Spouse/Partner Visa Germany
One of the most frequently used types of Family Reunion visas is the Spouse visa. This gives your non-German partner the chance to come to Germany to live with you. An immigration lawyer or solicitor can increase your chances of a successful application.
Total Law is a leading immigration law firm that helped many people get a Spouse visa in Germany. To get our help, please contact us at +1 844 290 6312. You can also visit us online to discover our services.
What is the German Family Reunion Visa for Spouses?
If you are German or a legal German resident with a foreign spouse, you will likely want to arrange for them to join you in Germany. To do so, you will need to apply for a Spouse visa, which is a type of Family Reunion visa.
Having a Spouse visa will allow your partner to come to the country for 90 days. After this, your third-country national partner must get a residence permit.
The Spouse visa is available to mixed and same-sex partnerships. Both types of partnerships can be married to be eligible. Meanwhile, same-sex partnerships can also be made through registered partnerships and civil unions. This is common if your spouse’s home country does not recognize same-sex marriage. However, please note that Germany does not accept polygamous marriages at the time of writing in December 2023. You may only bring one partner into Germany through this type of Family Reunification visa.
This article explains the German Spouse visa further, describing eligibility criteria, required documents, the application process, and what to do once the application has been accepted.
Spouse Visa Eligibility Requirements
Overview
The eligibility criteria for a Spouse visa are similar in many places to the criteria for getting a Family Reunion visa, with noteworthy differences relating to the relationship that you must have with your spouse.
The basic requirements are that you are married (or in a civil partnership if you are in a same-sex couple), and you are both over 18. Furthermore, the person applying for a visa needs to have a basic knowledge of the German language. They must have attained an A1 (beginner) standard according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR).
Eligibility Criteria for the Sponsoring Spouse
The spouse that is sponsoring their partner to come to Germany must also fit a range of criteria to be eligible. The basic criteria include the following:
- They are legally residing in Germany as a German national, EEA or European Union national, or third-country nationals with a valid German residence permit.
- They have an understanding of the German language.
- They rent or own accommodation that can house both of you and any other family members coming on a Family Reunification visa.
- They can financially support the partner applying for a visa.
What Characteristics Will Disqualify My Spouse from Sponsoring Me?
Sometimes, a spouse who fits all of the criteria described above will still not be able to sponsor a partner to come to Germany. The following circumstances will lead to an application being rejected, and you will have to consider different visas that would allow you to become a German resident:
- They are under a deportation ban.
- Germany recognizes them as a human trafficking victim.
- Their legal residence permit is due to a Land or Federal authority ruling.
- Humanitarian grounds or international law has led to them being granted a temporary residence permit.
The criteria listed above will severely harm your application’s chances of being successful. However, it will always be unsuccessful if one of the following applies to the sponsoring spouse:
- They had a deportation order that was suspended and have been issued a temporary residence permit in the meantime. This also applies if obstacles to departure have delayed the deportation.
- Their current residence permit was issued to them as a family member or parent of a “well-integrated juvenile.”
- Their residence permit has been given to them as a victim of “clandestine employment”, as defined by the Act to Combat Clandestine Employment.
Making Your Spouse Visa Application
As a type of “D” class German “National” visa, Spouse visa applications have to follow the National visa application process. Please follow the process below when you are completing your application:
- Go to your nearest German embassy or mission to get a document checklist. This will explain the required documents and will help you to understand if you are missing anything.
- Complete the application forms. You will need to download these online but print them so that they can be signed.
- Get an application appointment at the German embassy or application center.
- Attend the appointment on time. Here, you will present your documents, pay the application fee, and attend a short interview where you will be asked questions about your application.
Required Documentation
All required documents can be found on the document checklist when you make your application. Make sure that the documentation you supply is legitimate, as any cases of fraud will stand against all future visa applications you make for EU and EEA member states. You will need to provide a signed declaration of accuracy of information to confirm your application does not contain falsehoods or illegitimate documentation. Essential documentation is listed below:
- You and your spouse’s valid passport.
- A completed and signed application form.
- German-standard Passport-style photos. These must be no more than three months old.
- Proof of your spouse’s address in Germany, such as a rental agreement or proof of purchase.
- A copy of your marriage certificate. You will need to show similar documentation to prove the validity of your registered partnership or civil union if you are a non-married same-sex couple.
- A certificate from an official German language course to prove you and your partner’s capabilities in the German language.
- Your spouse’s registration in Germany if they are not a German citizen. This is known as a Meldebescheinigung.
- An invitation letter from your spouse to come to Germany.
For your and your spouse’s passports to be valid, they should be no more than ten years old. They must also be valid for the duration of your planned stay in Germany. Finally, the visa applicant’s passport must have at least two free pages for the visa to be put in.
