Work permission?

Hello,

I'm scheduled to move to London in April with my husband, who's French. From what I've been told I don't need a work permit in order to get a job since my husband is an EU citizen. However, the British embassy told me to check with the home office and in turn the home office told me to check with the embassy, so I'm a little confused about the final word. I don't want to arrive only to find out I can't work. Can anyone here reassure me and let me in on what I need to do to work? I think I need a National Health Insurance number? Thank you.

ha sounds like typical home office runaround! I am 99 % sure the answer is Laura that you do need to apply for the 2 year thing as a spouse before you come here but if your local British embassy doesn't know that I don't know how you will get on persuading them you need one! Try looking at the Home Office website for details: www.homeoffice.ind.gov.uk

If I'm not mistaken , if you're arriving as a spouse then there are no restrictions but like Britwife says, you may want to verify that.

I don't know about the requirements for the UK, but you should have no problem in getting work since he is an EU national.  I do know that in Spain there are certain hoops to jump through as far as Healthcare and work permission prior to gaining employment.  A lot there depends on the spouse having a job and if you have been living in an EU country for the past few years.  

I would imagine that other EU nations would have a similar laws. . .

Sorry I am not much help . . . I know those run arounds at immigration can be a pain!

Hi Laura,

I used to know someone who was also married to an EU citizen and living in the UK and she did have to get a spousal visa to work here once she arrived.  So you will probably need to go to Croydon, I'm afraid.   :-/

The Home Office is definitely who you will need to check with tho.

By the way, just to be clear, a National Health Service (NHS) number is not the same as a National Insurance Number (NIN).  The NHS number comes to you by registering with your GP and is only used for NHS stuff like hospital visits, etc.  The NIN number is more like a social security card...it has to do with your tax rate, unemployment, etc.

Hi again...well, after several frustrating phone conversations with the British embassy I finally found out that in order to move to the UK (and work) as an American spouse you need to apply for something called "entry clearance".  It was pretty straightforward and now I'm all set to move at the end of the month!

Excellent, Laura!  I'm glad it all worked out for you.  Have a safe trip and come back and tell us how things are going once you've been able to catch your breath.  

oh good one! see it all depends if you get to talk to someone who knows what they're on about! Anyway glad you'll be over here soon with all your paperwork in order.