Vadrar wrote: ↑Wed Aug 06, 2025 2:16 pm
ukandusmarried wrote: ↑Wed Aug 06, 2025 11:18 am
Hi all, I wanted to share my details below in case anyone has any insight or this might help any others in a similar situation:
11 July 2025: Sent EUTR1 application
14 July 2025: Application received by EU Treaty Rights Division
6 August 2025: Received denial letter
I applied as a qualified family member (spouse) of a UK National due to his residence in Ireland before the end of the transition period which ended 31 December 2020. The decision I received stated that because my we were not married before that date (we got married this year), I am unable to apply via the EUTR1. The letter directed me to apply under the new scheme for UK Nationals wishing to bring their family members to Ireland. However, that new scheme clearly states that it does NOT apply to UK Nationals who were resident in Ireland before the end of the transition period. It clearly states this on both the policy documents and directly on the Immigration website.
I have submitted a query on the ISD portal for more assistance, and have reached out to a solicitor.
Note: The immigration officer and her supervisor at Dublin airport reviewed the new policy and allowed me entry into the Ireland without a Preclearance (which the new scheme I mentioned above requires for US citizens). I was instructed that my next steps were to set an appointment at Burgh Quay, which I have scheduled for September. However, one of the required documents for that appointment is my Preclearance approval which I do not have, nor require. I received conflicting advice (outlined below) to apply via EUTR1, so I went ahead and did that.
I had also spoken to 3 organizations prior to entering this process that help with immigration rights, and one even contacted ISD on my behalf to confirm I can apply via EUTR1. I also submitted a query on the portal confirming I am eligible to apply. Both answers came back yes--I can apply. So this has all been extremely confusing.
It seems as if we do not fall under either scheme. Once I have more information, I will share it. If anyone has any advice, I'd greatly appreciate it.
TL:DR: to qualify under the WA you need to be able to prove you were in the relationship prior to 31 Dec 2020 and that is has been continuous since then. Anyone unable to prove this falls under the new scheme. The decision and advice you received appears to be correct unless you can prove your relationship pre-dated Brexit.
Detail here, mainly included as a source of reference to anyone asking this question later:
To qualify under the Withdrawal Agreement (WA) rights you need to be able to prove 2 things. 1) The British partner was residing in Ireland before 31 Dec 2020 and 2) the partner is an 'eligible family member' in that the durable relationship can be proved to have been established before 31 Dec 2020.
To prove the relationship existed prior to 2020 (where there hasn't been a formal registration like marriage or civil union) applicants often submit a number of proofs such as a lease or mortgage in both names, utility bills in both names, joint bank accounts or birth certificates of children naming both parents. Less often they offer a will naming the partner, life insurance naming partner as beneficiary or joint health insurance. Emails, texts, letters, photos, holiday receipts etc are typically not considered relevant proof.
Anyone who has a relationship starting after 2020 or can't prove it started before that date falls outside of the WA and instead operate withins the new scheme, irrepective of when the British person resided in Ireland.
I'm not surprised you are getting confusing information from Irish sources. Withdrawal Agreement rights are only patchily understood in Ireland because it was a declaratory country AND is also party to the Common Travel Area. So many British simply rely on CTA rights, because typically they cover everything they need, and many Irish immigration officials don't really understand the WA. The WA is the same set of rights across all EU countries (though admin and implementation processes can differ, and there are some national rules on sub-section rules.) You will therefore often find a better understanding of joining partners rights in countries that were declaratory but not party to the CTA (Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Estonia, Germany, Greece, Italy, Ireland, Lithuania, Poland, Portugal, Spain, and Slovakia) than in Ireland. In summary, this means that chat boards for those countries will often have a greater understanding of rights than Irish equivalents.
In any case, because the WA is common across all EU countries, Section 3.9 in this document outlines the case regarding all partners joining British WA beneficiaries in any EU country:
https://commission.europa.eu/system/fil ... s_en_0.pdf
As you married after 2020, the relevant paras are:
"3.9. I am the unmarried partner of a United Kingdom national residing
in the host EU state. I plan to join him there but I can do it only
in four years because of existing work commitments in my
country, Canada. Will I be able to join him?
Yes. The Withdrawal Agreement protects partners who had been in a durable partnership with a
United Kingdom national at the end of the transition period but were not residing with that partner
in the host EU state. You will be able to join your partner in the host EU state, provided that you
remain in a durable partnership with him at the point you seek to come to the host EU state. You
may have to make an application to the national authorities under the national residence scheme
to have your new status registered/certified after your arrival in the host EU state.
The requirement of durability of the relationship must be assessed in the light of the objective to
maintain the unity of the family in a broad sense. National rules can refer to a minimum amount
of time as a criterion for whether a partnership can be considered as durable. However, in this
case national rules must ensure that other relevant aspects (such as for example a joint mortgage
to buy a home) are taken into account. "
The document refers to national rules on minimum time the relationship must have existed prior to 31 Dec 2020 to be considered eligible. Ireland holds that marriage even one day before 31 Dec 2020 would be sufficient, or 2 years of documented relationship in the case of a de facto relationship. Those national rules are listed here, in section 6:
https://www.irishimmigration.ie/wp-cont ... ission.pdf
Hi Vadaar,
This is insanely informative. Can you please help me as well.
