Family Permit for under 21 child non-EEA citizen

Question

I am a Portuguese national. Currently, working and living in the UK. I have a non-EEA son under 21 that lives outside of EU. I want him to join me in the UK. As far as I understand he can apply for Family Permit Visa from the non-EEA country and later apply for the residency card.

1) Would it be better if he comes on a tourist visa and later decides if he wants to stay and apply for the Family permit?

2) I have been here less than 3 months, does it means I dont have to show any work-related documents listed here. https://www.gov.uk/family-permit/documents-you-must-provide

Thanks

Answer 1

Your son may be, as suggested in a comment, a Portuguese citizen. However, this answer assumes that he is not.

1) Would it be better if he comes on a tourist visa and later decides if he wants to stay and apply for the Family permit?

There is no advantage to this. Trying this route will probably take longer and be more expensive, since the EEA family permit is free of charge and is issued more quickly. A tourist visa costs around £100 with service fees, and will probably take longer to process.

Anyway, once he's in the UK, he can no longer apply for a family permit. Instead, he would apply for a residence card. But for a direct family member it's not necessary to have a residence card to remain. He'll need one if he wants to work, however.

2) I have been here less than 3 months, does it means I dont have to show any work-related documents listed here.

That is correct.