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Greetings,

I'm planning to apply for permanent residence documents. I've been in the UK since 2008 as a student and then working. I had an EHIC card but it certainly lapsed at some point and I've not kept track of it. I've not had any other insurance until recently from work. However, I have a blue registration certificate from before 2011. I've heard people talking about the fact that I might be able to get away with no CSI if I have the RC. Can anyone show me some official information on this?

EDIT: Rats, I just found my RC and it's actually from 2013. Well there goes my last chance. 8 years in the UK and I can't even get a residence permit let alone citizenship.

Many Thanks

EDIT: Rats, I just found my RC and it's actually from 2013. Well there goes my last chance. 8 years in the UK and I can't even get a residence permit let alone citizenship.

Yes, I'm afraid the RC for students would need to be issued before 2011 to enable you to use the transitional arrangements
Any chance you could get confirmation/a letter from your country of origin's health authorities confirming you were covered by them even though your actual non-UK EHIC card had expired? May be worth a shot and obviously depends on where you are from and how your home country's health system works, but I know it worked for some people from Bulgaria, Poland and Germany for example.

LilyLalilu wrote:

EDIT: Rats, I just found my RC and it's actually from 2013. Well there goes my last chance. 8 years in the UK and I can't even get a residence permit let alone citizenship.

Yes, I'm afraid the RC for students would need to be issued before 2011 to enable you to use the transitional arrangements
Any chance you could get confirmation/a letter from your country of origin's health authorities confirming you were covered by them even though your actual non-UK EHIC card had expired? May be worth a shot and obviously depends on where you are from and how your home country's health system works, but I know it worked for some people from Bulgaria, Poland and Germany for example.

Thanks. I'm Romanian. I feel like an absolute idiot for putting off applying for citizenship when I could have done it easily 2 years ago. My parents have been warning me about this for ages and I just put it off as I was too busy and was enjoying perfectly good treaty rights. I don't know anything about EHIC cards. When I got to the UK I happily forgot about it as everyone at university encouraged me to get NHS. I think a year or two ago I had a similar freakout when citizenship required CSI, so I asked my parents for some sort of letter confirming I had european insurance. I can't even remember what it was exactly. I'm going to go digging through my drawers when I get home.

Metabog wrote:Greetings,

I'm planning to apply for permanent residence documents. I've been in the UK since 2008 as a student and then working. I had an EHIC card but it certainly lapsed at some point and I've not kept track of it. I've not had any other insurance until recently from work. However, I have a blue registration certificate from before 2011. I've heard people talking about the fact that I might be able to get away with no CSI if I have the RC. Can anyone show me some official information on this?

EDIT: Rats, I just found my RC and it's actually from 2013. Well there goes my last chance. 8 years in the UK and I can't even get a residence permit let alone citizenship.

Many Thanks

Here you go:
https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/ ... issued.pdf

Check dates on RC carefully - maybe 2013 is an expiry date & not an issue date?

What is your timeline?
When did you start working?

It's a longshot but parents may come to the rescue...

Did they :
a) have any form of heath cover in home country that may have reached out to cover you even in UK?
or
b) if in UK, do you have a family member (parent) who has been exercising treaty rights continuously as a qualified person for 5 years - overlapping with your time in UK?
(you wouldn't even have to have lived together, especially if you are/were under 21).

If so they can be your sponsor and your activity in UK (even lack of CSI) doesn't matter.

Yes, just see if they can issue you with a letter or if you already have one.
If not, then all is not lost, you will just need to wait and exercise treaty rights a bit longer until you qualify (frustrating, I know ), as soon as you have worked continuously for 5 years for example, you are good to apply for your confirmation of Permanent Residence.

LilyLalilu wrote:Yes, just see if they can issue you with a letter or if you already have one.
If not, then all is not lost, you will just need to wait and exercise treaty rights a bit longer until you qualify (frustrating, I know ), as soon as you have worked continuously for 5 years for example, you are good to apply for your confirmation of Permanent Residence.

I'm really worried about what will happen if the UK leaves the EU though. I've made this country my home, all my friends are here and I've felt like I've settled here indefinitely.

