Travelling in the EU with your non-EU family members
If you are an EU citizen and you are living in or travelling to another EU country, your family can join you, including core family members who are not EU citizens. If, for example, you are a French citizen living in Italy, and your spouse is a US citizen, they can join you in Italy.
However, this does not apply to the country of your nationality. If, for example, you are a German national and your non-EU family members want to join you in Germany national rules apply.
Depending on the country they are from, your non-EU family member may need a visa. If a visa is required, it should be free of charge and issued under an accelerated application procedure as a core family member of an EU citizen (see the information on applying for a visa below).
Your core and extended non-EU family members
Your non-EU core family members refers to your spouse, children, dependent descendants, dependent parents or dependent grandparents. It also applies to your non-EU registered partner but only if the country they are travelling to considers registered partnerships as equivalent to marriage.
Under certain conditions, other non-EU extended family members travelling with you or joining you may also be entitled to an accelerated visa application procedure: siblings, cousins, aunts, uncles, as well as your non-EU durable partner. This also applies to registered partners in countries where registered partnerships are not considered as equivalent to marriage. EU countries do not automatically have to facilitate their entry, but they do have to consider the request.
Warning
Check the exact rules in place in the country your non-EU extended family member is travelling to.
Passport and visa requirements
Your non-EU family members must carry a valid passport and, depending on the country they are from, they may also need an entry visa. If they have a residence document (card or permit) they may be exempt from visa requirements (see tool below). There is a list of countries whose nationals do not need a visa to visit the EU for short stays up to 90 days in any 180-day period. Contact the consulate or embassy of the country you are travelling to well in advance to find out which documents your non-EU family member will be asked to present at the border. The information on travel documents and visas provided here also applies for travel to Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland.
Warning
The visa requirements for travel to Ireland differ slightly from those for other EU countries. Check the information provided by the Irish authorities.
Visa requirements for non-EU family members with a residence document
If your non-EU family member has a residence card or a residence permit issued by a Schengen area country they may not need a visa. Using the tool below, check if they need an entry visa for the country they are travelling to.
What type of residence document does your non-EU family member have?
- A residence card (as a family member of an EU citizen) issued by any EU country other than the one I am a national of
- A residence permit issued by one of the following countries: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland (Schengen countries)
- A residence permit issued by one of the following countries: Cyprus, Ireland (non-Schengen countries)
Your non-EU family member does not need a visa if they have a residence card.
- With this residence card (or permanent residence card) they can travel visa-free to all EU countries (including the country of your nationality) as well as to Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway, also without being accompanied by you. This applies regardless of which EU country issued their residence card and the country they are visiting.
Warning
Exception for Switzerland
Your non-EU family member can also travel visa-free to Switzerland, except if their residence card was issued by Cyprus or Ireland.
Switzerland does not issue residence cards to family members of EU citizens but residence permits (check the relevant rules provided by the Swiss authorities on residence permits).
Sample story
Holders of a residence card as a family member of an EU national don't need to obtain a visa
Ying, the Chinese spouse of a German national living in Finland, has been issued with a residence card as an EU national family member in Finland. Ying and her husband wish to travel to Romania for an autumn break. As Ying has a valid passport and a residence card as an EU family member, she is not required to obtain an entry visa to travel to Romania.
Sample story
Holders of a residence card as a family member of an EU national don't need to obtain a visa
Marek is a Czech citizen. He resides with Meera, his Indian spouse in Bulgaria. Meera holds a valid passport and a residence card as an EU family member issued by Bulgaria. Meera travels alone to France and then to Ireland on holiday. As Meera has a valid passport and a residence card, she does not need to obtain an entry visa to travel to any of those 2 countries, even if she travels alone.
What country are you travelling to?
- Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland (Schengen countries)
- Cyprus, Ireland (non-Schengen countries)
Your non-EU family member has a residence permit issued by a Schengen country and is travelling to a Schengen country
- Your non-EU family member does not need a visa if they have a residence permit (national residence permit) issued under national rules by a Schengen country.
Your non-EU family member has a residence permit issued by a Schengen country and is travelling to a non-Schengen country
- Your non-EU family member will need a visa if they are travelling to Ireland.
- Your non-EU family member does not need a visa if they are travelling to Cyprus.
Sample story
Even if you have a national residence permit issued by a Schengen country, an entry visa may be needed to travel to Ireland
Joyce, a Nigerian national, lives in the Netherlands with her Dutch husband Luuk. As a family member of a Dutch national, Joyce has been issued with a Dutch residence permit in the Netherlands. Joyce wishes to join Luuk on his next business trip to Dublin. As Ireland is not part of the Schengen area and does not recognise Schengen residence permits, Joyce is required to obtain an entry visa to travel to Ireland with Luuk.
What country are you travelling to?
- Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland (Schengen countries)
- Cyprus, Ireland (non-Schengen countries)
Your non-EU family member has a residence permit issued by a non-Schengen country and is travelling to a Schengen country
- Your non-EU family member will need a visa.
Your non-EU family member has a residence permit issued by a non-Schengen country, and is travelling to a non-Schengen country
- Your non-EU family member will need a visa, if they have a residence permit issued by Ireland and are travelling to Cyprus.
