Apply for family reunification

In this case group, spouses, unmarried minor children and the parents of minor Germans have a legal entitlement to the residence permit. For children of Germans and for parents of minor Germans, the residence title must be issued, by way of derogation from § 5 Abs. 1 Nr. 1 AufenthG, even if subsistence is not secured; for spouses of Germans, the authority should as a rule also waive this requirement (§ 28 Abs. 1 Satz 2 and 3 AufenthG). Proof of residential space under § 29 AufenthG is not required here, and after three years with a residence permit the spouse is, as a rule, issued a settlement permit (Niederlassungserlaubnis) (§ 28 Abs. 2 AufenthG).

Here the full standard requirements apply: secured subsistence (§ 5 Abs. 1 Nr. 1 AufenthG), sufficient residential space (§ 29 Abs. 1 Nr. 2 AufenthG) and, for spousal reunification, also a minimum age of 18 for both spouses and basic knowledge of German (§ 30 Abs. 1 Satz 1 Nr. 1 and 2 AufenthG). The spouse living in Germany must also meet one of the residence title situations listed in § 30 Abs. 1 Satz 1 Nr. 3 AufenthG – under letter d, these include the case that matters most in practice: that they have held a residence permit for at least two years. Many applications that are otherwise complete fail because of this two-year requirement.

Unmarried minor children can join their parents if both parents, or the parent who has sole personal custody, hold a corresponding residence title. If the child has already turned 16 and does not move the centre of their life to Germany together with their parents or with the parent who has sole custody, they are only permitted to join if they have a command of the German language or there is a positive integration prognosis (§ 32 Abs. 2 AufenthG). Exceptions apply, among other cases, to humanitarian residence titles and to the EU Blue Card (Blaue Karte EU) and titles under §§ 18a, 18b, 18c Abs. 3, 18d, 18f, 19c or § 21 AufenthG. Where the parents have joint parental custody, the consent of the other parent is generally required (§ 32 Abs. 3 AufenthG).

Reunification with parents and other family members is the exception, not the rule. Other family members can only be granted a residence permit to avoid extraordinary hardship – for example, if a person in the country of origin who needs extensive care depends on being cared for in person by precisely this relative. Under established administrative practice, purely economic reasons, the wish to be close to family or general risks of life are not sufficient.

Under the Act suspending family reunification for persons entitled to subsidiary protection, this reunification has been suspended since 24 July 2025: it is not granted up to and including 23 July 2027. New applications and entries on the waiting list are not possible during this period; the previous quota of up to 1,000 persons per month is on hold. Anyone who has subsidiary protection should have it checked whether admission from abroad under §§ 22 or 23 AufenthG is an option instead, or whether there is an entitlement to be granted refugee status – because recognised refugees are not covered by the suspension.

Family reunification is not permitted if it is established that the marriage or the family relationship was entered into solely for the purpose of enabling entry into Germany (sham marriage, Scheinehe), or if a spouse was coerced into the marriage (forced marriage, Zwangsehe). In addition, issuance can be refused if the person being joined depends on benefits under Book Two of the Social Code (SGB II, basic income support for jobseekers) or Book Twelve of the Social Code (SGB XII, social assistance) for the maintenance of other family or household members (§ 27 Abs. 3 Satz 1 AufenthG). Both grounds are actively examined in the visa procedure, including through separate interviews of the spouses.

Every person joining the family needs their own passport – including babies, because children entered in their parents’ passports are no longer accepted. It must be valid on submission of the application, and its remaining validity should clearly exceed the visa period applied for; it is issued by the passport authority of the country of origin. You submit the original and, as a rule, two copies of the data page and of all pages with previous Schengen or German visas.

The application for a national visa is completed and signed by hand by the applicant; for children, the persons with custody sign. Most German missions abroad require prior entry of the application in the online portal VIDEX and a printout with the barcode. In addition, you need recent biometric photographs that follow the specimen of the Bundesdruckerei (Germany’s federal printing company) and should not be older than six months on submission of the application.

