Family reunification

Verified 28 January 2022 - Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)

If you are a beneficiary of refugee status or subsidiary protection in France or if France has recognized you as a stateless person and in any case you have a residence permit, you can then bring your spouse (married, past or common-law) and minor children to France under certain conditions.

Refugee / Protected

Conditions to be fulfilled
  • Family ties must predate your asylum claim.
  • You must have reported them to theOfpra: titleContent at the time of the first application.
Who can join you?
  • Your Civil partnership or partner who is at least 18 years of age, if the marriage or civil union occurred before the date of your application for protection
  • Your partner who is at least 18 years of age, with whom you had a sufficiently stable and continuous common life before the date of application for protection
  • Unmarried children of your couple aged 19 or over

An unmarried minor who is a refugee or who is granted subsidiary protection may apply for family reunification for his father and mother, possibly accompanied by his unmarried minor siblings.

Please note

the age of the children shall be considered at the date on which the application for family reunification was submitted.

Family members of a refugee or a beneficiary of subsidiary protection must apply to enter France for long-stay visa diplomatic and consular authorities.

They must produce civil status documents proving their identity and family links with the refugee or the beneficiary of subsidiary protection.

In the absence of civil status records, they must provide the particulars of state possession and documents drawn up or authenticated by the French Office for the Protection of Refugees and Stateless Persons (Ofpra).

Stateless

Conditions to be fulfilled
  • Family ties should predate your application for statelessness.
  • You must have reported them to theOfpra: titleContent at the time of the first application.
Who can join you?
  • Your Civil partnership or partner who is at least 18 years of age, if the marriage or civil union occurred before the date of your application for protection
  • Your partner who is at least 18 years of age, with whom you had a sufficiently stable and continuous common life before the date of application for protection
  • Unmarried children of your couple aged 19 or over

An unmarried minor with stateless status can apply for family reunification for his or her father and mother, possibly accompanied by unmarried minor siblings.

Please note

the age of the children shall be considered at the date on which the application for family reunification was submitted.

The family members of a stateless person must apply for a long-stay visa diplomatic and consular authorities.

They must produce civil status documents proving their identity and family ties to the stateless person.

In the absence of civil status records, they must provide the particulars of state possession and documents drawn up or authenticated by the French Office for the Protection of Refugees and Stateless Persons (Ofpra).