I was wondering whether there is any definite update on the "lawfully resident" question that was raised here: http://www.easyexpat.com/forums/ftopic_13515.htm

To recapitulate:
It seems that the requirements for applying for an EEA family permit have recently changed. Where it used to say "legally living", it now says that you have to be "lawfully resident" in a member state.
According to ukvisas (http://www.ukvisas.gov.uk/servlet/Fro...), you are considered lawfully resident in any member state even if you entered the country as a visitor:

Later on the same page, it says that one possible reason for refusing to issue a family permit is failure to prove that the person is lawfully resident.

But how can a non-EEA national (Malaysian citizen) who doesn't need a visa for, let's say, Germany prove that they are lawfully resident there if they just entered the country as a visitor?

Then there's this other paragraph:

How does one meet the relevant requirements in the Immigration Rules for leave to enter the UK if you are already legally resident in the UK (albeit without a residence card) and don't need a visa for either Britain or the Schengen countries?

I am a bit puzzled, probably too careful, and worried. ;-) We really need to leave Britain to see my grandfather who isn't well - and after three weeks, the HO still hasn't even told us whether they are dealing with my wife's EEA2 application more quickly or not. She was told today that she could receive her documents back, the application would be put on hold and that she would then have to apply for a family permit wherever she goes in order to get back into the country. However, after having been misinformed by the Immigration Enquiry Bureau before, I don't want to act on a piece of information that I was only given over the phone. Also, does any of this potentially have any effect on things like child benefit etc.?

Any pointers to anywhere that will give me peace of mind and finally let us leave this country (temporarily)?

 

Thanks for your reply! Yes - we've been through that as an option. But considering that she really has a close relationship with my grandfather *and* feels terribly trapped at the moment (which already *is* a very stressful experience), it really would improve everybody's sanity if we could leave the cage called Britain for a while...

 

more on this...

OK - I have just received a reply from the Citizens Signpost Service (http://ec.europa.eu/citizensrights/front_end/index_en.htm) where I asked the same question as in my original post here. Unfortunately, the answer is not as detailed on some points as I had hoped - but it basically confirms my suspicion that *in principle* travelling out and back into the country is no problem, even without a Family Permit. However, I am still puzzled and don't know whether we should try it...
A few points from the reply - I'll try to be as close as possible to the German original:

"According to the EU Directive 2004/38, your wife can leave the UK (§4) and re-enter it (§5) without visa."

"An application of an EEA Family Permit can be made at any UK embassy with a visa-issuing office. Since you as a EU citizen are legally resident in the UK, this should be no problem. Make sure you have a couple of utility bills at hand."
-> Mhm - this doesn't really answer the question whether you can apply for a Family Permit in a country where you don't currently live...

"It is not necessary to have a Family Permit to enter the UK - this is only the case if a longer period of stay is envisaged. However, you already have an application for a residence card in progress, which is based on an earlier Family Permit."
-> I take this to mean that there should be no reason to refuse my wife re-entry since she doesn't need a visa anyway and since she is travelling with her EU husband. I still don't know how they would react if she gives the UK as place of residence, though...

Oh well - I'll have to sleep over this.
If anybody wants to have the text of the German original, just send me a PM.

 

OK - but if this is so obvious, why are we having problems deciding whether it is worth trying to leave the country without having a Family Permit or a residence card? ;-)

 

I just stumbled across this interesting read - not entirely the same thing, of course, but still: http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/non-eu-visa-national-spouses-of-british-.... There are also some critical comments about this here: http://www.gopetition.com/msg.php?msgid=221844&isearch=. The deadline for signing this petition is today, by the way.

Mhm - maybe a petition to the European Parliament (http://www.europarl.europa.eu/parliament/public/staticDisplay.do?id=49) would be a worthwhile exercise to channel my frustration into something more positive/active than just twiddling my thumbs while the HO continues to be the way they are? Has anybody done this before?