What are the rules that UK-EU couples now face if they want to live in the UK? And what are their experiences of this so far?
Falling in love and wanting to build a life with another person is a common human experience, but when you have different passports, states’ immigration systems can impose real challenges to love, romance and families. This is something that UK-EU couples are experiencing now after Brexit. In many cases, it was the freedom of movement in the EU that allowed these people to meet in the first place or at least it was central to keeping up their relationships. However, now these couples face partner migration rules that are among the most restrictive, difficult, complex and expensive in the world.
What are the rules that UK-EU couples now face if they want to live in the UK? And what are their experiences of this so far?
You’ll learn in this episode, in which guest producer Kevin Caners interviews Helena Wray about the project she co-led, called “Brexit Couples: UK-EU couples in the British immigration system”. Over three years, the project’s researchers interviewed couples who were newly navigating the UK’s immigration system. Near the end of the episode, Helena talks about how the system should be improved, to relieve the financial hardship, prolonged stress and separation - all commonly experienced by the UK-EU couples that they spoke to.
Throughout the episode, you’ll also hear some personal stories from “Brexit couples”. These are clips from the project’s own podcast, called “Love, Borders, Brexit” – check it out here: https://brexitcouples.ac.uk/podcast/.
Helena Wray is a Professor of Migration Law at the University of Exeter in the UK.
For further reading:
Charsley, K., & Wray, H. (2023). Kept apart: Routine family separation in the UK family immigration system as times of crises. Migration Studies, 11(3), 380-407.
Wray, H. (2011). Regulating marriage migration into the UK: A stranger in the home. Ashgate/Routledge.
Wray, H., Kofman, E., & Simic, A. (2023). Subversive citizens: using EU free movement law to bypass the UK's rules on marriage migration. In Cross-Border Marriages (pp. 123-139). Routledge.
Wray, H. (2023). Article 8 ECHR, Family Reunification and the UK's Supreme Court.