain that knowledge. :)

If she got the visa commonly known as "spouse of British Citizen" then she would have gained ILR in 2 years making her "free from immigration time restrictions" and would have become eligible for naturalisation after 3 years residence. This route is usually only available when the application is made when applicant is outside UK. Someone on a visit visa cannot go down this route from UK.

The route you are on is a little bit longer, 5 years instead of 3, but it way way cheaper. Other route would have costed you thousands of pounds in visa application fees.

Right now, she is in UK legally and she has all the rights, so I don't think there is big deal clocking 5 years rather than 3. I think you will agree that having a British Passport 2 years later than you expected, is not going to make any difference to your or your wive's life.

regards

Thank you very much for your reply, you're right in saying that it's not a big deal, but more of an inconvenience. We've got friends in Spain we want to visit, but it's a pain if my wife has to apply for a Spanish tourist visa to go for a long weekend!

There is also the high possibility that my work will take me outside of the UK within the next 2 years and it'd be important that my wife doesn't break the residency requirements (I am aware that there is an allowance for days overseas).

I don't suppose you know how (if at all) it's possible to 'switch' routes or otherwise to convert to a diferent type of visa and therefore reduce  the current 5yr period? If so, I understand visa fees would come into it.

Thanks for your help, I owe you a lot!

Unfortunately there is no other visa or another way even if you are willing to spend a million pounds. Since october last year, the UK spouse visa category has been changed to 5 years too. So, no point even thinking about anything.

Your wife does not need a visa to travel to spain if she is travelling with you. She does not need a visa to travel to any country within EEA if she is travelling with you. For us, the immigration junkies, this is a well known thing, but for your peace of mind, I will post a link in a day or two from Spanish government website which mentions in black and white that she does not need a visa for spain. You can print the thing and keep it with you when you travel.

At the time of naturalisation application, your wife is allowed a total of 450 days absence in 5 years, of which no more than 90 should be in the year preceeding the application date.

regards

Many thanks for your help, its made things a lot clearer for us. I appreciate that you write on this forum voluntarily and its your own time that you dedicate to help others. Keep it up!

If you can provide me a link to the Spanish website (or point me in the general direction) that would be great - my wife refuses to believe me!!  (Mind you, she's got reason to be apprehensive, as through experience the Spanish authorities are very strict when dealing with people from South America.)

Regards, Nick

I will quote from the spanish government website.

Under Directive 2004/38/EC and according to Real Decreto 240/2007, 16 February, family members of an EU/EEA national in possession of a valid UK Residence Card specifying its condition as a family member do not require a visa to enter Spain when travelling with the EU/EEA National or joining him/her in Spain.

http://www.exteriores.gob.es/Consulados/LONDRES/en/Consulado/Pages/CheckPassport.aspx

I have also posted a link to the inforamtion. Just read para 6, and please do not try to decipher all the other information as it will only confuse you.

regards

Hi, I'm hoping somebody can help me answer the following question.

I am a UK citizen, living in UK with my (non-EEA) wife since Jan 2011. Before that we were living in Spain, and we were married in 2008.

In January 2014, we will complete 3 years residence in UK, so I understand that she can apply for naturalisation (as married to UK citizen, else it'd be 5yrs).  However, one of the requirements is "freedom from immigration time restrictions" (as described in Guide AN).

My wife has a "Residence Card of a Family Member of an EEA National", valid until 2016.  Clearly, this has an expiry date, but on the other hand I recall reading that she would not need to apply for Permanent Residency / Indefinite Leave to Remain. 

1. Does she need to apply for another type of residency (i.e. permanent) or can she apply directly for naturalisation? Where can I find this information?

On another note, we arrived to UK in Jan 2011 from Spain, so her passport was not stamped. Her Residence Card is valid from July 2011 (she arrived on a different visa). What evidence can I give to show residence from Jan 2011? 

Many thanks in advance, Nick

PS. We now have a lovely 6-mth old baby (with both British and my wife's nationality), but I assume that doesn't change anything here.