Processing Time and Application Fees
The standard fee for a National visa applies to getting a German Spouse visa. This was 75 euros when this article was written in December 2023. If your application is successful, you will not be subjected to an issuance fee for your Germany visa.
The minimum time to expect for your application’s processing time is three weeks. However, this can stretch to multiple months if there are issues with the application or if the German embassy or mission you apply to has a large backlog.
Residence Permit for a German Spouse Visa
Overview
A Spouse visa alone will usually only allow you to join your German spouse for 90 days, which is not enough to start living together in the European Union. Instead, you require a residence permit, allowing you to become a legally recognized German resident and remain in the country.
You will not automatically get a residence permit when you enter Germany, and you will need to follow the steps listed below:
- Officially register your address. This should be the same as your German spouse.
- Start a German bank account and deposit money into it.
- Ensure you have suitable health insurance that is valid throughout Germany.
- Go to your local immigration office to pick up the application forms and book an appointment.
- Attend your appointment, submit your application forms, and answer questions during an interview.
You must have your residence permit before your visa elapses, or you risk having to return to your home country. You can usually expect a residence permit application to take a few weeks. In some cases, it may be more, so it is worth completing your application as soon as possible.
Eligibility Criteria for a German Residence Permit
For your application for a German residence permit to be successful, you need to fit a range of eligibility criteria, which are additional to the criteria to get a Family Reunification visa. They include the following:
- You have a valid passport.
- You have no criminal record in Germany.
- You have achieved an intermediate level of German language capabilities (B1 level on the CEFR).
- You won’t require financial assistance in Germany because you earn enough or your spouse can support you.
Types of Residence Permit
There are two types of German residence permits for third-country nationals joining their German spouse. You will begin with a temporary residence permit, which can be obtained when you first enter Germany. This will be valid for one year. So long as you stay with your spouse, you can easily extend it each year. However, if your relationship breaks down, you will need to re-apply based on your new circumstances.
Having been in Germany for a long enough time, you can apply for a permanent residence permit, often referred to as a settlement permit. With this permit, you can continue living in Germany indefinitely. However, you must fit the following additional requirements:
- You have been employed in Germany for five years.
- You have paid all required taxes.
- You have followed the law as a German resident.
How Can Total Law Help?
Germany is one of the Schengen Area’s wealthiest nations. A Spouse visa is a great opportunity to start a new life with your spouse in this highly active economy that can secure a great standard of living for you both. This won’t be easy due to the high number of Spouse visa applications that are rejected every year.
Getting help when you apply for a visa is a great idea, as it can drastically increase your chances of success. At Total Law, our expert lawyers and advisors are experienced in helping applicants with all visas. We also liaise with the German immigration authorities, who will keep us updated on the progress of your application.
To commission our help as you apply to join your family members in Germany, visit us online to find out about the services we offer, or call us at
To find out more about how Total Law can help, please visit us online or get in touch at +1 844 290 6312 to connect with our team.
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Related pages for your continued reading.
FAQs
An average of 8,000-10,000 third-country nationals can’t join their partners in Germany each year because their visa is rejected. Each will receive a specific decision letter that will detail why the immigration authorities decided to reject the application. To get a German Spouse visa, you will need to address these issues when following one of the options below:
- Re-complete your application and repay the fee.
- Ask for a remonstration process. This is an administrative process that will lead to your application being assessed by a different team from the same embassy.
- File a lawsuit against the immigration authorities in Berlin’s administrative court.
Please note that asking for remonstration is the only option if it is free. Filing a lawsuit can be very expensive, especially if you lose.
Even if you are non-German and a non-EU citizen, your EU citizen spouse will not need a visa to come to Germany permanently due to the freedom of movement within the EU. They will only need a national identity card to come to Germany.
Due to international visa facilitation agreements between the European Union and their international partners, 17 nations are subject to a reduced fee. This practice is intended to make getting German visas more accessible. The following nations are included in the agreement, with each one having a different fee based on the agreement:
- Albania.
- Armenia.
- Azerbaijan.
- Belarus.
- Bosnia and Herzegovina.
- Cape Verde.
- North Macedonia.
- Georgia.
- Moldova.
- Montenegro.
- Serbia.
- Ukraine.
A German spouse visa can allow you to get citizenship through naturalization. However, this is not automatic, and you must fit the following criteria to be eligible:
- You have been legally resident in Germany for eight years.
- You have passed a citizenship test.
- You have successfully completed a citizenship test.
- You can financially support yourself or rely on your spouse to support you.
If you successfully undergo an integration course, the naturalization requirement will be reduced to seven years. Either way, you will need to have been a law-abiding citizen throughout your time in Germany. In most cases, you will also need to renounce your previous citizenship.
