Do I need an EU visa if I'm married to a UK citizen?

Do I need an EU visa if I'm married to a UK citizen? - Multicolor Heart Shaped Candies

I'm a Jordanian national married to a UK citizen. I hold a leave to remain spouse visa here in the UK. Do I need a visa to travel to Europe with my partner?

I have been reading a lot and it gets more confusing the more I read, please give me a definite answer if you know.



Best Answer

The rules are explained on the official EU website. It sometimes difficult to understand how they apply to a given situation but the page should be authoritative. In your case, my understanding is that you do need a visa to visit other European countries.


To understand why, you have to make a few distinctions. Assuming you are talking about a short stay, there is no such thing as a “EU visa” but several distinct area/countries with their own visa regime:

  • Schengen area (most EU/EEA member states plus Switzerland)
  • UK (not relevant for you as you already have the right to be there)
  • Ireland (will not join Schengen to stay in the “common travel area” with the UK)
  • Cyprus (blocked from joining Schengen as long as the state does not have effective control on the Northern part of the island)
  • Romania (ready to join Schengen but blocked by other members' veto)
  • Bulgaria (ready to join Schengen but blocked by other members' veto)
  • Croatia (slated to join Schengen at a later date)

Croatia, Romania, and Bulgaria have rules modeled after the Schengen area and make it easy to visit for holders of multiple-entry Schengen visas or Schengen residence permits but are still separate. UK and Ireland have entirely separate policies and don't have any facilities for Schengen visa holders but do have to honor a few EU rules.

There are two ways in which being the spouse of an EU citizen can allow you travel to some or all of these countries without a visa but neither apply to you as far as I can tell:

  1. If you would reside in the Schengen area, you could go to Switzerland and all EU/EEA countries except the UK, Ireland and possibly Cyprus (with or without your spouse) but that's not your case as you reside in the UK.
  2. If your spouse would live somewhere else in the EU, you would qualify for an “EU family member’s residence card” in that country and could use it to go everywhere in the EU/EEA (including the UK and Ireland) and Switzerland with your spouse but that's not your case since your spouse lives in his or her country of origin and does not fall under EU rules about freedom of movement.

In all other cases (and in particular if you live in your spouse's country of origin), you have to follow national rules regarding spouse visa (i.e. you don't get an “EU family member” permit) and you do need a visa to travel to other EU countries. The good news is that as long as you travel with your spouse, this visa should in principle be issued quickly and free of charge.


Note than in the UK, British citizens have successfully argued that staying elsewhere in the EU for some time is enough to invoke EU rules instead of national rules (it's called the Surinder Singh route after the person who argued for it in front the EU Court of Justice). In that case, you would initially have applied for an EEA family permit instead of a family of settled person visa and you would fall under the second exemption I mentioned above.




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Can I live in the EU if married to an EU citizen?

Your partner is an EU national As an EU national, your registered partner may live in your host EU country under the same conditions that apply to EU nationals. If your partner is working or looking for a job, receives a pension or is studying, check the conditions and formalities for: workers.

Can EU citizen bring non-EU spouse to UK?

Overview. You may be able to get an EU Settlement Scheme family permit to come to the UK if you're the family member of someone from the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein. You may also be able to apply if you're the family member of an eligible person of Northern Ireland.

Can I bring my non-EU spouse to Europe?

Under EU rules, you have the right to travel together with your core family members (non-EU spouse, children, dependent parents or dependent grandparents) to an EU country other than the one you are a national of. If you have moved to another EU country, they can also join you there.

Do I need a Schengen visa if I am married to an EU citizen?

If you are travelling to the Schengen area as the spouse of an E.U. citizen, you should apply for the European Spouse Schengen Visa.



Schengen VISA - What Documents Do I Require \u0026 Need for European VISA?




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