Family: reunification, spouses and children

Your family members come under the EU freedom-of-movement route. EU-citizen family members register like you; non-EU family members of an EU citizen get a residence card (the MEU2 / MEU3 route, covered in Visas and residency).

This is the third-country family reunification route, and the figures below are from the Migration Department's own page.

Sponsor's qualifying period

You must have resided legally for at least two years and hold a residence permit valid for at least a year, with a reasonable prospect of permanent residence. If you are employed by a Foreign Interest Company, the Director may waive the two-year requirement — and intra-corporate transferees and researchers are exempt, their family able to apply alongside them.

Who qualifies

A spouse aged at least 21, married for at least a year before the application, and unmarried minor children under 18 — of the sponsor and/or spouse, including adopted and sole-custody dependent children.

Process

You obtain an entry permit first — family cannot enter on a tourist visa for reunification, except under the Foreign Interest Company exception — then apply at Migration headquarters in Nicosia, with biometrics, and register in the Aliens' Registry after arrival.

Time and fees

A decision within 9 months of a complete application (90 days for intra-corporate-transfer and researcher families). Fees €200 for the entry-and-residence permit, €200 for the residence permit, €70 for Aliens' Registry registration.

Permit

The first permit runs one year, renewable, and cannot outlast the sponsor's permit.

Your entry route does not change this — family reunification follows the same third-country rules as for anyone else, and the figures below are from the Migration Department's own page.

Sponsor's qualifying period

At least two years of legal residence and a permit valid at least a year, with a reasonable prospect of permanent residence. Employment by a Foreign Interest Company can waive the two-year requirement; intra-corporate transferees and researchers are exempt.

Who qualifies

A spouse aged at least 21, married for at least a year before applying, and unmarried minor children under 18.

Process, time and fees

An entry permit first (not a tourist visa, except the Foreign Interest Company exception), then application at Migration HQ in Nicosia with biometrics. A decision within 9 months; fees €200 + €200 + €70 for Aliens' Registry registration; the first permit runs a year, renewable, and cannot outlast the sponsor's.