Family reunification in Spain in 2026: visa and residence for a spouse, children and parents

Family reunification in Spain (reagrupación familiar) is how a foreigner already living in Spain with a residence permit brings over their spouse, children or parents. You apply once your first permit has been renewed, and your relative then gets a visa at the consulate. You need an income of at least €900 a month for a family of two, suitable housing and health insurance. Families of digital nomads, professionals and entrepreneurs under Law 14/2013, and families of Spanish citizens, follow different and simpler rules.

Who can bring their family

A foreigner with a Spanish residence permit can bring relatives once their first residence permit has been renewed. The regulation specifies that you can apply after living in Spain for at least a year and applying to renew for at least another year. You can apply for reunification at the same time as the renewal, but it is approved only once the renewal has been granted. In France the wait is longer, 18 months of lawful residence; how the procedure works there is covered in the article on family reunification in France.

• Parents can only be brought with a long-term residence permit (residencia de larga duración). How to get it is covered in our article on permanent residence in Spain.
• Families of long-term residents, EU Blue Card holders and researchers can apply at the same time as them, without waiting for a renewal.

Whom you can bring

If a child belongs to only one of the spouses, you need sole custody or parental rights and the consent of the other parent or a court to the move. If it is a second marriage, you need a court ruling on how the former spouse and children are provided for.

Parents’ dependency is checked strictly: it must be real and exist before you apply; since July 2026 it can also be proven for a parent already living in Spain (Supreme Court ruling). It is presumed if for at least a year before applying you sent your parents money or paid their expenses of at least 51% of their country’s GDP per capita per year, for each parent.

What income you need

• the income of you, your spouse or partner and first-degree relatives counts if they are residents and live with you;
• grants, housing subsidies, social assistance and maintenance payments do not count, except those received by the relative being brought;
• savings are assessed by the average balance over 6 months;
• when children are brought, the income requirement can be reduced in the child’s interest.

Housing and insurance

You need a housing report (informe de vivienda). It is issued within a month by the autonomous community, or by the town hall if the community has delegated this. If the report is not issued in time, the housing can be proven by any documents. Who issues it in Madrid, Catalonia, Valencia and the islands, what it costs and what is checked is covered in informe de vivienda.

• the report must be no older than six months on the application date;
• it states the right to use the home, the number of rooms and their use, how many people live there, and its condition and facilities;
• the Foreigners’ Office may disagree with it, but only with reasons.

You also need health insurance for all family members — which policies work for a permit is covered in our article on health insurance for a residence permit. School-age children already living in Spain must attend school.

How to apply

1. Application. The family member living in Spain files form EX-02 — in person or through a representative, at the Foreigners’ Office (Oficina de Extranjería) in their province or online through Mercurio.
2. Fee. Form 790-052, section 2.1.2, once the application is accepted for processing; pay within 10 working days. The amount and how to pay are covered in our article on fees 790-012 and 790-052.
3. Decision within two months. If there is no answer, the application is deemed refused.
4. Family reunification visa. After approval the relative applies for a visa at the Spanish consulate within two months, with the originals of the kinship documents. The consulate decides within a month, and the visa must be collected within a month.
5. Arrival and card. Enter Spain within one month of collecting the visa (art. 68.5.a of RD 1155/2024), and within a month of arrival apply in person at the police for the TIE foreigner card.

Official EX-02 form on the Ministry of Inclusion website ↗

What the family gets

The general renewal rules for every permit, including deadlines and fees, are covered in the article on renewing a residence permit in Spain.

• Work. The spouse, partner and children of working age can be employed or self-employed in any sector anywhere in Spain without a separate permit.
• Term of the first permit — until your own permit expires, but at least one year. If you hold long-term residence, the relative’s next permit is long-term straight away.
• Renewal — two months before expiry or within three months after. The renewed permit is issued for 4 years but is valid while your permit is valid. If there is no answer within three months, the renewal is deemed approved.

When the relative gets their own permit

A reunification permit depends on yours. An independent permit can be obtained:

• by a spouse or partner — after a year living in Spain on the reunification permit, if they have sufficient resources of their own or meet the conditions for employment or self-employment;
• on divorce — if the marriage lasted 3 years and you lived together in Spain for at least a year; how divorce works is covered in divorce in Spain;
• in case of gender violence or the sponsor’s death — regardless of time, for 5 years;
• by children — on reaching adulthood under the same conditions, or after 5 years living in Spain;
• by parents — once they get a work permit.

Which regime is yours: the general one or the one for relatives of EU citizens

Before you collect any documents, work out which set of rules your case falls under: the paperwork, the fees and even the authorities are different.

The general regime — this article. It is yours if the person bringing the family is a foreigner with a Spanish residence permit. You then need income as a percentage of the IPREM, a housing report, an application through Mercurio and the 790-052 fee.

The regime for relatives of EU citizens. If the person the family is joining is a citizen of an EU country, the EEA or Switzerland, the rules of the Directive and Royal Decree 240/2007 apply: the family member card of an EU citizen is issued, the income requirements are softer, the fee is a different one — 790-012 — and Mercurio has nothing to do with it. It is covered in the EU family member residence card.

