Family reunification in Luxembourg: bringing your family over
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Non-EU: steps for family reunification
These steps apply to Case 2 (you are not an EU citizen). Case 1 is explained below.
Practical guide · trigger.lu
Family reunification in Luxembourg: bringing your family over
- When
- before submitting the application
- What you need
- payslips or other proof of stable income
- lease agreement or purchase deed showing the floor area
- written agreement from the landlord if the lease only lists you
Details
Your income must reach at least the unqualified social minimum wage, and remain so for the following year.
- Who
- you, already living in Luxembourg
Details
Your family attaches it to their visa application.
- What you need
- full passport
- marriage or birth certificate
- criminal record extract less than 3 months old for each adult
- Schengen travel insurance for the full duration of the visa
Details
Any document not in French, German, or English must be translated by a sworn translator.
- Where
- Luxembourg embassy or its service provider (VFS Global in India), or Belgian embassy if Luxembourg does not have one
- Who
- your family, in person, from their home country
Details
An application submitted from Luxembourg will be rejected. The visa D is valid for 6 months.
- Timeframe
- 3 days after arrival
- Bring
- passport with the visa D
- lease agreement
- When
- as soon as possible
- Where
- at a doctor's office in Luxembourg
Details
It includes a tuberculosis screening, also for children.
- Timeframe
- at the latest 3 months before the visa D expires
- Cost
- €80 per permit
- Cost
- free
Details
For a spouse or child coming from abroad, this is not automatic: you must apply for it.
This is for you if
- You work in Luxembourg and your spouse or children are still living in your home country.
- You are Portuguese, Italian, or French and your spouse is Brazilian, Moroccan, or American.
- You hold an EU Blue Card and want to bring your family over.
This is not for you if your family members are EU citizens themselves: they move like any EU citizen (see moving to Luxembourg).
Key figures to remember
| Item | Value | Year or date |
|---|---|---|
| First "family member" residence permits (non-EU) | 3,474, including 482 for Indian citizens | 2024 |
| Residence cards for a family member of an EU citizen | 2,089, including 328 for Brazilian citizens | 2024 |
| Reference income (Case 2) | €2,771.33 gross per month (unqualified SSM) | Since 1 June 2026 |
| Visa D (Case 2) | Applied for at the embassy, valid for 6 months | Since 1 October 2026 |
| Residence permit (Case 2) | €80 | 2026 |
| EU family member card (Case 1) | Application within 3 months, response in 6 months maximum, valid for 5 years | 2026 |
| CNS co-insurance | Free | 2026 |
Case 1: You are an EU citizen, your spouse is not
The European right of free movement applies. Luxembourg nationals follow the same rule.
Who counts as family: your spouse or registered partner; your children (or those of your spouse) under 21 years old, or older if they are dependent on you; your dependent parents or parents-in-law; your unregistered partner if the relationship is durable (at least 1 year of cohabitation, or a child together). "Dependent" is proven by regular bank transfers to the person.
The process: your spouse enters with their passport. If their country requires a visa, they apply for it at the embassy, free of charge. Within 3 months, they fill out the residence card application (ouvre dans un nouvel onglet) at the commune. The receipt acts as a residence card for up to 6 months. The card is valid for 5 years. Your spouse can start working right away.
Marriage, PACS, or cohabitation do not have the same effects: see marriage, PACS, or cohabitation.
Case 2: You come from a non-EU country yourself
Who counts as family: your spouse or registered partner over 18 years old, and your unmarried children under 18 years old (or those of your spouse). Your parents do not come automatically: the minister may accept them after 12 months of legal residence on your part, if they depend on you and no longer have family support in their country of origin.
The conditions:
- Stable income, compared to the unskilled minimum social wage (SSM). Your spouse's income also counts.
- Appropriate housing, standard for a family of your size in your commune. See our guide to finding accommodation.
- Health insurance: Schengen travel insurance for the visa, then the CNS.
- A serious prospect of staying in Luxembourg long-term. This condition does not apply if you hold an EU Blue Card. In that case, if your family submits their application at the same time as you, they receive approval at the same time as your card; if they join you later, the answer arrives within 90 days.
Are you a refugee or a beneficiary of international protection? If you apply for family reunification within 6 months of being granted your status, the income and housing conditions do not apply.
What changed on October 1, 2026: before, a residence authorization from the Directorate General of Immigration (DGIM) was required. Now, your family applies for a type D visa at the embassy. This visa also allows them to travel within the Schengen area before receiving their residence permit.
The "family member" status gives access to work. Your spouse can look for a job and have their diploma recognized.
For your own residence permit, read our guide residence permit and work permit for non-EU citizens.
An example: Arjun brings his wife and daughter
Arjun, 34, an Indian engineer, has been working in Luxembourg City since May 2026 on an EU Blue Card. He earns €72,000 gross per year (the Blue Card threshold is €65,652 in 2026). His wife Priya, 31, and his daughter Anaya, 5, are in Bangalore.
- Income: €72,000 ÷ 12 = €6,000 gross per month, more than double the SSM (€2,771.33). That works.
- Housing: a two-bedroom apartment in Strassen. The lease specifies the surface area, but only names Arjun: he attaches the landlord's written consent.
- Visa: Priya submits both type D visa applications at the VFS Global center, the service provider for the Luxembourg Embassy in India: €50 visa fee per application, plus VFS service fees. The certificates are in English: no translation needed.
- Arrival: Strassen commune within 3 days, medical check, then applying for permits.
- Cost in Luxembourg: 2 × €80 = €160, plus doctor's fees, travel insurance, and visa fees.
- Afterward: free CNS co-insurance, and Priya gets reimbursed for her healthcare costs just like Arjun.
If Arjun had not left yet, his family could have applied for the visa at the same time as him: the landlord's written consent is not required in that case. For the other housing documents, check on Guichet.lu, family reunification (ouvre dans un nouvel onglet).
Common mistakes
- Choosing the wrong category. A Portuguese citizen married to a Brazilian citizen does not need to prove a minimum income: this is Case 1.
- Following the old procedure. Since October 1, 2026, everything goes through the embassy. An application submitted in Luxembourg will be rejected.
- A lease without the surface area. The file is incomplete and sent back.
- Untranslated documents. A certificate in Hindi or Portuguese without a sworn translation blocks everything.
Frequently asked questions
For the spouse of a European citizen: 6 months maximum in principle, with a receipt while waiting. Outside the EU, no timeframe has been published yet for the D visa. The immigration law gives the minister up to 9 months to decide, and 90 days for the family of a Blue Card holder.
Outside the EU, the reference is the unqualified SSM: €2,771.33 gross per month since June 1, 2026. Each application is examined individually. For a European citizen, no threshold is set.
Travel insurance valid throughout the Schengen area for the entire duration of the visa (6 months). It covers medical care, hospitalisation, medical repatriation, and death. Once she arrives, your wife can be co-insured for free with the CNS.
European citizen: yes, if she is dependent on you. Outside the EU: after 12 months of legal residence, if you have been supporting her financially for at least a year and she has no other family to help her. The minister decides.