# EEA family permit while waiting for residence card



## bulent_i (Nov 12, 2011)

Hello, my wife is a non-EEA national and we live together in the UK; I am an EU national. We have applied for her for a 5-year residence card in August and we are still waiting to hear. Two months ago we asked for her passport to be returned because we had to travel to Europe together.
The problem is that we need to travel abroad in December. Can my wife enter UK with a certificate of application for the residence card? Her previous family permit has expired.
If not, can she apply for a new family permit while waiting for the residence card application?
Any help on this would be highly appreciated.
Thanks.


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## Joppa (Sep 7, 2009)

bulent_i said:


> Hello, my wife is a non-EEA national and we live together in the UK; I am an EU national. We have applied for her for a 5-year residence card in August and we are still waiting to hear. Two months ago we asked for her passport to be returned because we had to travel to Europe together.
> The problem is that we need to travel abroad in December. Can my wife enter UK with a certificate of application for the residence card? Her previous family permit has expired.


Unlikely, but you can call European Enquiries Contact Centre on 0845 010 5200 or 0151 672 5626 to confirm. Also you may have trouble with the airline allowing her to fly to UK with only a COA.



> If not, can she apply for a new family permit while waiting for the residence card application?


Yes, but only outside of UK, at any British diplomatic post that issues visas. It may take a week or two to process, and you will need supporting documents similar to those supplied with her initial application, so make sure you have them ready before leaving UK. 

Unless the trip is urgent, I'd wait until she gets her resident card. Most applications are processed well within the 6 months limit, around 3-4 months.


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