- Your non-EU family member will need a visa, if they have a residence permit issued by Cyprus and are travelling to Ireland.
Applying for an entry visa for short stays up to 90 days
The information provided here applies for travel to the 27 EU countries and to Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland. However, some specific rules might apply for travel to Switzerland (check the information on visas provided by the Swiss authorities).
If your non-EU family members need an entry visa, they should apply for one in advance from the consulate or embassy of the country they wish to travel to. If they will be travelling together with you or joining you (in an EU country other than the country of your nationality), their visa should be processed as soon as possible on the basis of an accelerated procedure, free of charge. Processing times for visa applications of non-EU family members exceeding 15 days should be exceptional and duly justified.
Warning
Your non-EU family member should clearly indicate on their visa application form that they are applying for an entry visa as a family member of an EU citizen. If this is not clear on the application form, they may be issued with the wrong type of visa for which they will be charged.
Visa application - supporting documents for non-EU family members
Your non-EU family member must include the following documents with their visa application (no other documents are required):
- a valid passport
- valid identity card or passport of their EU family member
- a document proving family ties with the EU citizen (e.g. marriage certificate, birth certificate etc.) and, if applicable, proof of dependency, durability of partnership etc.
- proof that they will accompany or join the EU citizen in the EU host country, that is:
- proof that the EU citizen is already resident or present in the EU host country (e.g. a valid registration certificate issued by the host country
- if the EU citizen is not yet present in the EU host country: a declaration that the EU citizen will travel to the EU country of destination
Visa refusal and appeal
Your non-EU family member may only be refused a visa on the following grounds:
- they fail to demonstrate that
- they are your family member (and you live or will travel to an EU country other than the country of your nationality)
- they will join or accompany you (the EU citizen) in that country
An EU country may also refuse a visa application for reasons linked to "public policy public security or public health". If this happens, the authorities must prove that the visa applicant poses a "genuine, present and sufficiently serious threat". An EU country may also refuse a visa application for reasons linked to abuse or fraud.
Your non-EU family must be notified of the refusal in writing, stating all the specific factual and legal grounds on which the decision was made, and specifying how to appeal and by when.
Length of stay
If your non-EU family members have the required documents, they are entitled to accompany or join you without any conditions or formalities for consecutive periods of up to 3 months per EU country visited. They are not subject to the overall limitation of up to 90 days in a 180-day period that applies in the Schengen area. You can combine stays in different EU countries without an overall time-limit (as long as the conditions of the EU rules on residence are met).
Sample story
No overall time limit for your non-EU family member when joining you or visiting several EU countries with you
Marco, an Italian national is resident in France. As part of an EU-wide research project, he spent 3 months in Austria and 3 months in Germany before concluding the project with a 2 month stay in Luxembourg. His American spouse Susan was entitled to join Marco for the entire duration of his stay abroad because with a valid passport and a residence document her stays in the various EU countries were not subject to an overall time limit.
When your non-EU family member travels on their own and does not hold a valid residence card or residence permit, the normal regime applies (in the Schengen area, the limitation of 90 days in a 180-day period).
Applying for a residence card as a family member of an EU citizen
If you are in an EU country other than the country of your nationality, and your non-EU family member plans to stay there for longer than 3 months, they can apply for a residence card upon arrival. It must be issued by the authorities within 6 months from the date of application. If your non-EU family member's visa expires before their residence card is issued, they do not have to return to their country of origin to obtain a new visa.
During the processing of their residence card application, your non-EU family member might face practical difficulties while travelling, for example, if they leave their EU country of residence and try to re-enter. Without a residence card they are not exempt from visa requirements and their initial entry visa might have expired. In this case, their travel to and from their EU host country should be facilitated. Your non-EU family member should check with the authorities in their EU host country whether specific conditions apply, or documents are required to enable their return.
Warning
If you live outside the EU and your non-EU family member accompanies you or travels to the EU country of your nationality, they might need a visa and be charged visa fees.
Arriving at the border without an entry visa
Your non-EU family members should be well-informed in advance and should have all the necessary documents before starting their journey. However, if they arrive at the border with their passport but without an entry visa, if required, the border authorities must give them every reasonable opportunity to prove by other means that they are family members of an EU citizen (for example a marriage certificate or birth certificate) and, proof that they are joining or accompanying the EU citizen (for example, proof that the EU citizen is already resident or present in the country where entry is sought). If they manage to prove it, and if there is no evidence that they pose a risk to public policy, public security or public health requirements, the visa must be issued without delay at the border. Please be aware that the burden of proof lies with the family member.
It is highly recommended that your non-EU family members carry their passport and visa (if necessary) so that they can identify themselves if stopped by police, boarding a plane, etc. In some EU countries this is a legal requirement and sanctions can be imposed if this obligation is not respected.
If your family members are having difficulties getting a visa, you can contact our assistance services Open as an external link .
Entry refusal
In very rare cases, an EU country can refuse entry to you or your family members for reasons of "public policy, public security or public health". This means the authorities must prove you or your family members pose a "genuine, present and sufficiently serious threat". You are entitled to receive this decision in writing, stating all the grounds, and specifying how you can appeal and by when.
See also:
Read more about your non-EU family member's residence rights if they move with you to another EU country
Documents you need for travel in the EU
EU immigration portal
