Criteria and conditions

Author

JRS Romania

There is no difference between refugees and subsidiary protection beneficiaries in relation to the criteria and conditions for family reunification.

Eligible family members

Article 2(j) of the Asylum Act defines family members of the beneficiary of refugee status or subsidiary protection, to the extent that the family is in the country of origin at the date of the asylum application made by the sponsor, as:

• Spouse;
• Minor unmarried children of the beneficiary or the spouse, with the condition that they are unmarried, regardless of whether they are born in the marriage or out of wedlock or adopted in accordance with the national law of the country of origin.

The law does not set out any waiting period before a beneficiary of international protection may apply for family reunification. The law does not prescribe any deadline for applying for family reunification. The beneficiary of international protection in Romania may apply for asylum for their family members as long as they are not on the territory of Romania.[1] Beneficiaries of international protection are also not required to prove the existence of income, accommodation or health insurance for family reunification.

They only need to prove the family relationship with the family member or the fact that the marriage was concluded before entering the territory of Romania.[2] In practice, if the beneficiary of international protection does not have the financial means to pay for the translation of necessary documents to prove family ties, NGOs might help them in covering the costs of translation. In this case, the beneficiary has to wait until they receive their residence permit, as the terms of the project funded by the national AMIF programme clearly state that costs of such translations may be covered only if the person holds a residence permit.

Family reunification procedure

Family reunification applications are processed by every Regional Centre.

According to the law, once the application has been submitted, the beneficiary shall also present original documents (birth certificate, marriage certificate, identity card) to prove family ties with the family members or, in the absence of these documents, any other documents proving the status of family member.[3]

To obtain additional data and information on family ties and to clarify other relevant aspects of the asylum application lodged for family members, IGI-DAI must conduct an interview with the beneficiary of international protection.[4] In 2023, interviews took place with Somali nationals.[5]

If the beneficiary of international protection does not present to IGI-DAI sufficient documents showing their family relationship with the family member in whose name the application is made, where originals are in the possession of the family member who is in a third country, IGI-DAI must communicate to the Directorate-General for Consular Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs the list of the necessary documents.[6]

The General Directorate for Consular Affairs requests the diplomatic mission or the consular office of Romania from the country where the family member of the beneficiary of international protection is, to establish the existence of the documents requested by IGI-DAI. The family member must present these documents, in original, to the diplomatic mission or consular office of Romania.[7] The documents shall be sent in copy, with the mention “according to the original”, through the General Directorate for Consular Affairs, to IGI-DAI by the diplomatic mission or consular office of Romania from the country where the family member is present.[8]

Cases of family reunification in 2023 per regional centre

Statistics for 2023 were provided by IGI-DAI.

Source: Information provided by IGI-DAI, 18 January 2024

Specific procedure for unaccompanied children

The Asylum Act provides for a family reunification procedure for unaccompanied children, with specific requirements. The family reunification for unaccompanied minors, beneficiaries of international protection, shall be done with respect to their best interests.[9] The procedure may be triggered ex officio by IGI-DAI. In this case the consent of the legal representative and/or the unaccompanied child is also required.[10] In all cases, the unaccompanied child’s views will be taken into account and given due weight.[11]

If the unaccompanied child’s family has been traced, the case officer analyses the possibility and the conditions for carrying out family reunification and issues a reasoned decision in this respect.[12]The decision provided may be challenged under the same conditions as a decision delivered by IGI-DAI in the Regular Procedure.[13]

IGI-DAI shall take, as soon as possible, the necessary measures to trace the unaccompanied child’s family, while protecting their best interests.[14] The unaccompanied child’s opinion on the tracing of their family is taken into account and given the due importance, in relation to their age and maturity.[15]

The data and information collected for the purpose of family tracing are processed in accordance with the principle of confidentiality, especially when the life or physical integrity of a child or their close family who have remained in the country of origin is endangered.[16]

In Galaţi, it was reported in 2022 that applications made by an unaccompanied minor are assessed slowly. There was a case of a child who applied for family reunification in July 2022 and as of February 2023 she still had not received a decision. According to the director the procedure is initiated by the legal representative jointly with the NGO representative.