The certificate proves that the marriage was validly concluded under the law of the state in which it took place – without it, spousal reunification is not possible. Depending on the state, an apostille under the Hague Convention or legalisation by the German mission abroad is required, and in addition always a certified translation into German by an authorised translator. In states with unreliable civil records, the embassy initiates a verification of the documents by a trusted lawyer (Vertrauensanwalt); this examination is the most common reason for procedures dragging on for many months.

The birth certificate (Geburtsurkunde) proves that the child is descended from the person living in Germany and must likewise bear an apostille or be legalised, and come with a certified translation. If the child is joining only one parent, proof of sole parental custody – a court decision or a death certificate (Sterbeurkunde) – or the approval of the other parent with custody is also required (§ 32 Abs. 3 AufenthG). This approval must be provided as a notarised declaration, usually with an apostille and a translation.

The spouse joining the family must be able to communicate in German at least at a basic level (§ 30 Abs. 1 Satz 1 Nr. 2 AufenthG); this corresponds to level A1 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). Examinations from established providers such as the Goethe-Institut (Start Deutsch 1), telc Deutsch A1 or ÖSD A1 are recognised; the missions usually require a recent certificate in the original. No proof is required, among other cases, for certain humanitarian residence titles, in the case of physical, mental or psychological illness or disability, where the need for integration is evidently low, where it would be unreasonable in the individual case, and for spouses of holders of an EU Blue Card, an ICT Card or a residence title under §§ 18a, 18b, 18c Abs. 3, 18d, 18f, 19c or § 21 AufenthG (§ 30 Abs. 1 Satz 3 AufenthG), as well as, under § 41 Abs. 1 of the Ordinance Governing Residence (Aufenthaltsverordnung, AufenthV), for nationals of Australia, Israel, Japan, Canada, the Republic of Korea, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the USA.

The person living in Germany proves that the subsistence of the entire family is secured without recourse to public funds (§ 5 Abs. 1 Nr. 1 AufenthG). The usual documents are the employment contract, the latest payslips and bank statements, and for self-employed persons the tax assessment notice, a business evaluation (betriebswirtschaftliche Auswertung) and a forecast by the tax consultant. Important: the expected income of the family members joining is also counted towards the household income (§ 2 Abs. 3 Satz 4 AufenthG) – a specific job offer for the spouse can be decisive. When joining Germans, this requirement is waived under § 28 Abs. 1 Satz 2 and 3 AufenthG.

You must provide the tenancy agreement, a floor-area calculation or floor plan and often the Wohnungsgeberbestätigung (landlord’s confirmation). The residential space is sufficient if it is not smaller than would be required for accommodation in publicly subsidised social housing (§ 2 Abs. 4 AufenthG); under Nr. 2.4.2 of the General Administrative Regulation on the AufenthG (Allgemeine Verwaltungsvorschrift zum AufenthG), the benchmark is 12 m² per family member over six years of age and 10 m² per family member under six, and falling short by about one tenth does not matter. Children up to their second birthday are not counted. This requirement does not apply when joining Germans (§ 28) and also does not apply when joining holders of an EU Blue Card, an ICT Card or a residence title under §§ 18a, 18b, 18c Abs. 3, 18d, 18f, 19c or § 21 AufenthG (§ 29 Abs. 5 AufenthG).

Sufficient health insurance coverage is part of securing subsistence (§ 2 Abs. 3 AufenthG) and must be in place for the person joining from the day of entry. In statutory health insurance, the contribution-free family insurance (Familienversicherung) is usually sufficient; the health insurance fund (Krankenkasse) issues the confirmation on application within a few days. Privately insured persons submit the insurer’s commitment to cover the family members joining; people who pay for themselves submit equivalent travel insurance or a policy that preserves their entitlement to cover (Anwartschaftsversicherung) for the period until their insurance starts.

You need a copy of the residence title or, for Germans, of the identity card (Personalausweis) or passport, a current registration certificate (Meldebescheinigung) and – for spousal reunification with foreigners – proof that the residence permit has existed for at least two years (§ 30 Abs. 1 Satz 1 Nr. 3 Buchst. d AufenthG). Many German missions abroad also require an informal letter of invitation or declaration from the relative living in Germany with information on their home, occupation and income. All documents should not be older than three months on submission of the application.