Limited leave to remain simply means you are resident in the UK for a given time period. As long as you are resident in the UK you can apply for the visa in the UK, that´s if you still have more than 3 months on your visa. If it´s validity is less than 3 months, you should apply for a renewal.

Application for Spanish residency is done in Spain. What the Spanish Consulate will give you is a 3 month ´Family Reunification´ visa, which will grant you entry into Spain as the spouse of an EU citizen settled or settling there.

 

Hi,

First and foremost, because you are not ´communitario´ - not from the EU, there are more conditions for uptaining residency. The whole process starts with the Spanish consulate in London. When you go for the interview, you need to:

1. Take photocopies of both your entire passport, leaving out only blank pages. You need to do the same for your husband´s.
2. Your husband´s passport; if he can can I would advise that he go with you
3. Proof that he as the EU citizen has been supporting you, I think bank statements from a joint account over the a one year period should do the trick
4. Original marriage certificate plus a photocopy. if document is not in English, you´ll have to translate using an official translator. you can get a list from the Consulate.
5. 4 filled forms and 4 passport photos

I trust everything to go smoothly. When your visa is approved and you go back to collect it, make sure you ask them to return a stamped form to you. You may need it when you apply for residency here.

PART II

When you get to Spain you need to go to the nearest ´Oficina de Extrangeros´, that´s where you´ll apply for residency. In my opinion using the services of a ´gestor´is better, as they know the process. You can find´Gestorias all over, so shouldn´t be difficult to find one. They charge between 180 to 300€. When apply for residency in Spain, you need to present:

1. A completed form with a passport photo
2. You husband´s residency card, if he doesn´t have one yet, then his passport, N.I.E and a census certificate from his Local council in the UK should be ok. (N.I.E is to Spain what the N.I is to the UK)
3. Your passport
4. Marriage certificate - you need to have an up to date one. It should not be more than 3 months old.
5. Medical Certificate - you can get that in Spain
6. A police report covering the past 5 years
7. A document from your husband´s local council in Spain stating your address. You both need to get this.

NOTE: All documents (passports not included) have to be no more than 3 months old. There is a long waiting period for an appointment, so you have to know how to get your documents up to date.

You can get the form for a UK police report from www.met.police.uk/dataprotection or call 020 7161 3500. The whole process usually takes about 40 days, so apply well in advance of the interview date for your residency.

All documents must be translated to Spanish by an official translator. They are not hard to find in Spain.

Hope this helps, ¡Suerte!

 

Hi Hely,

To be honest with you, I do not know where your lawyer got his information from, nevertheless, I would consider what he has said. The reason for this is that all EU countries seem to have their own interpretations of the EU regulations on freedom of movement of EU citizens and their families.

Having said that, I do not think what the lawyer said is true. The reason for this is that the clause the lawyer refers to is not defined. What the Spanish consulate says is that the EU national should have financially maintained the dependant relative for up to one year prior to the application. It does not say in Spain.

The Spanish Consulate is thorough, so when you send your application and they cannot process it, they will let you know the reason. However as things stand, I do not see a reason why they should refuse you a family visa.

If I were you, I would apply anyway inspite of what the lawyer says.

Also on the Spanish consulate website, one of requirements is the presentation of the passport of the European national moving or living in Spain and photocopy of the pages with the relevant information.

It says moving or living in Spain. I think that answers your question