Forum Immigration UK

[Estephany]

My husband is an EEA national, and works in the UK. I am in the UK with an EEA family permit, and applied for a residence permit 3 days ago.

I want to look for a job here, but I am not sure if I am eligible to work in the UK with the FAMILY permit. If I can work...

How can I prove that I am eligible ( UK Home Office has my passport due to the procedure for the residence permit, so I can not even prove that I have an EEA family permit)?

My husband keeps telling me that I need a national insurance number in order to get a job. But the helpline tells me I need a job in order to get the number.

I really appreciate good answers! I have been in the UK only for 5 days, and I have nobody to talk to! Thank you.

[texkourgan]

The best place to start is the Expat FAQ on UK EEA Family Permit:

EEA Family Permit Requirements (for non-EU citizens outside the UK):
The EU citizen intends to exercise their Treaty rights in the UK (employment, self-employment, study, self-sufficient, etc)
The couple must be legally married to each other / in a civil partnership with each other
They must have met each other
They must intend to live together
The couple must be traveling to the UK together or the EU citizen should already be in the UK

In this case, the EEA Family Permit would be issued for 6 months and allows unrestricted employment in the UK for that time. During those 6 months, it is expected the EU citizen would apply for a Residence Permit and their spouse/partner applies at the same time for a Five Year Family Permit.

You can also refer to the complete expat Guide to London. It has information on visas, jobs, education, and more. I hope these help you get oriented with what is required. Best of luck!

[Estephany]

Thank you very much for your advice. I have the EEA family permit ( 4 months left ) and my husband and I already applied for EEA2 when we arrived to the UK( I guess this is the 5 year family permit incl his residence permit?).

I probably have to wait minimum 6 months to get the EEA2, but while I wait, I want to look for a job. Companies I contacted ask me if I have documents to prove my right to work in the UK, but I don't have any because home office has my passport (plus my EEA family permit). Even if I ask home office to return my passport temporary, it only proves that I can work 4 more months... does it mean there is no way I can prove that I have the right to work?

I think I will receive the letter of submission from the UK home office very soon, which allows me to get a national insurgence number (I think) , but I am not sure if the letter proves my right to work in the UK...

P.S. thank you very much for the links! I really appreciate it.I just could not find the answers I wanted :b

[texkourgan]

Happy to help! Hopefully everything goes smoothly for you. Do write back if you have advice for other expats and can share your experience. Good luck!