Author
Family members are granted the same status and rights as the sponsor. Their status however, is derived from the status of the sponsor. This entails that if the relationship between the sponsor and the family member ends within the first 5 years after the family member received the permit, the permit can be revoked. There is an exception for children. If the family life between minor or adult children and their parents ends within the first year after reunification (e.g. because the child forms a family of their own or lives independently), this may lead to withdrawal of the dependent family member’s permit (either the child itself or the parent of the unaccompanied minor). After this first year, disruption of the family tie has no consequences for the residence permit.[1] In practice, these asylum permits are rarely revoked. In accordance with EU ruling XC,[2] a reunited child is not obliged to cohabit with the parent. Regular contact or occasional visits are sufficient to maintain family life.
There are also no consequences for dependent family members, if a child lives separately from its parents for study reasons or due to a lack of suitable options to house an entire family. In these cases, family life will not be considered to have ended.
[1] This is laid down in paragraph C2/10.6.1 Vc and Working instruction WI 2022/21 Herbeoordelen asiel, 24. (not publicly available).
[2] CJEU, C-279/20, ECLI:EU:C:2022:618, Bundesrepublik Deutschland v XC, 1 August 2022, available at: https://bit.ly/3UAKXzH.