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Child or Direct Descendant under 21 of an EU/EEA Citizen or Partner

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Explore the five recorded questions, answers and sources for this pathway.

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Which family relationships qualify?

Direct descendants (children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren) of the EU citizen or of the EU citizen's spouse or registered partner qualify if they are under 21; older descendants qualify only if maintained by them.

See recorded sources

Who may sponsor or bring the family member, and what immigration/citizenship status must that person hold?

The sponsor is a free-movement-entitled EU citizen whom the descendant accompanies or joins in Germany; the same rules apply to nationals of Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein (and Swiss nationals as the EU-Swiss agreement provides) and to Germans who have exercised EU free movement. For grandchildren or great-grandchildren the EU national must not be resident in Germany for study.

See recorded sources

What is important for proving marriage, partnership, parentage, custody, dependency or another qualifying relationship?

The authority may require a valid passport, proof of the family relationship (for descendants and ascendants, documentary proof of the statutory conditions, e.g. age under 21 or maintenance), and the EU citizen's registration certificate.

See recorded sources
  • https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/freiz_gg_eu_2004/BJNR198600004.html
    (2) Die zuständige Behörde darf von Familienangehörigen in den Fällen des § 5 Absatz 2 oder für die Ausstellung der Aufenthaltskarte einen anerkannten oder sonst zugelassenen gültigen Pass oder Passersatz und zusätzlich Folgendes verlangen: 1. einen Nachweis über das Bestehen der familiären Beziehung, bei Verwandten in absteigender und aufsteigender Linie einen urkundlichen Nachweis über Voraussetzungen des § 1 Absatz 2 Nummer 3, 2. eine Meldebestätigung des Unionsbürgers, den die Familienangehörigen begleiten oder dem sie nachziehen.

What important financial, accommodation, insurance or maintenance responsibilities apply?

If the EU national is employed or job-seeking in Germany, a child under 21 needs no further preconditions; if the EU national is a student, the child's subsistence must be covered; if the EU national is not economically active, adequate health insurance and adequate means of subsistence are required.

See recorded sources

How does the application work at a high level, what rights does the family member receive, how long does the status last, and how can it become independent or longer-term where officially stated?

The family member receives a residence card certifying the right of residence, issued within six months after providing the required information to the immigration authority; after five uninterrupted years of lawful residence with the EU national there is a permanent right of residence (certified within six months of application). Children of an EU citizen who attend an educational institution keep their right of residence until completing their education even after the EU citizen dies or leaves.

See recorded sources

These are the answers currently recorded in the catalogue. A missing or partial answer is not an eligibility decision.

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