My husband is a UK national who moved to Ireland with his family when he was 7 years old. This is his timeline.
1997 : Moved to Ireland at age 7 with parents and brother.
1997 - 2011 : Studied school + university in Ireland.
2011 - 2018 : Periods of unemployment and full-term employment.
Mid 2018 : Moved to Dubai for work.
August 2018 : When we met. Started living together in January 2019.
October 2020 : Married in Dubai at the British embassy.
August 2022 : Returned back to Ireland.
Withdrawal Agreement, Art 15 (3):
"3. Once acquired, the right of permanent residence shall be lost only through absence from the host State for a period exceeding 5 consecutive years."
Which is different from temporary residence in the State : Article 16(3) of Directive 2004/38/EC:
"3. Continuity of residence shall not be affected by temporary absences not exceeding a total of six months a year, or by absences of a longer duration for compulsory military service, or by one absence of a maximum of twelve consecutive months for important reasons such as pregnancy and childbirth, serious illness, study or vocational training, or a posting in another Member State or a third country.
4. Once acquired, the right of permanent residence shall be lost only through absence from the host Member State for a period exceeding two consecutive years."
Even while he was away in Dubai, he maintained his family ties (his parents and brother are Irish citizens now), bank account where he kept sending himself money earned in Dubai periodically, came home multiple times from :
July 2018 to late August 2018
December 2018 for Christmas
July 2019 to August 2019
December 2019 (both of us came to Ireland for Christmas)
December 2021 (both of us came to Ireland for Christmas after COVID lockdown was eased)
Returned back to Ireland August 2022
He was never absent from Ireland for longer than 5 years consecutively (longest being 22 months due to COVID)
Anyway, in early 2022 I applied for my long term visa to move to Ireland with him. I need to a visa to enter Ireland and I cannot apply for short term visa when the intention is to move here, so we were advised to apply for the Long term join UK spouse visa which they sent through the pre-clearance office and I was given the D visa to move here.
At the airport I was advised to go to the Garda and apply for my IRP. I had all the necessary documents and the Garda gave me my IRP with stamp 'Article 50 TEU' for 1 year. Mind you, I had no idea what this was until he gave it to me. He told me to come back in a year but meanwhile that I could see if I can apply for EUTR1. I had no idea what this was or about the withdrawal agreement at this point. I emailed EU Treaty rights explaining my condition and they told me that I am eligible and to apply IF I WANT. So I did not. The next year in 2023 I went back to the Garda and showed them my documents for renewal and he gave me my IRP for 2 years this time with the same stamp 'Article 50 TEU'.
My current card expires on 24th August 2025, I reached out to the Garda for renewal in June and he told me its all moved online. One of the required documents is the current permission letter from DoJ which I was never given. I emailed the DoJ explaining my full situation and requesting the letter. They told me to apply EUTR1 and thats the only way to get it. I asked them multiple times if it is the right lane for me, but they never gave me a proper answer. They were very vague and told me to apply EUTR1, so i did.
I am currently 8 months pregnant and this vagueness and uncertainity was causing extreme stress coz I do not want to be undocumented while my baby is born or lose access to maternity care or be a burden to the State. My husband contacted multiple TDs and all of them were very helpful. One of them reached out to EU division asking for clarification.
05/07/2025 - Documents submitted.
08/07/2025 - Documents received.
06/08/2025 - Letter from EU Treaty Rights telling me I would be processed under WA and requesting more documents. But they never mentioned anything about a temporary IRP at all which is causing me extreme stress coz my current card expires in 2 weeks.
Out of the documents they require as proof of my husband's activities in the State prior to end of transition period,
- 'private health insurance for him and his dependants for the duration he was studying'. This is very confusing as UK nationals do not need insurance in Ireland under CTA which was emphasised after WA was announced as well. However, I have proof of private medical insurance when he was doing his Masters after we returned to Ireland in 2022 until he got a job post graduation in 2023. (I do not have private insurance now)
- 'proof of financial resources for corresponding period'. We have this for 2022 but he does not have access to this when he was a child from 1997 to 2011. Coz UK nationals did not need that.
I am worried that for the duration he was a kid or for the duration he did his Masters in 2022 to 2023, will it be heavily penalised that he did not have a private health insurance under EU Treaty Rights?
UK Nationals are by default given rights under CTA, will that be viewed as violating EU Treaty Rights??
This is extremely frustrating coz we never even applied for this to begin with. We did not want to invoke the WA rights UNTIL they forced us to by giving me the Article 50 TEU stamp??
This is honesly causing me lots of issues with my pregnancy and I am freaking out. Does anyone know what my best options are? I contacted Immigration council who think I am in the right and I did not do anything wrong. I contacted a handful of immigration lawyers who are giving me very confusing and contradicting answers. What do I do if they reject my EUTR1? I cannot fly while heavily pregnant and my child will be an Irish and British citizen born in Ireland. They cannot take that away from her either.