In 2023, in the case of 2 unaccompanied minors, family reunification requests were approved and their mothers arrived in Romania. There was also a case where the request for family reunification was approved and this positive decision was communicated to the legal representative, but the unaccompanied child BIP was unaware until he requested legal support from JRS Romania. Moreover, in cases of unaccompanied minors, NGOs assist children and their parents for the visa appointments, not the legal representatives. For instances, in the two successful cases mentioned above, the mothers were illiterate and thus could not do the procedure on their own. Support for obtaining visa appointments was offered in many more cases.[17]

In Rădăuţi, the reunification procedure is triggered by NGOs. In 2022, there were six applications made by unaccompanied minors, according to the director.

In Şomcuta Mare in 2021 the procedure was initiated by the unaccompanied minors, with the assistance of the legal representative,[18] while in 2022 the procedure was initiated by the legal representative, according to LADO/ASSOC.[19] According to the director of the centre no applications were made by unaccompanied children.

In Bucharest the family reunification procedure in case of unaccompanied children is triggered by IGI-DAI, according to IOM Romania.[20] Conversely, the director of Vasile Stolnicu reported that the procedure is triggered by the legal representative and the application is drafted with the support of NGOs.

Timișoara: the director of the centre reported that in 2022 there was a single unaccompanied minor and the request was filled by the legal representative.

It was noted that IOM Romania and LADO/ ASSOC are of the opinion that an unaccompanied minor who attains the age of majority during the asylum procedure does not retain their right to family reunification,[21] contrary to the judgment of the CJEU in Case C-550/16 A and S v Staatssecretaris van Veiligheid en Justitie of 2018.

With regard to 2023, the CNRR[22] flagged the following issues concerning unaccompanied minors. At Regional Centre Timisoara there were situations where the asylum applications of unaccompanied minors were not analysed swiftly. In the case of unaccompanied minor asylum seekers, communication between them and the legal representatives appointed by the DGASPC is not constant and tends to be limited to the measures and activities necessary for the asylum procedure. According to the information available to CNRR, the unaccompanied minors accommodated in the regional centres in Timisoara, Giurgiu, Şomcuta Mare and Rădăuţi either have no contact with the legal representative or there is a very limited contact, and the only counselling they receive is from NGOs. The times when minors have contact with the legal representative appointed by the DGSPC are when the IGI conducts interviews in the administrative phase of the asylum procedure, or at court, when the legal representatives are required by law to be present. At the centre in Galati, a slightly more favourable situation could be observed in terms of communication between the legal representative and the unaccompanied minors, who showed a greater interest in the situation of minors, both legally and socially/culturally.

This has an important impact on the family reunification procedure. In the case of unaccompanied minors, Art. 72 from the Law 122/2006 on the asylum procedure in Romania states that IGI has the competence to start the procedure for the family reunification of unaccompanied minors. The Order No 119/20643/2023 on the conditions of appointment, role, tasks and requirements of education, training and professional experience for persons appointed as representatives for unaccompanied foreign minors applying for or granted a form of international protection[23] indicates that the legal representative needs to initiate steps for the immediate identification of the minor’s family and verifying the possibility of reunification with them. However, in practice, the CNRR is not aware of any ex officio proceedings made by the legal representatives, finding that there is limited proactive behaviour of the legal representatives accompanied by ignorance of the law in some cases. Thus, legal representatives call on the services of NGOs that are active in the field of asylum and refugee assistance.

Time limits and duration

The law prescribes that the family reunification procedure must be completed as soon as possible, not exceeding 9 months from the date the application was made. If further checks are required, the 9-month period may be extended by up to 6 months.[24]

IGI-DAI stated they have no statistics regarding the average duration of the procedure.[25] The situation in 2021/2022 was the following:

Timișoara: The average duration of the procedure was seven months, according to the director of IGI-DAI. AIDRom also stated that the procedure takes five to six months until the decision is communicated and 9 months – from the date of submission until the family member’s arrival in Romania.[26]

Şomcuta Mare: According to LADO/ASSOC the average duration of the family reunification procedure is 90 days, and some family members arrive in three months others six months later, depending on the country of origin and diplomatic relations between the countries.[27] The director is not aware of the duration of the procedure.

