Whether a child who has become an adult can join a parent recognized as a refugee depends on when the child turned 18: before or after the parent’s recognition. The Federal Administrative Court ruled on 22 October 2026 that, in the specific case, the date the family reunification application was filed is decisive, and dismissed the claims. So far, only a press release is available.
The case decided
The daughter, an Iraqi national born in September 2005, applied for a visa in November 2023 for the purpose of family reunification with her father. The Federal Office for Migration and Refugees had recognized him as a refugee in February 2023. More than a year and a half passed between the recognition and the visa application.
The Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany in Baghdad rejected the application in February 2024. The lawsuit against this decision and the ruling of the Federal Administrative Court did not change the outcome.
Timing determines minor status
Under European directives, what matters is the point in time at which it is assessed whether a child who has since turned 18 still counts as a minor. For this, it must be distinguished whether the child reached adulthood before or after the parent’s recognition.
The typically regulated case is one in which the child became an adult before the reunifying parent was recognized. In that case, the relevant moment is when the reunifying parent filed the asylum application. The child is then still considered a minor, but must file the application within a reasonable period, set at around three months.
What the court sees differently in this case
In the court’s view, this is a different case, because the child only turned 18 after the father was recognized as a refugee. Therefore, the relevant moment is when the application for entry and residence for family reunification with the parent recognized as a refugee is filed. In this case, that was November 2023. According to this view, there is no so-called grace period after reaching adulthood for filing the application.
Why family asylum matters
The advantage of so-called family asylum is that, under the simplified reunification provided by the directive, there is no need to prove German language skills or secure maintenance. In practice, these are very significant simplifications. The court’s restrictive view therefore makes family reunification noticeably harder.
The reasoning behind the ruling is not yet available. It should be reviewed once the full text of the decision is published.
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