Hello,
I hope you can help me with some advice on mine and my partner's situation as it is not 'clear-cut' and cannot be 100% answered by the information on the embassy website. I have become very frustrated and confused as we just want to be together but have become lost by the immigration rules.
I am a 29 year -old British citizen as I was born in England, to English parents and have lived in England all my life. He was born in Iperos which I understand is owned by Albania. He came to live in Greece as a small child (aged approx 7 or 8) and is now 34. He used to have a beige Greek-style passport which I believe means his nationality is Greek to a certain extent. However, now he has an Albanian passport as he was advised this would make it easier to obtain his Greek (EU) passprt.
I don't fully understand the residence permit system in Greece but he has a page in his passport referring to this which states he has a Greek spouse. This is his ex-partner who he has had a child with but who he hasn't lived with for nearly 3 years. Again, I do not fully understand the legal implications of this union but can only (rightly or wrongly) really compare it to the English civil partnership system perhaps as I know it is not the same as being married.
We met in October 2005 when I was in Greece and have been a couple ever since. He obtained a 6 month visitor's visa in June of this year and has been able to visit me using that. Before that I had been a number of times to visit him in Greece. As we have been together for a year and the relationship has survived all this uncertainty and adversity, we have decided to get married. I therefore see that the type of visa he will need to get now is a settlement visa. He is trying all the time to speed up his application for his Greek (EU) passport and so far, his father has managed to obtain a certificate from court that confirms his Greek nationality.
I hope the above explains his position sufficiently and hope you don't mind but I now have a few questions if anyone might know the answers!
1) Would this whole situation be easier if he reverted back to his beige Greek passport? If he had this, would the visa/work rules be any different?
2) Am I right in presuming that he will have to dissolve his partnership to his ex-partner before we can apply for his settlement visa or can it be done in the period before the wedding? I see a divorce certificate is needed for those married before but will this not apply to him as it was not a full marriage?
3) Once this partnership is dissolved, will this affect his residence permit?
4) Is the certificate of Greek nationality that his father has obtained any use to us at this stage for this process?
Many thanks for your time,
