This is a tricky case. If you apply for EEA1 and EEA2 together, it can be processed quickly (I think we had reports of 4 weeks here). You can try that, and if it does not happen, you can still ask for your passport back.

If you get the residence card, you can get back into the UK. You still need to get a visa for France, but I assume that you have figured that out. Does that work even if your spouse is not in France?

 

I'm not entirely sure what you mean by "EEA2 family permit for the EU"...

Sorry - just to get some facts straight: You can't get back to France because your student resident card expired? But you have to have something that confirms your right to be in the UK for the next 3 months? Or does this "Working holiday maker" refer to France, too?

The reason I'm asking is that one possible solution I see is to apply for a Family Permit for the UK (which you haven't got, right?). This can be applied for *within* the EU (but not within the UK) as long as you are "legally resident" in any EU country. For the purposes of this application, being legally resident is fulfilled if you are a regular visitor, i.e. have not entered the EU country illegally. If this applies to France, go there and apply for a Family Permit - this has to be issued quickly and free of charge. This will give you a breather of 6 months.

If you cannot get to any other EU country, one solution is to fly to India (or any other non-EU country that lets you in) and apply for a FP there. A bit tricky, because you never know what the bureaucrats find to make your life harder, but you clearly qualify for a FP.

The tricky bit, I guess, is the visa for France, right? But if I see things right, this should not really be an issue. You are married to a French citizen and therefore have the right to freely move within the EU, even if you are a visa national. If the French don't want to give you a visa because you are married to a French citizen (and therefore think that EU directive 2004/38 doesn't apply) or if they want to charge you lots for it, etc., apply for a German visa (which, I guess is by definition a Schengen visa, right?). They shouldn't be able to refuse you this and once you are in Germany, you won't have any problems going to France...

I have to admit that these are just uninformed thoughts and I haven't backed this up with any reading and I may have missed important points - but that's where I would start finding a solution.

From my experience with the Home Office, this doesn't sound as if it was going to change things. Your application will be put in the let's-collect-dust-queue no matter what. But again, that's just my impression...

Hope this helps.
Sebastian

 

Yes, I can see the problem. And you also want the residence card to get back into the UK, although you can try that even without, as long as you have your marriage license with you.

Technically you should not need to produce a residence card to get the EEA family permit. All you need to do is demonstrate that you are a legal resident. And the requirement for more than 3 months is also flawed, so you can try to argue that point (with the French? maybe).

I think that is probably the best idea. You can chose any country in the Schengen agreement, so it does not have to be Germany. Although I think Germany and the Netherlands should be your favourites, if you want it fast. Or one of the countries further to the east: they may be less popular destinations (but beware of the bureaucracy). Oops, that is a lot of prejudices in one paragraph

 

I think there might be some confusion about names here. The Family Permit has to be issued immediately - applications cannot cannot be added to the queue. From what I have heard, it usually takes a couple of days.

With the Family Permit, you can enter and leave the UK as often as you like. So you apply for a registration card (= EEA2) immediately after you enter the UK, then ask for your passport to be returned - et voilà: almost six months of "freedom" while your application is in the queue. (Although joint applications are said to be much quicker.)

It shouldn't - it would be against the law. They are supposed to issue Family Permits immediately. Remember - you are *not* applying for a visa, just for something that confirms your right to enter the UK.

The EU directive stipulates that you can enter any EU country even *without* a visa (and even without a passport, if you take it to the extremes) as long as you can prove by other means that you are who you claim to be and are married to an EU citizen. Your right of free movement within the EU does not depend on how you entered the UK. Also, even though you currently are in the UK on a visitor visa, you are a legal resident there and have the right to work etc. - simply via being married to a French citizen...

Good luck!
Sebastian