Family reunion for children

If you or your spouse are entitled to live in Germany, your children under the age of 18 are also entitled to a temporary or permanent residence permit.

If your children are citizens of a member state of the European Union (EU) or European Economic Area (EEA), they do not require a visa to enter Germany and can live and work in Germany without restriction.

If your children are citizens of a country which is not in the EU or the EEA, they will generally need a visa to enter Germany. If you and your spouse hold temporary resident permits for Germany, your children under 16 years of age will also receive a temporary resident permit in order for them to join you (Section 32 of the Residence Act [AufenthG]). If you are a single parent, you can also apply for a visa for your children. However, in this case, you will need to obtain the consent of the other parent entitled to custody. 

To obtain a visa to join you, your children must also meet the following criteria:

• They must not be married, divorced or widowed
• They must be under 18 years of age.

Birth of a child in Germany

What happens if a child is born in Germany? If at the time of the birth you hold a valid residence title, your child will also be granted a residence permit. See Section 33 of the Residence Act (AufenthG).

German citizenship is based on the principle of parentage. This means that if either parent is a German citizen, the child automatically obtains German citizenship at birth. In special cases, children can obtain German nationality at birth in addition to the nationality of their parents. You can find more information about the rules which apply in this case in the section on living permanently in Germany.