Family Reunification Rejected or Delayed - Legal Action

Family reunification rejected or delayed - what you should do now

If family reunification is rejected or the procedure does not move forward for months, the burden is enormous. Spouses remain separated, children wait abroad, and pregnancy, illness or professional obligations can increase the pressure. At the same time, embassies and immigration authorities often refer applicants back and forth.

In this situation, one thing is crucial: not every rejection is correct. And not every delay must simply be accepted. Depending on the case, a new application, a lawsuit, legal action for failure to act, a lawyer’s status request or an urgent court application may be appropriate.

"In family reunification cases, lost time often hurts the most. After a rejection or months of delay, it must be checked quickly whether a new application is better or whether court pressure is needed."

— Tom Beisel, Attorney at Law (Germany)

Attorney Tom Beisel assists clients with rejected or delayed family reunification, legal action against visa refusals, inactivity of embassies or immigration authorities and strategic preparation of new applications.

Typical problems in family reunification procedures

Family reunification can fail or get stuck at many points.

Common problems include:

→no embassy appointment available
→months of waiting after application
→immigration authority does not respond
→embassy does not respond
→documents are requested again and again
→income is not accepted
→housing is criticised
→A1 language certificate missing or not accepted
→documents are not recognised
→custody is unclear
→suspicion of sham marriage
→visa is rejected
→child becomes almost adult during the procedure
→protection status creates special restrictions

Because several authorities may be involved, the procedure must be documented carefully.

Visa rejection - review the decision immediately

If the visa for family reunification has been rejected, the refusal decision must be reviewed first.

Important points include:

→date of the decision
→date of notification
→information on legal remedies
→stated reasons for refusal
→applicant affected
→competent German mission abroad
→involved immigration authority
→deadline for legal action
→missing or incorrect documents
→possible new evidence

⚠️ Important: After a rejection, do not simply send a short objection or informal request to the embassy. Since the abolition of the remonstration procedure, it must be checked precisely which legal route is still open.

Remonstration abolished - what does this mean?

In the past, it was often possible to file a so-called remonstration against a visa refusal at the embassy. The embassy would then review the decision again.

This procedure has been abolished worldwide. Therefore, after a visa refusal it is especially important to check immediately:

→Is legal action possible?
→Which deadline applies?
→Is a new application more sensible?
→Which documents were missing?
→Can the error be corrected quickly?
→Is the refusal legally challengeable?
→Is there urgency?
→Must the administrative court be involved?

In many cases, the decision between a lawsuit and a new application is strategically decisive.

Lawsuit against visa refusal

If a visa for family reunification was refused, legal action may be possible. The lawsuit is directed against the Federal Republic of Germany and concerns the decision of the German mission abroad.

A lawsuit may be useful if:

→the refusal is legally incorrect
→the embassy assessed the documents incorrectly
→the immigration authority wrongly refused approval
→livelihood was calculated incorrectly
→housing was assessed incorrectly
→A1 exceptions were not examined
→custody documents were assessed incorrectly
→marriage or family ties were wrongly doubted
→the best interests of the child were not sufficiently considered

A lawsuit must be carefully reasoned. It is not enough to write that the family wants to live together.

New application instead of lawsuit?

A lawsuit is not always the best route. Sometimes a new, much better prepared application can be faster and strategically more useful.

A new application may be useful if:

→important documents were actually missing
→income can now be proven better
→housing has now been clarified
→A1 certificate is now available
→custody has now been clarified
→documents are now legalised or translated
→the old application was poorly prepared
→the refusal was caused more by practical weaknesses than by legal error

A lawsuit may be better if the authority decided incorrectly as a matter of law or if a new application would likely lead to the same refusal again.

If the embassy or immigration authority does not respond

Rejections are not the only problem. In many cases, nothing happens for months.

Typical situations include:

→application filed, but no decision
→embassy says the immigration authority is responsible
→immigration authority says the embassy is responsible
→documents were submitted, but not processed
→appointment is only available months later
→pregnancy or child welfare creates urgency
→employment or residence status in Germany increases pressure
→protection status or deadlines are affected

In such cases, waiting endlessly is not always the right strategy. It must be checked whether the authority remains inactive without sufficient reason.

Legal action for failure to act

If no decision is made for a long time, legal action for failure to act may be considered. The aim is to create court pressure so that the authority makes a decision.

Such legal action may be relevant if:

→the application was filed completely
→the authority has not decided for a long time
→no sufficient reason for the delay is apparent
→several requests remain unanswered
→the delay severely burdens the family
→children, pregnancy or illness are involved
→the case is not merely “normally slow”, but actually stuck

⚠️ Important: Legal action for failure to act does not replace review of the substantive requirements. It helps only if the application is ready for decision or the delay is legally no longer acceptable.

