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I am German citizen living and working in Sweden where I met my girlfriend, who is from the Philippines. Together we applied for her residence card with the local migration agency in Sweden (Migrationsverket) at the beginning of the year so she can stay with me even after her original visa had expired. We're living together in the same apartment just like married partners but are not married.

Sadly last week she got the tragic news that her dad died unexpectedly in the Philippines. She wanted to go home to be with her family. However the decision to go home was not as easy as it may seem, because with our pending application it was not clear to us if she'd be able to re-enter Sweden without problem once she felt like returning home to me.

We then spoke with the migration agency about our case and they gave us a printout confirmation that our application is registered and pending and advised us to talk to the Norwegian embassy in the Philippines about a tourist/Schengen visa.

On their website I read about the Directive 2004/38/EC, which seems to apply to us with me as a German living in Sweden. But is it possible to base our Schengen visa application on that directive even if we are not married (yet)? And how can we prove that we are in a relationship? According to their website this is required for us in order to apply.

My girlfriend went home last weekend because for us it was the highest priority that she could be with her family during times like these. I hope that there is a relatively easy way to bring her back to me in a couple of weeks.

Thank you so much for any kind of help!

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  • Did you apply for her residence card under the directive?
    – phoog
    Commented Jul 17, 2018 at 14:37
  • @phoog Yes, we did. Basically as it is described here migrationsverket.se/English/Private-individuals/…
    – MrBr
    Commented Jul 17, 2018 at 15:27
  • In that case, how did you resolve the question with respect to that application ("how can we prove that we are in a relationship")?
    – phoog
    Commented Jul 17, 2018 at 15:31
  • we showed that we are registered at the same address through our confirmations from the tax office (which is the registration office at the same time). Also in the meantime we collected more bills that show that my girlfriend actually lives with me.
    – MrBr
    Commented Jul 17, 2018 at 15:34

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I assume that the application mentioned in the first paragraph is for a residence card under Article 10 of the freedom of movement directive. If that is incorrect, please advise.

Is it possible to base our Schengen visa application on that directive even if we are not married (yet)?

The directive applies equally to residence cards and to family-of-EU-citizen Schengen visas. If she qualifies for one, she qualifies for the other.

The problem is likely that, because her application has not yet been decided, the Swedish government has not yet made a formal finding that she does qualify. For the applicability of the directive to a partner in the absence of a marriage or a registered partnership depends on national law. From the directive, article 3(2):

  1. Without prejudice to any right to free movement and residence the persons concerned may have in their own right, the host Member State shall, in accordance with its national legislation, facilitate entry and residence for the following persons:

    (a) ...

    (b) the partner with whom the Union citizen has a durable relationship, duly attested.

You also ask:

And how can we prove that we are in a relationship? According to their website this is required for us in order to apply.

How did you prove it for the residence card application? I would submit the same evidence for the visa application.

Note that the visa application must be decided "free of charge as soon as possible and on the basis of an accelerated procedure" (Art. 5(2)).

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  • The problem is likely that, because her application has not yet been decided, the Swedish government has not yet made a formal finding that she does qualify. Isn't that expected in this case? If the government would have made a decision she would either have a residence card or not.
    – MrBr
    Commented Jul 17, 2018 at 15:32
  • @MrBr of course. So the visa application will be all the more difficult for the consulate to process. They will have to make an independent determination of whether she qualifies. The real problem is the risk that they might refuse the application. If your circumstances are such that the residence card application is doomed but not yet finalized, that seems fairly likely. If your residence card application is headed for success, the visa application will probably succeed. Given the bereavement, it seems unlikely that they would refuse it. She should just apply as soon as possible.
    – phoog
    Commented Jul 17, 2018 at 15:36
  • We don't expect an answer from the migration agency regarding the application for her residence card earlier than by the end of this year. For her visa we were hoping that she could be back by the end of August. We will fill out the form as soon as possible and submit it to the embassy, hoping that they will understand our situation. Thanks so much for taking the time here to answer my question.
    – MrBr
    Commented Jul 17, 2018 at 15:51

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