Child reunification — Family immigration

From Auswärtiges Amt

“The visa fee is 37.50 euros, payable in Vietnamese Dong. Visas for minor unmarried children of German or EU/EEA nationals are free of charge. We cannot guarantee a specific processing time, as the foreigners-authority at your future residence in Germany must be involved during the procedure, and the consular post has no influence on their processing times. Only after receiving the response from Germany can the consular post conduct the final review and decision. As a rule, the foreigners-authority's processing time is at least three months. In individual cases it can be significantly longer. Note on appointment booking: when the family-reunification application is filed alongside a skilled-worker (Fachkraft) visa application by the same family, all family members' applications must be filed together at the external service provider VFS. After entry: Everyone who lives in Germany must be registered. Within two weeks of moving in at the latest, you should do this at the Einwohnermeldeamt or Bürgeramt. After entry, contact the foreigners-authority at your place of residence in Germany. There you apply for your residence title (Aufenthaltstitel).”

— Federal Foreign Office of Germany · German diplomatic missions

What you need

You must submit for the child a VIDEX application form (signed by the legal guardian), biometric photos, and a valid passport. Civil-status documents of the child and parents — child's birth certificate, parents' marriage certificate, and where applicable divorce evidence — must be legalised for Vietnamese documents. A current Vietnamese police registration certificate for the child (≤ 6 months) shows the household composition. From the parent living in Germany: passport and residence-title copy plus a Meldebescheinigung (≤ 6 months). If the child travels to only one parent, either evidence of sole custody (legalised death certificate or declaration of disappearance of the other parent; exception for non-marital children with no father on the birth certificate) or an authenticated consent declaration (Einverständniserklärung) by the other custodial parent is required. Authentications by Vietnamese consular posts are NOT accepted. For children aged 16 and over, a C1 language certificate from a recognised examiner (Goethe-Institut, telc, ÖSD, TestDaF, ECL) is required — with exceptions for travelling together with both or the sole-custody parent, and for high-skilled residence titles of the parent in Germany (full list: see the Language-skills item below). If the child is NOT represented in the visa procedure by a parent, a power of attorney from the parents (or the sole-custody parent) is required. Private medical insurance is to be submitted only AFTER visa approval — the visa section will notify you by phone.

Checklist

Application and identity

Application form (VIDEX). On the application form you state all information about the child's entry into and stay in Germany. Please fill in this form completely, print it, and sign it. For minors, the person authorised as legal guardian must sign the application (e.g. the parents) *
Two recent biometric passport photos (45 mm x 35 mm). Information on biometric passport photos is in the photo specifications template. Please glue only one photo onto the application form and bring the second loose *
Valid passport (or recognised substitute travel document). Please note that the document must still have at least two blank pages (your visa will be glued in here later if the decision is positive) *

Civil-status documents

Child's birth certificate. Vietnamese certificates must first be legalised *
Police registration certificate for the child. Current confirmation from the local police for the child. The certificate may not be older than 6 months at the time of application. It should show which other persons live in the household *
Parents' marriage certificate. Vietnamese certificates must first be legalised *
Where applicable, parents' divorce evidence (court judgment) in original with legalisation

Documents from the parent living in Germany

Copy of the passport of the parent living in Germany *
Copy of the residence title (Aufenthaltstitel) of the parent living in Germany *
Current Meldebescheinigung (no older than 6 months), where the parent already lives in Germany *

Custody and representation

Where applicable, evidence of sole custody. If the child travels to only one parent, it must be shown that this parent has sole custody. Otherwise the child may only join if the other parent consents (see Einverständniserklärung). Vietnamese law in principle only recognises joint parental custody. This also applies in the case of divorce — because divorce does NOT determine custody, only the child's living and care arrangements. Subsequent custody transfers generally do not change this. If the parent living in Germany has sole custody, evidence is provided by the legalised death certificate or the legalised declaration of disappearance of the other parent. Exception: for non-marital children whose birth certificate lists no father, no further proof of the mother's sole custody is required
Where applicable, consent declaration (Einverständniserklärung). If the parents live separately and the child travels to only one parent, the other co-custodial parent must declare consent. The declaration must be submitted with authenticated signature. Authentication is possible: in Vietnam at the German consular posts (when the co-custodial parent accompanies the child to the appointment, no separate authentication appointment is needed — fees still apply); in Germany at a German authority, a notary; in another country at the relevant German consular post abroad. Please note: signature authentications by Vietnamese consular posts are NOT recognised
Where applicable, power of attorney (Vollmacht). The person representing the child in the visa procedure must be authorised by the parents. If the child travels to only one parent, the power of attorney must be issued by that parent. It must be submitted in the original. Exception: if a parent represents the child in the visa procedure, no separate power of attorney from the other parent is required

Language skills

Where applicable, language certificate. Children aged 16 and over must in principle show that they have good German skills (level C1). This must be evidenced by a recognised language certificate. Currently the following are accepted: • Goethe-Institut e.V. certificates; • telc GmbH certificates; • Austrian Language Diploma (ÖSD) certificates; • „TestDaF" from the TestDaF-Institut e.V. (institute of FernUniversität Hagen and Ruhr-Universität Bochum; exam level starts at B2 CEFR); • ECL Prüfungszentrum certificates. Exception 1: if the child travels to Germany together with both parents or with the sole-custody parent, no language proof is required. This also applies if the child travels with only one custodial parent and the other has given consent. Exception 2: if the parent living in Germany or their spouse holds one of the following residence titles, no language proof is required either: • Niederlassungserlaubnis under § 18c Abs. 3 AufenthG (settlement permit for skilled workers); • Blue Card EU (§ 18g AufenthG); • ICT card / Mobile ICT card (intra-corporate transferee); • § 18a, § 18b Abs. 1, § 18d or § 18f AufenthG (skilled worker with vocational training; skilled worker with academic education; researcher; mobile researcher); • § 19c Abs. 1 AufenthG as Führungskraft, company specialist, scientist, or member of a research team; • § 19c Abs. 2 or Abs. 4 AufenthG (IT specialist with substantial experience; specialty chef); • § 21 AufenthG (self-employed entrepreneur)

Medical insurance

Medical insurance. Insurance cover from the day of entry for at least three months is to be submitted only when the visa can be issued. The visa section will notify you by phone *