Family reunification: Important information at a glance

Family reunification depends on many different factors. A distinction is made between whether the person living in Germany who is entitled to join them or who is entitled to be a regular citizen has German citizenship, a European citizenship or comes from a third country and what residence status this person has. It also depends on which family member will join the person living in Germany.

As a rule, spouses or civil partners as well as minor unmarried children under the age of 16 are entitled to reunification, but in the case of Germans and Europeans and, in other significant exceptional cases, older children are also entitled to reunification.

In the case of unaccompanied minor children, the parents with custody are usually entitled to family reunification. This always applies if no parent with custody is abroad or agrees to the change of residence to Germany.

There are also major differences in family reunification, for example, depending on the residence permit of the person living in Germany. Refugees who have only been granted subsidiary protection status are generally not entitled to family reunification. However, for relatives of beneficiaries of subsidiary protection, 1,000 visas are issued per month for family reunification. Depending on the residence permit , the requirements for family reunification also vary.

In this article, we provide an overview of family reunification and its requirements.

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What is the difference between family reunification and family reunification?

Family reunification and family reunificationare the influx of family members to a person living in Germany. This person can be a German citizen or a foreigner who lives in Germany – the destination country – and has a residence permit. The family members still live abroad.

The aim of family reunification is to establish or maintain family unity. This objective already follows from Article 6 of the Basic Law. Article 7 of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights (CFR) and Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) also reaffirm family reunification.

Despite this clear derivation of the right to family reunification in terms of fundamental and human rights, the exercise of this right is often politically and legally controversial (e.g. in the case of family reunification with beneficiaries of subsidiary protection).

It is precisely the granting of family reunification and the associated enabling of a family to live together in Germany that is often indispensable for the success of integration in Germany. If family reunification is refused or delayed for a very long time, this can jeopardize the success of integration, as it is unbearable for those affected not to be able to be with their family.

The terms family reunification and family reunification mean the same thing. The Residence Act, which regulates family reunification in §§ 27 to 36a, uses the term family reunification.

Forms of family reunification

The system of family reunification with its prerequisites is complex. The Residence Act recognises various forms of family reunification, some of which differ considerably in their requirements. There are the following forms of family reunification:

• Family reunification with Germans – Section 28 of the Residence Act
• Family reunification with foreigners – Section 29 of the Residence Act
• Family reunification of spouses or civil partners – Section 30 of the Residence Act
• Family reunification of minor children – Section 32 of the Residence Act
• Family reunification of parents or other relatives (adult children, parents of adult children, siblings, etc.) – Section 36 of the Residence Act
• Family reunification with beneficiaries of subsidiary protection – Section 36a of the Residence Act

Who is entitled to family reunification?

The aim of family reunification is to establish or maintain family unity. Therefore, family reunification is generally only possible with the closest relatives of a German or a foreigner living in Germany. The current legal regulations in Sections 27 to 36a of the Residence Act are therefore designed in such a way that family reunification is primarily provided for the so-called nuclear family.

In the case of adults, these are the spouse or civil partner as well as the children who are still minors. In the case of minor children who live in Germany without a parent with custody, there is a right to subsequent immigration against the parent or parents with custody.

Hurdles for other family members very high

For siblings, parents of persons or children of legal age, adult children, grandparents or other “other family members”, the possibility of family reunification only exists if this avoids exceptional hardship .

The decision on this lies with the Foreigners’ Registration Office. However, it can already be deduced from the term “extraordinary hardship” that the hurdles for such reunification of family members who do not belong to the classic nuclear family are very high and that an application will usually fail without competent legal support .

Family reunification for beneficiaries of subsidiary protection

A special case of family reunification is foreigners living in Germany who have only been granted subsidiary protection . Following the large influx of refugees in 2015, family reunification for beneficiaries of subsidiary protection was completely suspended from March 2016 to the end of July 2018.

Since August 2018, family reunification for beneficiaries of subsidiary protection has been newly regulated. In § 36a para. 1 sentence 3 of the Residence Act expressly clarifies that beneficiaries of subsidiary protection are not entitled to family reunification. Family reunification with the spouse, the minor children or, in the case of minor beneficiaries of protection, with the parents with custody can only be granted for humanitarian reasons.

In addition, according to § 36a para. 2 sentence 2 of the Residence Act. Only 1,000 visas are issued per month for family reunification with beneficiaries of subsidiary protection.

When is family reunification possible?

