In order for the Swedish Migration Agency to be able to grant a residence permit to a person who is applying to move to Sweden to reunite with their spouse or cohabiting partner, both the person already living in Sweden and the person applying for a residence permit must be at least 21 years old. Previously, the minimum age was 18 years. The new rules enter into force on 1 December 2023.
The Swedish Parliament has decided to make changes to the Aliens Act regarding the minimum age for the family reunification of spouses and cohabitation partners. The new rules will affect all the permit decisions of the Swedish Migration Agency from 1 December.
People who have an ongoing case with the Swedish Migration Agency will receive a decision based on the new rules. This applies even if they submitted their application before the Parliament decided to make the changes.
In some cases, there may be circumstances that allow a residence permit to be granted to persons under the age of 21. One example of such a circumstance is a common child.
In general, the e-application service will not be available if one member of the couple is under 21 years of age. Instead, they will have the opportunity to submit a paper application, but these application will be granted only exceptionally.
