UNHCR’s Response to the European Commission Green Paper on the Right to Family Reunification
UNHCR answers questions raised by the European Commission on the Right to Family Reunification of Third Country Nationals. It provides practical recommendations on different issues of concern related to family reunification of beneficiaries of international protection.
UNHCR stresses the importance of the protection of family unity and family reunification. It particularly underlines the importance of family reunification when a the head of the family has fulfilled the necessary conditions for admission or when the separation of the family has been caused by forced displacement such as from persecution and war.
The document adresses issues relating to the scope and timeframes for family reunification; the understanding of the family concept; the difficulties in tracing or insufficient information about the family reunification procedure.
The UNHCR welcomes the proposition of EU Commission to set more favourable rules for beneficiaries of international protection. However, it recommends more flexibility with regard to practical obstacles that still occur towards family reunification in EU Member States.
You can find the publication on the website of the UNHCR. The document is only available in English.