Rădăuţi: according to the director the average duration of the family reunification procedure was 6 months. According to the legal counsellor the procedure was swift, and in a maximum of one month the decision was communicated.

Bucharest: IOM Romania reported that the length of family reunification procedure varies depending on the complexity of the case and is between 6 and 9 months from the date of submission of the application. Regarding the arrival of the family member in Romania, the period is at least one month from the date of communication of the decision.[28]

Giurgiu: The procedure takes between seven to eight months until a decision is given, according to the director of the centre.

Galaţi: In general, the procedure takes around six to nine months and it depends on the case officers’ workload. For unaccompanied minors the procedure lasts the same amount of time. According to the director of the centre the average duration of the procedure is six months. Family members may arrive in Romania between two months and one year later, depending on the country of origin.

In 2023, again JRS Romania highlighted the fact that the procedures for obtaining visas/travel documents are difficult. For instance, in the case of an Afghan mother, who has requested reunification for her 6 children who do not have passports, it was very difficult to fill in the forms for the issuance of travel documents due to poor design of the relevant website. Then, after the issuance of these travel documents, the family members could not come because they encountered problems with the authorities in Pakistan who introduced a visa requirement. The family ultimately succeeded in receiving passports for 5 of the 6 children, visas were requested, but the appointment at the Romanian embassy was given for April 2024, after the children’s entry/stay visa in Pakistan expired. Neither the embassy not the Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded to a request for an earlier date to avoid having the children stay in Pakistan irregularly. Overall, the waiting time was between 6 and 9 months for family reunification requests.[29]

In 2022, IGI-DAI reported a total of 395 applications for family reunification (102 Syria, 223 Somalia, 25 Afghanistan, 10 Pakistan, 9 Palestine, 8 Iraq, 5 stateless, 4 Yemen, 3 Ukraine, 2 Sudan, 2 Bangladesh, 2 Iran), of which 166 were admitted and 3 dismissed and the rest (226) were still pending at the end of 2022.[30] In 2023, IGI-DAI reported a total of 245 applications for family reunification, of which 192 admitted and 53 rejected (countries of origin were not indicated)[31].

[1] Article 71(1) Asylum Act.

[2] Article 71(3) Asylum Act.

[3] Article 30(1) Asylum Decree.

[4] Article 30(2) Asylum Decree.

[5] Practice based observation by JRS Romania, April 2024.

[6] Article 30(3) Asylum Decree.

[7] Article 30(4) Asylum Decree.

[8] Article 30(5) Asylum Decree.

[9] Article 72(1) Asylum Act.

[10] Article 72(2) Asylum Act.

[11] Article 72(2) Asylum Act.

[12] Article 72(3) Asylum Act.

[13] Article 72(4) Asylum Act.

[14] Article 73(1) Asylum Act.

[15] Article 73(2) Asylum Act.

[16] Article 73(3) Asylum Act.

[17] Practice based observation by JRS Romania, April 2024.

[18] Information provided by LADO/ASSOC, 3 February 2022.

[19] Information provided by LADO/ASSOC, 20 February 2023.

[20] Information provided by IOM Romania, 19 February 2022.

[21] Information provided by IOM Romania, 19 February 2022 and Information provided by LADO/ASSOC, 3 February 2022.

[22] Information provided by CNRR, 16 January 2024.

[23] Art 21 (3) Order No 119/20643/2023 on the conditions of appointment, role, tasks and requirements of education, training and professional experience for persons appointed as representatives for unaccompanied foreign minors applying for or granted a form of international protection, available in Romanian at: https://bit.ly/4bMvfHM.

[24] Article 31(4) Asylum Decree.

[25] Information provided by IGI-DAI, 18 January 2024.

[26] Information provided by AIDRom, 14 January 2022.

[27] Information provided by ASSOC, 20 February 2023.

[28] Information provided by IOM Romania, 19 February 2022.

[29] Experience based observation by JRS, April 2024.

[30] Information provided by IGI-DAI, 22 February 2023.

[31] Information provided by IGI-DAI, 18 January 2024.