Advice for wife of USA/ITalian dual citizen

[lordna]

My wifes sister has in the last 6 months moved to the USA, with her filipino daughter, to be with her husband who has joint USA and Italian citizenship.

Is it possible for her to come to the UK without her husband but with her daughter using her husbands italian(EEC) citizenship? Would she be able to travel here without her husband and have the right to work?....or could she travel here with her husband and have the right to work?

[Terpe]

Hi lordna,
In the bigger picture, technically, as an EU national the husband can travel on his Italian passport under EU freedom of movement rules.
His non-EEA wife (your sister-in-law) can follow the same freedom of movement rules to gain entry to UK.
Ideally she should make application for an EEA Family permit to UK. This is by far the most secure path to follow.

Again, technically, the non-EEA spouse MUST be travelling to the UK ideally together with the EEA national, or alternatively to join the EEA national already residing here in UK.
Personally I think it's better to be together.

Do note that outside of those conditions she would need to apply for a regular visa to come UK in her own right. This would be a visit visit and would carry all the usual short stay restrictions and conditions. Means no working etc

Now, strictly speaking the EEA Family Permit is not mandatory.......but under the circumstances I would strongly suggest she follow protocol and apply for one.
Not a nice situation to face if, rightly or wrongly, the Immigration Officer decides to refuse her entry....for whatever reason. It does happen.

There are a couple of questions to settle before working out the details:-
- How long has she been married?
- How long has she resided in USA?
- How long has he resided in USA?
- Will he already have a job offer or be considered jobseeker?

It can happen that Family Permit is refused due to suspected marriage of convenience.

Having said that, with the right documentary evidence for eligibility, and to put your mind at ease, there's normally no problems securing the EEA permit.

Be aware that your sis-in-law would find it almost impossible to secure employment until she has applied for her residence card, so that would be a priority.
She'll need to be patient as it can take ages just for the letter of confirmation of application.

Hope that helps to confirm your thinking

[lordna]

Hi lordna,
In the bigger picture, technically, as an EU national the husband can travel on his Italian passport under EU freedom of movement rules.
His non-EEA wife (your sister-in-law) can follow the same freedom of movement rules to gain entry to UK.
Ideally she should make application for an EEA Family permit to UK. This is by far the most secure path to follow.

Again, technically, the non-EEA spouse MUST be travelling to the UK ideally together with the EEA national, or alternatively to join the EEA national already residing here in UK.
Personally I think it's better to be together.

Do note that outside of those conditions she would need to apply for a regular visa to come UK in her own right. This would be a visit visit and would carry all the usual short stay restrictions and conditions. Means no working etc

Now, strictly speaking the EEA Family Permit is not mandatory.......but under the circumstances I would strongly suggest she follow protocol and apply for one.
Not a nice situation to face if, rightly or wrongly, the Immigration Officer decides to refuse her entry....for whatever reason. It does happen.

There are a couple of questions to settle before working out the details:-
- How long has she been married?
- How long has she resided in USA?
- How long has he resided in USA?
- Will he already have a job offer or be considered jobseeker?

It can happen that Family Permit is refused due to suspected marriage of convenience.

Having said that, with the right documentary evidence for eligibility, and to put your mind at ease, there's normally no problems securing the EEA permit.

Be aware that your sis-in-law would find it almost impossible to secure employment until she has applied for her residence card, so that would be a priority.
She'll need to be patient as it can take ages just for the letter of confirmation of application.

Hope that helps to confirm your thinking

Thats brilliant...thanks