Family reunification
Last updated: 6/12-2022
Children have the right to be with their family. This right is enshrined in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, of which Sweden is a signatory.
What is family reunification?
Family reunification means that a family which has been split up can apply for permission to move to Sweden in order to live together with the family member who has been granted a residence permit.
Swedish authorities can help you find your family if you have arrived in Sweden without them. If your parents or other family members are safe in another country, you can get help to travel there.
If your parents are not safe in another country, they can apply for residence permits in Sweden provided that you have a residence permit here as a refugee or a person with subsidiary protection status. In some cases, they may also be able to apply if you have been granted a residence permit for humanitarian reasons.
Who is entitled to family reunification?
If you have a residence permit in Sweden your parents or siblings can apply to be reunified with you in Sweden.
In order for the Migration Agency to be able to examine whether your parents are entitled to move to Sweden you, as the person living in Sweden, must:
- be unmarried,
- be under 18 years of age,
- arrived in Sweden without your parents or another guardian, or if you have been left on your own after arriving in Sweden,
- have a temporary or permanent residence permit but not have Swedish citizenship.
You may be entitled to be reunited with your family even if you are over 18 when you are granted a residence permit as a refugee or a person with subsidiary protection status if you were under 18 when you applied for protection in Sweden. This only applies if your family applies for reunification within three months of your residence permit being issued.
