In November 2024, the European Union Agency for Asylum (EUAA) published a fact sheet, providing an overview of the most significant developments in the realm of family reunification for beneficiaries of international protection, as drawn from the EUAA Asylum Report 2024.

Family reunification plays a key role in the integration within the EU of beneficiaries of international protection, in line with the right to family life under international and EU law. Since the entry into force of the Family Reunification Directive, there have been many legislative and policy changes in EU countries.

Czechia now allows adult asylum applicants who were minors at the time of application to reunite with close family members within three months of their asylum decision. Sweden raised the age limit for residence permits based on personal ties from 18 to 21 and introduced exemptions from financial requirements for certain family members. Finland reduced the timeframe for filing family reunification requests and extended residence permits. Germany launched targeted programs for Afghan nationals to reunite with family in some Länder.

Among the developments in civil society and in non-governmental organisations working in the field, ECRE marked the 20th anniversary of the Family Reunification Directive with a report on the right to reunification for international protection beneficiaries. The Red Cross issued recommendations to improve the process, based on national experiences. Additionally, Slovenia’s PIC created videos to raise awareness of family reunification rights.

These examples reflect broader efforts to simplify and enhance family reunification processes within the EU Member States.

The fact sheet also makes an useful compilation of the relevant case law of national courts and provides a useful EUAA Case Law Database. A brief example thereof follows.

In Belgium, the CJEU ruled that it was contrary to EU law to require everyone to submit family reunification applications through diplomatic channels, and the Council of Alien Litigation (CALL) confirmed that the marital status of the minor should not affect reunification rights. In France, the Council of State clarified that a child’s age for reunification is determined by the date of visa application, not the date of registration, and that minors turning 18 during the procedure can still reunite if the application is made within three months. Finnish courts have dealt with cases of rejected reunification applications pending protection appeals and annulled decisions that wrongly classified minors as adults. TheHigh Court of Ireland ruled that national law governs family reunification, with the child’s age based on the recognition date of international protection. In the Netherlands, the Council of State ruled that a 2022 family reunification policy violated EU and national law, emphasizing the need for policies that comply with human rights standards. In Spain, the Administrative Court of Barcelona referred questions to the CJEU on the procedure for granting autonomous residence permits to reunited family members.

The ECtHR ruled on cases involving family reunification for refugees in Switzerland and Sweden. The Court found that in three cases, Switzerlanddid not strike a fair balance between the applicants’ and the State’s interests; however, in another case the Court confirmed that it had not overstepped in its decision when considering the person’s lack of initiative to improve her financial situation. In Sweden, the Court upheld the rejection of a refugee’s family reunification request due to unmet financial requirements after a temporary exemption. The Court also confirmed that Sweden’s temporary suspension of family reunification for beneficiaries of subsidiary protection did not violate the right to family life under the article 8 ECHR.

This evolving landscape highlights the ongoing legal and procedural adjustments that influence family reunification for refugees across Europe, emphasizing the balance between integration, State interests and human rights. For further developments on the topic, please consult the National Asylum Developments Database and the EUAA Case Law Database.

Chiara Gozzuti is a Ph.D. Candidate in EU and Private international law at the University of Milano Bicocca

Image credits: https://euaa.europa.eu/

No Comments
Comments to: Family reunification for beneficiaries of international protection: the EUAA overview

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Attach images - Only PNG, JPG, JPEG and GIF are supported.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.



Useful Links



blog Archive



Latest Articles

  1. Blog
We are happy to announce that the book “Children in Migration and International Family Law” has been recently published and is available open access on the website of the publisher. The book is one of the main deliverables of the FAMIMOVE Project (together with the Awareness Raising Seminars, the Transnational Roundtables, the European Conference, and […]