Relatives of Spanish citizens. Since 2022 they have their own route: the regulation gives them a separate chapter, and the visa is issued under article 41 of RD 1155/2024. In spirit it is closer to the regime for relatives of EU citizens than to the general one, and the IPREM income threshold there is not the one described here.

Getting the regime wrong is expensive: a file assembled under the wrong set of rules is returned in full, and the clock starts again.

When you do not need reunification

Digital nomads, highly qualified professionals, entrepreneurs, investors, researchers. Their permits are issued under Law 14/2013, and the family can apply together with the main applicant or later, with no one-year wait. For digital nomads the procedure is covered in detail in a digital nomad’s family. If they apply together, the decisions are issued together. You can bring a spouse or partner, minor children, dependent adult children and dependent parents, with no 65-year threshold. Relatives prove insurance, resources and a clean criminal record. More in our articles on the digital nomad permit and the highly qualified professional permit.

Families of Spanish and EU citizens. This is not reunification but separate grounds: there is no residence period or IPREM income test, children can be brought up to 26 (to a Spaniard) or up to 21 (to an EU citizen), and the permit is issued for 5 years. Details in our article on the EU family member card.

If you hold an Ibero-American passport by origin, you can obtain Spanish citizenship after two years of residence — and then your family moves into this procedure. How it works is explained in our article on fast-track Spanish citizenship for Latin Americans.

Other grounds for moving a family are covered in our overview of all ways to get a Spanish residence permit.

Documents, how the marriage file works and what marriage gives you in residence and tax terms is covered in marriage in Spain for foreigners.

How to bring your parents to Spain: four routes

For parents, the route depends not on their age but on your status. It is often easier not to wait for long-term residence but to include your parents in a Law 14/2013 application or to get them a permit of their own.

• General regime. You can bring parents only once you hold long-term residence; you may apply after filing for it, but the parents’ permit is issued after it is approved (Article 68 of Royal Decree 1155/2024). The decision takes up to two months, and silence means refusal.
• Law 14/2013. Dependent parents apply together with the main applicant or later, with no age threshold (Article 62.4 of Law 14/2013), and may work. More on the family make-up in our article on the digital nomad permit.
• Family of a Spanish citizen. A separate regime: dependent parents get a five-year permit with the right to work (Articles 94–95 of the regulation).
• Their own permit does not depend on your status or on dependency, but it does not allow work — the non-lucrative visa.

How to prove your parents depend on you

Dependency must be real, stable and exist before the application, not be created for the permit (Article 196 of the regulation). It is presumed in three cases:

• Money. For at least a year before applying you sent the parent money or paid their expenses of at least 51% of their country’s GDP per capita per year. Your own income must also be enough to support the parent.
• Health. The parent has a serious illness that existed before the application, and no relatives nearby who could help.
• Without documents dependency is considered proven if the parent is over 80, has several chronic illnesses or a serious loss of physical or mental capacity.

For a Law 14/2013 application the UGE guidance lists: a certificate of joint registration for a year or proof that you paid the parent’s housing for a year; bank statements of support for at least a year; certificates that the parent has no work income or state benefits (UGE guidance). In practice, parents of digital nomads are approved, but almost always after a request about dependency — most often for a certificate that the mother or father receives no work pension. So start the transfers early, regularly and from your own account.

Frequently asked questions

How soon can I bring my family to Spain?

Once your first permit has been renewed: you can apply after at least a year in Spain and an application to renew. Parents only with a long-term permit. Families of digital nomads and professionals under Law 14/2013 can apply straight away.

What income is needed for family reunification in 2026?

150% of IPREM a month for a family of two, that is €900, plus 50% of IPREM, €300, for each additional family member.

How do I bring my parents to Spain through family reunification?

You need a long-term residence permit, your parents must be over 65, dependent on you and have reasons to live in Spain; under 65 only exceptionally on humanitarian grounds. First the permit is approved for you, then your parents get a visa at the Spanish consulate.

How long does a family reunification application take?

Up to two months. If there is no answer, the application is deemed refused. After approval the relative applies for a visa within two months, and the consulate decides within a month.

Can my spouse work after reunification?

Yes. The spouse, partner and children of working age can be employed or self-employed without a separate permit.

Up to what age can children be brought?

Through reunification, under 18 on the date of application, or older if the child cannot support themselves because of disability or health. Children up to 26 can be brought only to a Spanish citizen.

Is a housing report required?

Yes. It is issued by the autonomous community or town hall and must be no older than six months on the application date. If it is not issued within a month, housing is proven with other documents.

Can I bring my parents with a digital nomad permit?

Yes. Under Law 14/2013 dependent parents apply together with the main applicant or later, with no age threshold of 65, and may work. Dependency is proven with transfers for at least a year and certificates that the parent has no work income or pension.

Sources

• Organic Law 4/2000 on foreigners, Articles 16–19
• Royal Decree 1155/2024, Immigration Regulation, Articles 65–71
• Law 14/2013 supporting entrepreneurs, Articles 61 and 62
• Ministry of Inclusion, information sheet 8: residence by family reunification