Family reunification to Germany is only possible for refugees if the person living in Germany is entitled to protection and has received a residence permit. The following beneficiaries of protection are therefore entitled to family reunification:

• Persons entitled to asylum (Section 16a of the Basic Law) – Residence permit pursuant to Section 25 (1) of the Residence Act
• Recognised refugees (§ 3 AsylG) – residence permit according to § 25 para. 2 Alt. 1 Residence Act
• permanently admitted resettlement refugees – residence permit according to § 23 para. 4 AufenthG

Limited possibilities for family reunification

For refugees who have only received subsidiary protection (§ 4 AsylG) – residence permit according to § 25 para. 2 Alt. 2 AufenthG – there is no entitlement to family reunification (see above).

If a refugee has been found to be subject to a ban on deportation pursuant to Section 60 (5) or (7) of the Residence Act and a residence permit has been issued pursuant to Section 25 (1) of the Residence Act, a residence permit has been issued pursuant to Section 25 (1) of the Residence Act. 3 AufenthG, family reunification is possible within narrow limits.

According to section 29 (3) sentence 1 of the Residence Act, humanitarian reasons or reasons under international law must necessarily exist for this. However, humanitarian reasons can be assumed if it is not possible to establish the family unit in a third country. Since in such a case a ban on deportation of the person living in Germany has already been established (Section 60 (5) or (7) of the Residence Act), the establishment of family unity in the country of origin is already impossible.

Family reunification excluded

Family reunification may also be completely excluded under certain conditions. This applies in particular if an asylum procedure or recognition as a refugee or beneficiary of subsidiary protection has not yet been completed .

If the foreigner only has a temporary suspension of deportation, family reunification is also excluded. § 29 para. 3 sentence 3 of the Residence Act lists further residence permits for which family reunification is excluded.

Family reunification with other residence permits

In the case of residence permits that are independent of an entitlement to protection (entitlement to asylum, refugee status or subsidiary protection), family reunification is also possible. A person living in Germany can, for example, have their spouse/partner (Section 30 of the Residence Act) or their minor unmarried child (Section 32 of the Residence Act) join them in Germany if this person holds one of the following residence permits:

• Settlement permit
• Permanent Residence Permit-EU
• EU Blue Card, ICT Card or Mobile ICT Card
• Further residence permits that entitle the spouse/civil partner or the minor unmarried children to join the family can be found in § 30 para. 1 no. 3 AufenthG and § 32 para. 1 AufenthG.

How does family reunification work?

For family reunification, a visa for the family member is required. As a rule, the visa is also the first application made by the relatives. The visa must be applied for in person at the responsible German diplomatic mission in the country where the relatives wishing to join them live. It is important to ensure that the correct visa, namely the one for family reunification, is also applied for.

There is a fee to apply for a visa. For adults, the visa fee is 75 euros, for minor children half. Additional costs may be incurred, for example, for the certification or translation of documents.

Decision on the visa

After the visa application has been received and reviewed by the diplomatic mission, the data of the persons wishing to join them will be forwarded to the Foreigners’ Registration Office at the place of residence of the person entitled to join them and living in Germany. There, for example, the residence status and the residence title of the original beneficiary are also checked.

The Foreigners’ Registration Office is now examining the legal requirements, in particular the securing of livelihood. In this case, the Foreigners’ Registration Office can request further documents or ask the person who is already entitled to reside in Germany to visit him in person if there are still open questions to be clarified or documents are missing.

After the Foreigners’ Registration Office has sent its opinion or approval to the diplomatic mission, the diplomatic mission decides on the visa application. If the visa application is rejected, an objection can be filed. However, the legal remedy against this is not called contradiction, but remonstration.

Entry and residence

Once the diplomatic mission has issued the visa, the relatives wishing to join them can enter Germany. However, only the visa is granted with the visa application or the issuance of the visa. After entry, the residence status must be clarified with the Foreigners’ Registration Office.

To this end, the Foreigners’ Registration Office should be visited promptly after entry and at least within the validity of the visa and an application for the issuance of the corresponding residence permit pursuant to Sections 27 to 36a of the Residence Act should be submitted. Since the requirements for issuing the visa have already been checked in the visa procedure, there should be no problems with the issuance of the residence permit.

The situation may be different if the individual situation has changed fundamentally since the approval of the Foreigners’ Registration Office (e.g. due to separation of spouses/civil partners).

How much do you have to earn to be allowed to bring your wife and children to Germany?

