Family reunification

Typical requirements and conditions for family reunification are

• The person living in Germany must have a secure residence status.

• Sufficient living space must be available for the person joining them and their livelihood must be secured.

• As a rule, adults and children over the age of 16 must provide proof of German language skills .

However, there are clear deviations from this in the context of refugees and asylum.

The nuclear family includes spouses and unmarried children who are minors. Other family members can only be brought to Germany in cases of hardship. The requirements are very high.

ATTENTION: It is only possible for children to join you if both parents agree or if sole custody can be proven.

If the family members joining you come from a country that requires a visa, you must apply to the German diplomatic mission in your home country or country of residence for a family reunification visa, which grants long-term residence for the purpose of family reunification. Experience has shown that the processing time varies greatly from country to country and can take several months.

Persons who come to Germany for the purpose of family reunification are permitted to work.

Persons who have been granted political asylum or refugee status are permitted to join their family. If they apply within 3 months of being granted protection status, a privileged status applies. This means that it is not necessary to prove that sufficient living space is available and that the family's livelihood is secured, unless it is also possible to establish the family community in a third country with which special ties exist.

A timely notification for family reunification can be made here online.

If you apply for a visa at a later date , you do not need to provide proof of sufficient living space. German language skills do not have to be proven.

Persons who cannot be granted asylum or refugee protection but would be exposed to serious danger to life or limb in their country of origin are granted subsidiary protection. In principle, they are allowed to join their families. However, there is no legal entitlement. Humanitarian reasons for family reunification must be presented, e.g. that it has not been possible to establish family cohabitation for a long time. There is also a numerical restriction. A maximum of 1,000 visas per month may be issued for family reunification with beneficiaries of subsidiary protection. The Federal Office of Administration (BVA) makes a selection decision if the number of applications exceeds this limit. Applications for family reunification that could not be considered in the respective month will initially remain with the BVA and will be included in the examination for the following month.

Proof of livelihood and sufficient living space is not required, unless the family cohabitation can also be established in a third country with which special ties exist.

ATTENTION: Family reunification with persons entitled to subsidiary protection is currently suspended. This applies for the time being until 23.07.2027. Individual exceptions are only possible in cases of hardship. The requirements are very strict. There must be exceptional circumstances that lead to an unreasonable living situation in the home country.

The Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) can determine a national ban on deportation for people whose asylum application has been rejected. They receive a residence permit. Family reunification is therefore theoretically possible. However, the law only allows family reunification for reasons of international law or humanitarian reasons or if it is in Germany's political interest. Proof is difficult to provide.

In addition, you must be able to support yourself, have sufficient living space and be able to prove that you speak German.

Persons who are still in the asylum procedure do not have a residence permit. Family reunification is therefore not possible.

However, family reunification may be possible under the Dublin III Regulation, which regulates the responsibility for examining asylum applications in Europe. To do so, the family members must already be in the territory of one of the member states of the regulation. The member states are the countries of the European Union as well as Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Switzerland.

Family reunification does not have to be applied for. Instead, when applying for asylum , the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) must be informed that family members are in another member state and that the applicant wishes to be reunited with them. The procedure runs between the authorities of the respective countries. Germany can only be responsible as long as the family member wishing to be reunited is still in the asylum procedure in the other member state. The family ties must have already existed in the country of origin.

Duldung is not a residence permit. Family reunification is therefore excluded. This also applies to persons who have a residence permit for well-integrated young people, in the case of sustainable integration or from the right of residence based on opportunities.