Family Reunification

The family reunification visa in Romania is available to both Romanian citizens and foreigners who meet the eligibility criteria. Romanian citizens can use this process to reunite with their family members who are foreign nationals. We will help you with more details and procedures for immigrating to Romania.

Family reunification visa in Romania for foreigners

Foreigners can request family reunification for their family members who are not currently in the country.

Sponsor in possession of a one-year temporary residence permit, an EU Blue Card, an ICT permit, a mobile ICT permit, a long-term residence permit, or beneficiary of refugee status or subsidiary protection may request family reunification for:

• - husband or wife;
• - unmarried minor children of the sponsor and the spouse, including the adopted;
• - the unmarried minor children of the sponsor, including the adopted ones, who are dependent on him and over whom - the sponsor exercises parental rights.

NOTE: Foreigners holding a residence permit to carry out scientific research and foreigners holding an EU Blue Card, an ICT permit, or a “mobile ICT” permit may apply for family reunification even if the temporary residence permit is longer. less than a year old.

The acronym “ICT” is used for “person transferred within the same company” (intra-corporate transfer), according to Directive 2014/66 / EU.

If parental rights are exercised jointly, the consent of the other holder of parental rights regarding the family reunification requested by the sponsor is also required;

• - the unmarried minor children of the spouse, including the adopted ones who are dependent on him / her and over whom the spouse exercises parental rights. If the parental rights are exercised jointly, the consent of the other holder of the parental rights regarding the family reunification requested by the sponsor is also required.

The sponsor is defined as the foreigner, holder of a residence permit, other than that for the purpose of family reunification, or of a Blue Card of the European Union issued by the General Inspectorate for Immigration - Ministry of Internal Affairs. The foreigner who entered Romania for the purpose of family reunification cannot, in turn, have the quality of sponsor and cannot invite other family members, for the purpose of family reunification.

The General Inspectorate for Immigration may approve, if the conditions provided by law are met, family reunification for the following categories:

• - first-degree relatives in ascending line of the sponsor or of the spouse, if they cannot support themselves and do not enjoy adequate family support in the country of origin;
• - unmarried adult children of the sponsor or spouse, if they cannot support themselves for medical reasons.

Unaccompanied minors, beneficiaries of refugee status or subsidiary protection, may request family reunification for:

• - first-degree relatives in the ascending line or legal guardian;
• - when they do not exist or cannot be identified, any other relative of his.

Foreigners, holders of a residence permit for scientific research and foreigners holding an EU Blue Card may apply for family reunification even if the residence permit is valid for less than one year.

The standard application is submitted to the territorial formation of the General Inspectorate for Immigration, within the radius of which the applicant resides legally and will be accompanied by the documents provided by law.

The standard application will be resolved within a maximum of 3 months from the date of submission.

Approval of the application shall be communicated in writing to the applicant for transmission to interested family members, who shall submit it to the diplomatic mission or consular post within 60 days of the date of issue, together with the application for a long-stay visa for reunification. family. If the application is rejected, the reasons will be communicated to the alien in writing.

The visa is issued by the diplomatic missions or consular offices of Romania in the country where the family members have their residence or domicile.

The visa application must be accompanied by the following documents:

• - communication with the General Inspectorate for Immigration;
• - proof of medical insurance during the validity of the visa;
• - criminal record certificate or other document of the same legal value, issued by the authorities of the country of residence or residence and, as the case may be, apostille or superlegalised.

Family reunification visa for refugees or subsidiary protection

Individuals who have been granted refugee status or subsidiary protection in Romania can request family reunification for their family members who are not currently in Romanian territory. Our immigration lawyers in Romania will assist with these special cases as well.

Family members eligible for this type of family reunification visa in Romania include:

• - The husband or wife of the beneficiary of international protection;
• - The minor children of the beneficiary of international protection or the minor children of the beneficiary’s spouse. This applies regardless of whether the children were born within the marriage or outside it or adopted according to the national legislation of the country of origin;
• - The father or mother of the beneficiary of refugee status or subsidiary protection, or another adult person responsible for him/her under Romanian law, if the beneficiary is a minor and unmarried.

An interview with the beneficiary of international protection may be conducted to obtain additional information about family ties and clarify other relevant issues related to the Romanian family reunification visa application.

Please note that the approval may take as long as 9 months from the filing date. However, if further investigation is necessary, this timeframe may be extended by an additional 6 months. Our team will try to minimize this timeframe and even obtain you Romanian residency if you desire.

Family reunification visa for Romanian citizens

Family members of Romanian citizens can apply for a long-stay visa for family reunification directly at the diplomatic missions and consular offices of Romania in the country where they reside. The following individuals can apply for a family reunification visa in Romania:

• 1. foreigners married to Romanian citizens;
• 2. unmarried foreigners living with unmarried Romanian citizens, if they have at least one child together, hereinafter referred to as partners;
• 3. children of the Romanian citizen, of the spouse or of the partner, including the adopted ones, who:
• - have not reached the age of 21;
• - are continuing their studies and have not exceeded the age of 26;
• - although they are adults, they cannot support themselves for medical reasons;
• 4. first degree relatives in ascending line of the Romanian citizen or of his / her spouse;
• 5. the foreign parent of the Romanian minor citizen, if he/she proves that the minor is in maintenance.

If you plan to move to Romania on a family reunification visa, you will also need to provide these documents:

• - Marriage certificate issued by the Romanian government or registered in compliance with legal requirements;
• - Proof of kinship or partnership.

Applicants who can prove they are registered with the right of residence in another EU Member State as family members of Romanian citizens also need to provide documentation to support their claim.

The granting of a long-stay visa for family reunification in Romania may be refused in certain situations. For example, if the marriage is determined to be a marriage of convenience, or if bigamy or polygamy is discovered, the visa will be refused.

Statistics about Romanian immigration

Foreigners interested in learning more about how to immigrate to Romania and the immigration status in the country can find the following information useful:

• - In 2019, there were 202,422 immigrants in Romania, according to the National Institute of Statistics Romania;
• - A significant majority (80%) of the immigrants who arrived in the country in 2019 were already Romanian citizens;
• - 40,792 immigrants in 2019 were foreign citizens;
• - 0,7% of the total Romanian population in 2019 were immigrants.