Urgent court application in special cases

In particularly urgent cases, an urgent court application may also be examined. This is not possible in every family reunification case, but it can be relevant in specific situations.

Urgency may exist where there is:

→minor child close to turning 18
→serious illness
→pregnancy
→special vulnerability
→danger to a child abroad
→family separation with severe consequences
→unreasonable long separation
→special humanitarian situation
→administrative standstill despite acute disadvantages

An urgent application must be very well reasoned. The mere duration of the procedure is not always enough. Concrete disadvantages must be shown.

Common reasons for rejection

Family reunification is often rejected for formal or substantive reasons.

Typical reasons include:

→livelihood not secured
→housing insufficient
→A1 language certificate missing
→no exception from language requirement
→marriage not sufficiently proven
→suspicion of sham marriage
→custody not clarified
→consent of the other parent missing
→documents not properly prepared
→identity unclear
→passport missing
→residence title of the reference person allegedly insufficient
→child’s age or deadline problematic
→protection status does not allow reunification or only allows it under restrictions

Every reason for rejection must be examined individually. Sometimes improvement is enough. Sometimes the legal assessment of the authority is challengeable.

Family reunification to persons with subsidiary protection

Family reunification to persons with subsidiary protection can be especially difficult. Special restrictions may apply. Therefore, the exact protection status must be checked.

Important distinctions include:

→asylum status
→refugee status
→subsidiary protection
→deportation ban
→humanitarian residence permit
→national residence for other reasons

⚠️ Important: The exact residence title is decisive. Someone who generally says “I have protection in Germany” does not yet know which rules apply to family reunification.

Which documents does the lawyer need?

For a fast review, the following documents are important:

→refusal decision
→information on legal remedies
→visa application
→appointment confirmation
→documents submitted
→requests for additional documents from the embassy
→correspondence with embassy
→correspondence with immigration authority
→residence permit of the person in Germany
→passport copies
→marriage certificates
→birth certificates
→custody documents
→consent of the other parent
→A1 certificate
→employment contract
→payslips
→rental contract
→housing proof
→health insurance
→proof of illness, pregnancy or special urgency

The more complete the documents are, the faster it can be decided whether a lawsuit, new application or another strategy is appropriate.

Common mistakes after rejection or delay

Typical mistakes include:

→not checking the deadline
→responding emotionally to the rejection
→trying remonstration although it is no longer available
→filing a new application without improvement
→missing the lawsuit deadline
→not securing all documents
→contacting embassy and authority only by phone
→not securing confirmations of receipt
→not examining each refusal reason separately
→accepting delay for too long
→not documenting urgency
→not legally assessing the child’s age or pregnancy

⚠️ Important: After a rejection, strategy matters. Not every new application is useful. Not every lawsuit is economically sensible. But doing nothing is usually the worst option.

FAQ - rejected or delayed family reunification

What should I do if the family reunification visa was rejected?

The refusal decision must be reviewed immediately. Deadline, reasoning, information on legal remedies and the choice between lawsuit and new application are decisive.

Is remonstration still available?

The remonstration procedure against rejected visa decisions has been abolished worldwide. After a refusal, it must be checked whether legal action or a new application is the right route.

When is a lawsuit useful?

A lawsuit may be useful if the refusal is legally incorrect or if the authority wrongly assessed documents, income, housing, language certificate, custody or family ties.

When is a new application better?

A new application may be better if documents were genuinely missing or if the requirements have improved since the refusal.

What if the embassy does not respond?

The status should be requested in a provable way. If inactivity continues, a lawyer’s follow-up, a deadline or legal action can be examined.

Can the procedure be accelerated?

In some cases, yes, especially with complete documents, clear urgency, children, pregnancy, illness or long inactivity. There is no guarantee, but a structured legal approach can help.

Contact - lawyer for rejected or delayed family reunification

Was your family reunification visa rejected? Is the embassy not responding? Has the immigration authority been processing the application for months? Will your child soon turn 18 or has your family been separated for a long time?

Attorney Tom Beisel reviews refusal decisions, deadlines, lawsuits, new applications, inactivity, urgency and the best strategy for family reunification.

→Mobile: +49 172 8974716
→Office: 0201 4517 380
→Email: kanzlei@rechtsanwalt-beisel.de
→Address: Bredeneyer Str. 2b, 45133 Essen

Immigration law representation in German, English and Russian - clear, personal and nationwide.

Family Reunification Rejected or Delayed - lawsuit, new application and inactivity