Anyway, I just remember I had a Yellow Registration Certificate issued before 2011 as a student (probably around 2009). Would that be valid to bypass CSI? I eventually went on to exchange it for the blue one. IIRC the yellow one only offered me the ability to work part time.

Thanks everyone for your help, you are much more helpful than the incredibly confusing information on gov websites.

Help me untangle this:

13.Transitional arrangements are being introduced, so that an application for
permanent residence as a student will not be refused solely on the
grounds that there is no evidence of comprehensive sickness insurance on
the date of decision where:
 UKBA issued a registration certificate to the applicant on the basis
of their residence in the UK as a student before 20th June 2011.
14. When considering a permanent residence application in such a case the
caseworker should also assume that time spent in the UK prior to the grant
of the registration certificate was time spent in compliance with the
comprehensive sickness insurance requirement.
15. Caseworkers must check the Case Information Database to ensure the
requirements of the transitional arrangements are met. If these
requirements are met, and the application for permanent residence does
not include any evidence of comprehensive sickness insurance, then the
application can be considered as if regulation 4(d)(ii) has been met.

Does this mean my student registration certificate will work in this case?! It says later on that if you are applying for permanent residence on the basis of being self sufficient than the transitional rules do not apply. I was a student 2008-2014 and full time employed since then.

B

Anyway, I just remember I had a Yellow Registration Certificate issued before 2011 as a student (probably around 2009). Would that be valid to bypass CSI? I eventually went on to exchange it for the blue one. IIRC the yellow one only offered me the ability to work part time.

Hmmm, that sounds like it could work. Wait for some input from seniors, I sadly don't know too much about what happens if the initial certificate was exchanged for another.
Point 15 of the excerpt you posted seems to imply that all information is recorded in the caseworker database, so you could just send in an application (if you are ok to potentially lose the £65 application fee) and write a cover letter explaining that you were issued a RC before 2011 and then exchanged it for another. It may work, worst case you'd lose the application fee.

On another note, did you work part-time during your studies? You may be able to apply as a worker depending on how much you worked.

LilyLalilu wrote:

Anyway, I just remember I had a Yellow Registration Certificate issued before 2011 as a student (probably around 2009). Would that be valid to bypass CSI? I eventually went on to exchange it for the blue one. IIRC the yellow one only offered me the ability to work part time.

Hmmm, that sounds like it could work. Wait for some input from seniors, I sadly don't know too much about what happens if the initial certificate was exchanged for another.
Point 15 of the excerpt you posted seems to imply that all information is recorded in the caseworker database, so you could just send in an application (if you are ok to potentially lose the £65 application fee) and write a cover letter explaining that you were issued an RC before 2011 and then exchanged it for another. It may work, worst case you'd lose the application fee.

On another note, did you work part-time during your studies? You may be able to apply as a worker depending on how much you worked.

I didn't work part time until my PhD (did some minor TA work). Main thing I'm trying to understand now is if I can still apply now for a residence document due to having a been a student for 5 years, though I am now no longer a student. If I understand the requirements, I achieved the permanent residence status after those 5 years as a student with a yellow card before 2011 and then a blue one.

noajthan wrote:

Metabog wrote:Greetings,

...

EDIT: Rats, I just found my RC and it's actually from 2013. Well there goes my last chance. 8 years in the UK and I can't even get a residence permit let alone citizenship.

Many Thanks

Here you go:
https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/ ... issued.pdf

Check dates on RC carefully - maybe 2013 is an expiry date & not an issue date?

What is your timeline?
When did you start working?

It's a longshot but parents may come to the rescue...

Did they :
a) have any form of heath cover in home country that may have reached out to cover you even in UK?
or
b) if in UK, do you have a family member (parent) who has been exercising treaty rights continuously as a qualified person for 5 years - overlapping with your time in UK?
(you wouldn't even have to have lived together, especially if you are/were under 21).

If so they can be your sponsor and your activity in UK (even lack of CSI) doesn't matter.

