Bringing your family members to the Netherlands
Bringing along family members can make your stay in the Netherlands more enjoyable. However, it is advisable to carefully arrange for their stay in the Netherlands in order to avoid disappointment.
Bear in mind that family members who come over to join you in the Netherlands will be trading the comforts of home for the unknown. The issues that they may face, such as visa requirements, insurance, finding work and finding a school, will become less of a hurdle if you arrange them in advance.
The main practical things you will need to consider are described below.
Visa
If you wish to bring your partner with you to the Netherlands, there are essentially two ways of doing so.
1. Your partner has his/her own purpose for staying in the Netherlands. In this case, your partner will need to find and accept a job on his/her own account.
2. The purpose of your partner's stay in the Netherlands is to be with you. This is referred to as a dependent purpose of stay, and is qualified as either ‘family reunion’ or ‘staying with partner’.
If your partner is to join you as a dependent (i.e. the second situation), make sure to apply for your partner’s visa and residence permit at the same time as your own. This will save you a lot of time and trouble. Ask your employer for help, too.
Healthcare insurance
The Dutch healthcare insurance system generally provides insurance on an individual basis. It is likely that your personal healthcare insurance policy will not cover your family members and so it is advisable to look into a suitable healthcare insurance solution which will cover your family members for medical expenses.
Childcare facilities and schools
If you you intend to bring your children with you to the Netherlands, you might be looking for childcare facilities or schools [interne link naar education].
The family members who travel to the Netherlands with you may need to apply for an authorisation for a temporary stay (MVV) and/or a resident permit. Before bringing your family over, you will need to choose the correct procedure. There are several grounds, based on which partners and family members of expats can acquire a resident's permit or an MVV (authorisation for temporary stay). If you are an EU citizen, other rules apply.
The difference between partner reunification and establishing a family
If a marriage took place or a (registered) partnership was formed at a time when the principle applicant had his or her main residence in the Netherlands, this is classed as ‘establishing a family’. All other cases are classed as family reunification.
The main difference between the two procedures is the fact that for establishing a family, the required sufficient means of support are higher than in the case of family reunification. More information on this subject can be found in the IND website.
Registering a foreign marriage and legalising foreign documents
An important factor in the procedure of bringing family members to the Netherlands is the legalisation of documents and the M46 declaration (an investigation by the immigration authorities to determine whether or not a marriage or relationship is genuine). Information about the M46 declaration is available below. Information about legalisation can be found in the paragraph Legalisation of Documents.
For more information about bringing your family to the Netherlands, please check the Residence Wizard on the IND website.
Procedure
If a highly skilled migrant or knowledge migrant has a (marriage) partner and/or minor children who also wish to come to the Netherlands, the migrant's employer may submit an application for the accelerated procedure on behalf of these family members.
An employer who has an agreement with the IND to apply for the knowledge migrant procedure, may submit both this application and the application on behalf of the migrant's family members at the same time. On the IND website you will find forms for the applications.
If the knowledge migrant already holds a Dutch residence permit and his/her family members travel to the Netherlands at a later date, the migrant's employer can submit the application on behalf of the migrant's family, using the form on the IND website.
Principally, the migrant's employer will be responsible for paying the applicable fees. If the employer is not able or willing to do so, the knowledge migrant will be requested to pay the fees.
The partner or spouse of the knowledge migrant must meet the following criteria:
- you are married to, or are the (registered) partner of, a person in the Netherlands who holds the status of a knowledge migrant or a researcher under the EU directive 2005/71/EC.
- you and your partner/spouse are both aged 18 or over
- you have a legal marriage certificate, birth certificate(s) or a certificate of a registered partnership
- your husband, wife or (registered) partner has sufficient long-term means of support.
A minor child must meet the following criteria:
- he/she is not married, and has never been married
- he/she is an actual part of the family
- he/she is related to the parent(s) in the Netherlands with whom he/she intends to stay
- he/she poses no danger to the public order
- he/she will live with his/her parent(s) as soon as he/she arrives in the Netherlands
- he/she will register at the same address as his/her parent(s)
- he/she has permission to come to the Netherlands from the parent who is staying behind in his/her country of origin.
The parent(s) must meet the following conditions:
- he/she has a sufficient income in the Netherlands
An adult must meet the following conditions:
- he/she is 18 or older
- he/she related to the parent(s) in the Netherlands with whom he/she wants to stay
- he/she is an actual part of the family (this includes not having been separated from the family for more than one year)
- he/she poses no danger to the public order
- he/she will live with his/her parent(s) as soon as he/she arrives in the Netherlands
- he/she will register at the same address as his/her parent(s)
- he/she must take the basic integration exam (Note : this does not apply to people with Australian, Canadian, Japanese, New Zealand, South Korean or US nationality).
Family reunification or establishing a family if you are not a knowledge migrant or a researcher following the directive 2005/71/EC
If you want to bring your family members and you are not a knowledge migrant or a researcher additional rules apply, especially when your partner requires an MVV.
One of the conditions to obtain an MVV is that before a positive advice is given by the IND the marriage already needs to be registered in the Municipal Administration of the place of residence. This means the M46 declaration has to issued beforehand. Please read the next section for more information.
The M46 procedure for registering a foreign marriage
If you want to get married or are married and you are not an EU citizen and do not have a permanent residence status, the 'M46 declaration' from the IND is needed to get your marriage approved and registered at the municipality. Without this approval and registration, a resident's permit on the basis of family reunification or establishing a family will not be issued.
On the basis of the information provided by you on the M46 application form, the IND determines your residence status in the Netherlands and investigates whether your marriage is genuine. The IND will then notify the municipality of your residency after which your marriage can be registered. This procedure takes about five to ten weeks.
Legalised documents
For the application of the M46 Declaration, you need to have legalised copies of birth certificates and marriage certificates of both you and your spouse. If you are not married, you will need a document which proves your unmarried status.
For more information about the M46 contact your municipality.
Last update: 19-12-2012
