How can you reunite with your family after having been granted international protection?
You have the right to reunite with your close family members if you are granted international protection.
Definition of family
The definition of family is very limited according to the Family Reunification Directive and the Law on the Legal Status of Aliens. As a beneficiary of international protection, your family members are considered to be:
- your spouse
- your unmarried minor child, including an adopted child
- an unmarried and minor child under your or your spouse’s custody
- your or your spouse’s unmarried adult child if the child is unable to cope independently due state of health or disability
- a parent or grandparent maintained by you or your spouse if the country of origin does not provide support resulting from other family ties
As an unaccompanied minor beneficiary of international protection, your family members are considered to be:
- your parent
- your guardian or other family member if you have no parents or the parents cannot be traced
important For family reunification, it is necessary for family ties to have existed in the country of origin. This means that if you want to reunite with your spouse, the marriage or a civil union needs to have been contracted before entry into Lithuania. Only officially married partners or partners in a civil union with the relevant documentation have the right to family reunification in Lithuania.
Process of family reunification
If your family members arrived in Lithuania with you, the Migration Department will issue them with the residence permits of a family member after granting you international protection.
If your family is still in your country of origin, you may submit an application for family reunification to the Migration Department together with relevant documents. The Migration Department may conduct an interview with you if necessary. After a positive decision on family reunification, the family member should apply for a visa from any foreign representation of Lithuania. After receiving the visa, the family member can travel to Lithuania. Upon arrival in Lithuania, the family member has the obligation to submit an application for international protection or a residence permit. The Migration Department processes the application to make sure that the family member is in need of independent international protection or should be issued the residence permit of a family member.
What human rights violation may there be?
If your application for family reunification is unjustifiably denied, it could violate your right to respect for family life. A decision of the Migration Department to deny family reunification may be appealed in the Administrative Court. Read about the appeal procedure.