EEA permanent residence query

[eea2012]

Hi all,

I have been following this forum for sometime and am very grateful to all the people who post their experiences and valuable advice which I am sure helps a lot of folk immensely.

I am in need of some advice on my EEA issue. In this regard, I have gone through many of the posts and although some of them have given me some idea about my issue but I am still a bit confused.

My history
----------

Been in UK since Sep 2002:

2002 - 2004 Student visa
2004 - 2008 HSMP visa
Oct 2007 got married to an EEA national
2008 - 2013 EEA Residence Card
Separated from summer 2011
Final divorce decree expected Aug'2012

Both of us have been exercising treaty rights in UK since we were living together (Jan 2006) and continue to do so. (She has continued to reside in UK and exercise treaty rights since we separated)

I have been advised that I will be eligible to apply for Retention of Residence once my divorce comes through. Although any feedback on this issue would be most welcome.

My main question is regarding PR application.
As per my understanding I should be eligible for applying for PR in Oct 2012 (as per regulation 15.1.f of the EEA 2006 directive). I would be most grateful for any feedback on this.

I have been advised that UKBA have tightened up their processing of PR applications and as such I wanted to clarify the following issues which may arise for my PR application.

1) Will the time I was apart from my wife (summer 2011 - till final divorce) count towards the 5 years of continuous residence. (Provided I am applying for PR as per regulation 15.1.f after my final divorce decree comes through).

2) Is it advisable to apply for Retention of Residence separately (As far as I have gathered retention of residence is automatic)

If the answer to point number 1 is negative, when exactly I can apply for my PR after my retention of residence.

I have no problems in applying for Retention of Residence first and then PR but it is just that if it is possible to reduce the number of applications I would rather opt for that.

I do hope I would get some feedback on this. I would be most grateful.

Regards,
R

[Jambo]

1. Yes.
2. In your case, because it is just a few months I would skip RoR application and apply for PR in October.

You will need to provide evidence of your (ex)wife exercising treaty rights. Make sure you have those (or get your wife's cooperation).

[eea2012]

Many thanks for your reply!
I was of similar opinion myself but wanted to make sure.

I am going to discuss the PR application with a solicitor very soon. I was wondering if there is any doubt on this issue shall I cite regulation 15.1.f of EEA 2006 guidelines as the legal basis for the validity of my PR application? Or is there any additional legal point/guideline I can allude to.

Many thanks again, am most grateful for the feedback.

r

[Jambo]

Many thanks for your reply!
I was of similar opinion myself but wanted to make sure.

I am going to discuss the PR application with a solicitor very soon. I was wondering if there is any doubt on this issue shall I cite regulation 15.1.f of EEA 2006 guidelines as the legal basis for the validity of my PR application? Or is there any additional legal point/guideline I can allude to.

Many thanks again, am most grateful for the feedback.

r

Well, if you need to cite the regulations to the solicitor, I suggest you look for a different one.

[eea2012]

I agree
Many thanks for your help.

r