Certain general conditions for issuing the visa are already checked when the necessary visa is issued. However, these differ depending on the legal basis of family reunification and in some cases also according to which residence permit the foreigner entitled to subsequent immigration has. In general, the following conditions apply (Sections 5, 11, 27, 29 of the Residence Act):

• sufficient livelihood security
• sufficient living space
• clarified identity and nationality
• there must be no interest in expulsion
• Fulfilment of the passport requirement

Exceptions possible

These conditions for granting a licence can and must be waived in certain cases. As a rule, the securing of livelihood is to be regarded in the case of relatives of German citizens. Deviations from the requirement of sufficient living space can be made if the person entitled to reunification in Germany is in possession of an EU Blue Card , for example (Section 29 (1) sentence 2 of the Residence Act).

The requirement of securing one’s livelihood and proof of sufficient living space is to be waived if the parents join an unaccompanied minor (Section 36 (1) of the Residence Act).

Privileged family reunification

According to § 29 para. 2 sentence 2 of the Residence Act, the requirement of sufficient living space and sufficient subsistence security can also be waived if certain conditions are met. In the case of this privileged family reunification , the foreigners’ authority has no discretion, but must refrain from these conditions for granting a permit. Such privileged family reunification is possible under the following conditions:

• the person living in Germany has a settlement permit in accordance with Section 26 para. 3 of the Residence Act (due to entitlement to asylum or refugee status) or is a resettlement refugee (Section 23 (4) of the Residence Act) or holds a residence permit due to the right to asylum (Section 25 (1) of the Residence Act) or a residence permit due to refugee status (Section 25 (2) sentence 1 alternative 1 of the Residence Act)
• family members entitled to reunification are the spouse/civil partner or a minor unmarried child
• the application for privileged family reunification must be filed no later than three months after the incontestable recognition of the entitlement to protection (section 29 (2) sentence 2 no. 1 of the Residence Act)
• in addition, the establishment of family cohabitation may not be possible in any other state (section 29 (2) sentence 2 no. 2 of the Residence Act)

Securing livelihoods

Unless the person living in Germany is exempt from the requirement of securing his or her livelihood, he or she must earn enough to support himself or herself and that of his or her family members without recourse to public funds.

Securing one’s livelihood includes, among other things, income from employment or self-employed work, but also child benefit, child allowance, child-raising allowance and parental allowance. If the person living in Germany lives, for example, on benefits under SGB II or SGB XII – i.e. unemployment benefit or citizen’s allowance – the livelihood is not secured.

The livelihood must be secured without recourse to public funds . If, due to a low earned income, there is only an entitlement to supplementary benefits, e.g. top-up by citizen’s allowance, the livelihood is also not secured, even if no public funds are actually used.

How big does an apartment have to be for a family reunification?

According to § 29 para. 1 no. 2 of the Residence Act, sufficient living space must be available for family reunification. This condition may be waived in certain cases. The existing living space can be proven, for example, by a rental agreement.

Sufficient living space exists if a certain living space is available for each family member. 10 square meters must be available for family members under 6 years of age, and 12 square meters for family members over 6 years of age. Ancillary rooms such as bathrooms or kitchens must also be available and can be shared. Undercutting the living space by up to 10% is not a problem.

The individual federal states may make different regulations in this regard.

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Conclusion:

• Different factors of family reunification: Family reunification in Germany depends on various factors, including whether the person entitled to join them has German citizenship or a foreign citizenship and what residence permit the person living in Germany has.
• Persons entitled to reunification: Members of the nuclear family such as spouses, civil partners and minor unmarried children are entitled to reunification. In the case of unaccompanied minor children, the parents with custody often have a right to reunification, while the reunification of other relatives is associated with high hurdles and requirements.
• Differences in family reunification: Depending on the residence permit of the person living in Germany, there are different requirements for family reunification, especially for beneficiaries of subsidiary protection.
• Forms of family reunification: Depending on the family relationship (spouse/life partner, children, other relatives) and the residence status of the person in Germany, there are various forms of family reunification that are regulated by law.
• Family reunification with beneficiaries of subsidiary protection: Family reunification with beneficiaries of subsidiary protection is possible, but there is no legal entitlement. Only 1,000 visas are issued per month for family reunification with beneficiaries of subsidiary protection.
• Visa and requirements: Family reunification requires a visa for the family member who will join them. This must be applied for at the German diplomatic mission in your home country. It is important to apply for the right visa.

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