What family reunification (reagrupación familiar) actually requires

Key rules

• Silence: No decision 45 days after registration counts as approval.
• Parents: You can bring a parent only if you hold long-term residence.
• Only one partner: You can reunify only one spouse or partner, never a partner alongside a spouse, and a marriage of convenience is refused.

Who can sponsor

You must be a non-EU resident who has lived legally in Spain for one year with a qualifying permit that is valid for one further year when you file; Can you sponsor your family sets out the permits and the groups that skip the year. To file you must also show enough income and adequate housing; their documents are listed in The income test and Getting the adequate housing report. If your family member is the relative of an EU citizen, a separate regime applies and this page does not cover it.

Who you can bring

• Spouse. Proof: the marriage certificate. You must not be legally separated.
• Registered partner. A partner in a partnership entered in a public register, in Spain (a pareja de hecho inscrita) or abroad. Proof: the registration certificate. A registered partner is treated like a spouse.
• Unmarried, unregistered partner. A partner in a relationship like marriage who is not registered can be reunified, decided separately on its own proof. The relationship must be stable: at least 1 year living together, or a child in common. Proof: a joint lease or padrón (empadronamiento) history, joint bills or bank accounts, and the child's birth certificate naming both of you. The right is the same as a registered partner's.
• Children. Not married, and either under 18 or older and unable to support themselves because of disability or dependency. They can be yours, or your spouse's or registered partner's. Proof: the birth certificate showing you as a parent; for a child of your partner, also the marriage or partnership certificate and the written consent of the other parent or a court custody decision; for an adopted child, the adoption decision.
• People you represent legally. Minors or disabled persons. Proof: the court or guardianship decision.
• Dependent parents. Yours or your spouse's, over 65 and dependent on you. Proof: the birth certificate showing the parent-child link, a certificate from their home authority showing they have no income of their own, dated records of the money you send them, and the reasons they need to live in Spain. Humanitarian exceptions exist for the age limit.
• Other relatives. No route: relatives outside this list cannot be reunified.

Your spouse, registered partner and children aged 16 or over receive a residence authorisation that allows them to work. Dependent parents receive residence without work rights.

Reunification steps from sponsor filing to family arrival

1. File. The sponsor files form EX-02 with the Oficina de Extranjería of their province, normally online, and pays the fee of 73.78 EUR on modelo 790 code 052. File once your residence authorisation is valid for one further year. Spouse and children can be included in one application if you meet the requirements for all of them.
2. Decision. The office decides within 45 days of registration. If it does not, the application is deemed granted on day 45; request the certificate of silent approval from the office.
3. Visa. Your family applies at the Spanish consulate in their country within two months of the approval notice. After silent approval the two months run from day 45, and the certificate goes to the consulate in place of the approval notice. They bring the passport, proof of family tie, criminal record certificate for adults and medical certificate, and pay the 80 EUR visa fee.
4. Consulate decision and entry. The consulate decides within one month. The visa is valid for 3 months and your family must enter Spain within that time. If the consulate asks for more evidence, such as custody or consent papers when one parent is not travelling, send it promptly.
5. TIE. Within one month of entering Spain, your family books a police appointment (Policía Nacional), gives fingerprints, pays the TIE fee of 16.00 EUR on modelo 790 code 012 and applies for the foreigner card (TIE).

If your application is refused

A refusal does not stop you applying again: once the problem is fixed, file a new application. You can also challenge the refusal:

• Recurso de reposición. Optional. Send it to the same office that refused you, within one month of the notification.
• Appeal to the courts. A contencioso-administrativo appeal, within two months of the notification.

Both deadlines run from the date of the notification and are strict.