Information Hub Family Reunification for Refugees This video (available in Arabic here) gives an overview of the family reunification process: Can I apply for Family Reunification? I am an adult: If you are granted Refugee Status or Subsidiary Protection, you can apply to bring your husband, wife, or civil partner, and their minor children to Ireland. I am a minor: If you are a minor and you are granted Refugee Status or Subsidiary Protection, you can apply to bring your parents, and any of your minor brothers and sisters. In both cases, any children you wish to apply for must be under the age of 18 at the time you apply for family reunification. When should I apply? You can apply as soon as you receive your Minister letter confirming your status. You must complete the first step in the family reunification application process within 12 months of receiving your letter from the Minister. How do I apply? Starting the family reunification process is simple. You can copy the template email below, insert your details and send the email to [email protected] After a few weeks, the FRU will send you a Questionnaire to complete. Template email Dear sir/madam, My name is [INSERT NAME], Person ID number: [INSERT NUMBER]. My address is [INSERT YOUR ADDRESS] As a beneficiary of refugee status/subsidiary protection in Ireland, I would like to apply for family Reunification for my son: Name: {INSERT SON'S FULL NAME ] Date of birth: [INSERT SON'S DATE OF BIRTH] Location: [INSERT ADDRESS IF POSSIBLE] If you require any further information at this point in time, please don't hesitate to contact me. I look forward to hearing from your office. Yours faithfully, [INSERT NAME] What happens next? The FRU will send you a Questionnaire to complete and return to them. There may be a delay of several weeks before you receive the Questionnaire. When completing the Questionnaire, you will respond to questions about your family members, your relationship to them and their circumstances. What documents will I be expected to provide? When you are returning your completed Questionnaire to the FRU, you will be expected to also send some original documents. If you are applying for a husband or wife, you will be asked to provide the following: Original passport Original marriage certificate Original birth certificate Original national Identity card (if applicable) Recent passport photos (obtain 6 photos) Divorce Certificate (where relevant) If you are applying for a minor child, you will be expected to provide: Original Passport Original Birth Certificate Recent passport photos of child (try to obtain 6 photos) Recent passport photos of both parents with name, date of birth and date photo was taken on the back A letter or report from child's school (if attending one) Letter (Affidavit) from current Guardian granting permission for child to travel to Ireland and live with you Authorisation letter from other parent consenting for the child to travel to Ireland to live with the you (where applicable/possible) Death certificate of other parent (where applicable) If these documents are not already in English, you will have to get them translated by an official translation company. If you are not able to provide any of the required documents, you should explain why in the Questionnaire (including a cover letter if needed). My family do not have national passports, what should we do? Your family members should apply for passports as soon as possible. Without passports, the Family Reunification Unit (FRU) may delay in making a decision on your application. If it is not possible for your family members to obtain national passports and you are able to demonstrate this, the FRU might agree to issue temporary travel documents to your family members. However there is no guarantee of this. As long as it is safe to do so, it is best that your family members make efforts to obtain national passports (even if the liklihood of obtaining them is low). How long will the process take? Currently it is taking between 12 and 18 months for family reunification applications to be decided. I have been granted Family Reunification but I cannot afford to bring my family (flights etc), can I get financial help? If you are claiming a social welfare payment or are on a low income, you may be eligible to apply for the Irish Red Cross/IOM Travel Assistance Programme which pays the costs of your family members to come to Ireland and organises all the travel and transit arrangements. However, please be aware that the fund is limited. You can contact the Red Cross to find out more information; [email protected] Join Family Visas I am not eligible to apply for family reunification, is there another way to bring my family? You can investigate applying for a Join Family Visa. However, please be aware that these can be very difficult to obtain depending on your circumstances and which family member you wish to apply for. The video below (available in Arabic here) gives an overview of Join Family Visas: If you have any questions or need some support with a family reunification application, please contact our Information and Advocacy team. Manage Cookie Preferences