This is what you arrange when your family member comes to the Netherlands

To come to the Netherlands, your family member must pick up a visa at the Dutch embassy in their country of residence. This visa is an

The letter from the IND stating that your family may come to the Netherlands also contains instructions on how your family member can pick up the MVV. And within which time period this must be done. During the appointment, your family member will need the following:

• A digitally completed, printed and signed application form for MVV provision

  .

• A passport. The passport must be valid for at least 6 months and have 2 blank pages (the MVV visa in a sticker stuck in the passport). Does your family member not have a passport? Then your family member will get a replacement document that they can use as a valid travel document for 1 trip. This is called a laissez-passer. With this document your family member can travel to the Netherlands.

• A copy of the page in the passport with your family member's photo and personal information.

• A new passport photo that meets the requirements of the Dutch government. The website of the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs lists in Dutch

  and in English
  how to find a photographer who can take the right passport photo.

• A copy of the letter from the IND with the positive decision on the application for family reunification.

Usually your family member must pick up the MVV within 3 months after the IND has decided that your family member may come to the Netherlands. Sometimes this is extended to 6 months. For example, if the embassy is difficult to reach or your family member has to travel to the Dutch embassy in another country.

The letter from the IND also explains how your family member can travel to the Netherlands and what your family member must do once in the Netherlands.

Booking tickets for the trip to the Netherlands

Has your family member picked up the MVV at the Dutch embassy? Then you or your family members can start booking tickets for air travel to the Netherlands after that.

• If you already have a house that your family member can come and live in, then your family member can come and live with you as soon as they arrive in the Netherlands. Sometimes you get a bigger home from the municipality when your family members come to the Netherlands. Check how it works in your case with your contact person at VWN or with the municipality. On this page on RefugeeHelp you can read about what to arrange if you have to move because of family reunification.

• Do you still live in a COA reception centre? Then apply for a place in a reception centre for your family members at the

  Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers (COA)
  . Do this even if your COA housing is not suitable for you and your family members, for example, because it is too small. From 1 December 2025, you can contact COA at your location for help with this. You can do this by following the steps below:

  1. Send an email to COA to request a place in a reception centre. The email address is ZevenaarDuiven@COA.nl.

  2. In your email, send along these details of yourself: your first and last name, your phone number, your email address.

  3. In your email, send along these details of your family member(s): first and last names of all post-travelling family members,

     V-numbers
     of all post-travel family members.

Also submit the date of arrival in the Netherlands and the date of when a place in the reception centre is needed for your family members. You will receive a confirmation by email from COA within 2 working days.

Please note that there are now too few places at COA in Zevenaar. Therefore there is not always a place in a reception centre immediately upon arrival in the Netherlands. Always apply for a place in a reception centre in time by email and clearly state the date from which you need the place.

After arriving in the Netherlands, your family member must collect the residence permit as soon as possible. Your family member does this at an IND office. You can make an appointment for this online in advance. Your family member will also be registered in the

Make an appointment as soon as you know when your family member will arrive in the Netherlands. The appointment at the IND should actually take place within 3 days of your family member's arrival in the Netherlands. As it is busy at the IND, it is almost never possible to make an appointment this quickly. Sometimes the appointment is only a few weeks after arrival of your family member(s). Therefore, it is important to schedule a meeting before your family member(s) arrives.

Do you have a contact at VWN in the municipality? If so, they can help you make the appointment.

Make an appointment with the IND

Make an appointment with the IND on this page to pick up your family member's residence permit.

Have you sent an email to COA for the reception of your family members? Then COA will make an appointment with the IND in Zevenaar to pick up the residence permit. You do not have to arrange an appointment for this yourself.