Guardianship Wheels
Systemic Resource Center

Level 6 |
Promoting the rights and the best interests of the child

Family reunification

Family reunification

Family reunification refers to the entry into and residence in a Member State by family members of a third country national residing lawfully in that Member State. Family reunification aims at preserving the family unit, whether the family relationship arose before or after the resident's entry (Family Reunification Directive (2003/86/EC), Article 2(d)).

Family reunification can be achieved by transferring or relocating an unaccompanied child to another EU Member States where family members are residing lawfully, or by enabling the family members of the child from the country of origin to be reunited with the child in the EU Member State where the child resides lawfully.

Where family tracing and a best interests determination procedure conclude that family reunification is in the best interests of the child, the guardian supports the child in this process and ensures that the rights of the child are upheld and safeguarded.

Reference:


EU training and learning platform for guardians of unaccompanied children
 Chapter 3: Supporting the child from arrival to durable solution

Literature:


Council of Europe (2020), Family reunification for refugee and migrant children, Standards and promising practices, Strasbourg. European Commission, Migration and Home Affairs (undated), Family reunification .

European Asylum Support Office (2021), Family reunification for beneficiaries of international protection, Fact sheet EASO/IAS/2021/1, September 2021.  Groenendijk, K.; Guild, E. (undated), Children are entitled to Family Reunification with their Parents C-550/16 A & SCourt of Justice of the European Union.

FRA (European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights) (2016), Thematic focus: Family tracing and family reunification.

FRA (European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights) (2014), Guardianship for children deprived of parental care, A handbook to reinforce guardianship systems to cater for the specific needs of child victims of trafficking, Luxembourg, Publications Office of the European Union (Publications Office).
 

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