We are clearly not welcome here!
Yesterday, after spending half the day chasing up paperwork for my families residence permits etc. I got two seperate phonecalls that seriously undermined my belief in the Icelandic system, a belief that had been completely destroyed before this anyway ... but prior to these phonecalls I used to laugh at the system and say 'typical Iceland'. It's not funny anymore ...
The first one was from my childminder saying there was some problems with her getting the government funding for Elijah staying with her. After some phonecalls it appeared that we weren't officially living where we were in reality living. I went up to the national registry who had appertently lost the piece of paper saying that we were moving, yet it was registered in their computer as having been handed in ... ON THREE SEPERATE OCCATIONS! What a waste of space these people are ... Got this sorted to some extent but apperently the department that deals with the educational funds ... HAD LOST OUR AUGUST APPLICATION! ... they too, are a waste of space.
The second phonecall was worse. It was from the Icelandic Directorate of Immigration where we have two applications for residence permits pending, one for Joanna and one for Jolyon. The lady there (who didn't know her head from her a***) said that because I wasn't Jolyons' birth father we have to have a signed copy from his birth father (who has met him twice in Jolyons 9 year life) and it must be stamped by an official british office. This, of course, was a load of c*** as I found out the next day by looking on the internet. On the departments website it said that this is only the case if they have joint responsibility. I then checked the English Childrens Act of 1989 where it says (for children born before 1. December 2003):
2. (2) (a) The mother shall have parental responsibility for the child
(b) The father shall not have parental responsibility for the child, unless he aquires it in accordance with the provisions of this Act.
(4) The rule of law that a father is the natural guardian of his legitimate child is abolished.
B****y H*** ... it doesn't get much clearer than this. Soooooo ... I phoned them up this morning and corrected their mistake and told them where they could find this law on the internet. 'No, that's not enough ... we still need offically stamped proof that she has sole parental responsibility ...' Useless w*****s, that's all I can say.
Basically, as it stands now ... Jolyon, my 9 year old son, does not and isn't getting a residents permit in Iceland because the governmental department is too lazy to get off their behinds and do their research properly ... I recently read a quote in the paper from the head of this department saying that all applicant decisions are taken on individual merrit ... yeah right! They stick us all in the same box, sit back and watch us squirm about trying to get out ... and I have to say that at this moment in time I am feeling quite claustrophobic in this box and am on the verge of saying:
'I GIVE UP, YOU WIN, I'LL LEAVE AND TAKE MY FOREIGN FAMILY WITH ME ... IT'S OBVIOUS YOU DON'T WANT US, OR ANY OTHER FOREIGNERS, ON YOUR PRECIOUS SOIL ...'
When I applied for an identification number in Britain, as a foreigner from an EEA country, the application process took three weeks (without any phonecalls or mithering), then I went for a (fairly heavy going) interview for approximately three hours and that was it. My identification number came through the post a week later. The system in Britain is much bigger and complex, but at least it works ...
Love,
Tóti, Elijah and two beautiful illegal immigrants ... J and J
The first one was from my childminder saying there was some problems with her getting the government funding for Elijah staying with her. After some phonecalls it appeared that we weren't officially living where we were in reality living. I went up to the national registry who had appertently lost the piece of paper saying that we were moving, yet it was registered in their computer as having been handed in ... ON THREE SEPERATE OCCATIONS! What a waste of space these people are ... Got this sorted to some extent but apperently the department that deals with the educational funds ... HAD LOST OUR AUGUST APPLICATION! ... they too, are a waste of space.
The second phonecall was worse. It was from the Icelandic Directorate of Immigration where we have two applications for residence permits pending, one for Joanna and one for Jolyon. The lady there (who didn't know her head from her a***) said that because I wasn't Jolyons' birth father we have to have a signed copy from his birth father (who has met him twice in Jolyons 9 year life) and it must be stamped by an official british office. This, of course, was a load of c*** as I found out the next day by looking on the internet. On the departments website it said that this is only the case if they have joint responsibility. I then checked the English Childrens Act of 1989 where it says (for children born before 1. December 2003):
2. (2) (a) The mother shall have parental responsibility for the child
(b) The father shall not have parental responsibility for the child, unless he aquires it in accordance with the provisions of this Act.
(4) The rule of law that a father is the natural guardian of his legitimate child is abolished.
B****y H*** ... it doesn't get much clearer than this. Soooooo ... I phoned them up this morning and corrected their mistake and told them where they could find this law on the internet. 'No, that's not enough ... we still need offically stamped proof that she has sole parental responsibility ...' Useless w*****s, that's all I can say.
Basically, as it stands now ... Jolyon, my 9 year old son, does not and isn't getting a residents permit in Iceland because the governmental department is too lazy to get off their behinds and do their research properly ... I recently read a quote in the paper from the head of this department saying that all applicant decisions are taken on individual merrit ... yeah right! They stick us all in the same box, sit back and watch us squirm about trying to get out ... and I have to say that at this moment in time I am feeling quite claustrophobic in this box and am on the verge of saying:
'I GIVE UP, YOU WIN, I'LL LEAVE AND TAKE MY FOREIGN FAMILY WITH ME ... IT'S OBVIOUS YOU DON'T WANT US, OR ANY OTHER FOREIGNERS, ON YOUR PRECIOUS SOIL ...'
When I applied for an identification number in Britain, as a foreigner from an EEA country, the application process took three weeks (without any phonecalls or mithering), then I went for a (fairly heavy going) interview for approximately three hours and that was it. My identification number came through the post a week later. The system in Britain is much bigger and complex, but at least it works ...
Love,
Tóti, Elijah and two beautiful illegal immigrants ... J and J
posted by Tóti Freysson at Friday, August 25, 2006
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