Romanian members have posted success in invoking the 'ta' (to overcome need for CSI when a student) by virtue of their yellow/blue cards.

Search forum using 'advanced search' (search terms / keywords: CSI yellow blue) - or see here:
http://www.immigrationboards.com/eea-ro ... e#p1296470

If that doesn't work out check with parents, as suggested above.

noajthan wrote:

noajthan wrote:

Metabog wrote:Greetings,

...

EDIT: Rats, I just found my RC and it's actually from 2013. Well there goes my last chance. 8 years in the UK and I can't even get a residence permit let alone citizenship.

Many Thanks

Here you go:
https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/ ... issued.pdf

Check dates on RC carefully - maybe 2013 is an expiry date & not an issue date?

What is your timeline?
When did you start working?

It's a longshot but parents may come to the rescue...

Did they :
a) have any form of heath cover in home country that may have reached out to cover you even in UK?
or
b) if in UK, do you have a family member (parent) who has been exercising treaty rights continuously as a qualified person for 5 years - overlapping with your time in UK?
(you wouldn't even have to have lived together, especially if you are/were under 21).

If so they can be your sponsor and your activity in UK (even lack of CSI) doesn't matter.

Romanian members have posted success in invoking the 'ta' (to overcome need for CSI when a student) by virtue of their yellow/blue cards.

Search forum using 'advanced search' (search terms / keywords: CSI yellow blue) - or see here:
http://www.immigrationboards.com/eea-ro ... e#p1296470

If that doesn't work out check with parents, as suggested above.

Thank you, that seems to confirm that probably if I specify in my cover letter that I had a residence certificate and include my Blue Card (which was issued as a replacement for it) I should be able to argue that I fit the requirements! At least it sounds like it. I'm already pretty frazzled that I can't just apply for citizenship as I've been planning to for years because of the incredibly annoying sudden requirement for a PR card. I hope that if I can at least get a permanent residence card I can keep going with applying for citizenship whatever happens at the referendum.

Metabog wrote:Thank you, that seems to confirm that probably if I specify in my cover letter that I had a residence certificate and include my Blue Card (which was issued as a replacement for it) I should be able to argue that I fit the requirements! At least it sounds like it. I'm already pretty frazzled that I can't just apply for citizenship as I've been planning to for years because of the incredibly annoying sudden requirement for a PR card. I hope that if I can at least get a permanent residence card I can keep going with applying for citizenship whatever happens at the referendum.

Suggest referring to the 'ta' explicitly, include the card/s plus copy of the document I posted above.
Don't give HO any 'wriggle room'.

Keep scans/copies of all letters, docs, forms you submit - for your reference in case of HO queries/issues.

noajthan wrote:

Metabog wrote:Thank you, that seems to confirm that probably if I specify in my cover letter that I had a residence certificate and include my Blue Card (which was issued as a replacement for it) I should be able to argue that I fit the requirements! At least it sounds like it. I'm already pretty frazzled that I can't just apply for citizenship as I've been planning to for years because of the incredibly annoying sudden requirement for a PR card. I hope that if I can at least get a permanent residence card I can keep going with applying for citizenship whatever happens at the referendum.

Suggest referring to the 'ta' explicitly, include the card/s plus copy of the document I posted above.
Don't give HO any 'wriggle room'.

Keep scans/copies of all letters, docs, forms you submit - for your reference in case of HO queries/issues.

I don't have the yellowcard anymore as I sent it back to home office to get a blue one. I guess they will still have it in their records that I had a yellow card before 2011? Do you think it will be OK to include my blue card as evidence?

Cheers

Thanks so much for all your help, I was horribly stressing out just this morning when I found out about these new requirement, now I feel like I have a grasp of what I need to do and will put together an application and send it out this week!

Metabog wrote:...

I don't have the yellowcard anymore as I sent it back to home office to get a blue one. I guess they will still have it in their records that I had a yellow card before 2011? Do you think it will be OK to include my blue card as evidence?

Cheers

Send what you've got.
Keep scans/copies!

Have a look at the other members' experiences (your co-Romanians) links posted above to see how they got on.