New rules about residence permits affect family reunification: here is what you can do
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Did you apply for family reunification before 12 June 2026 and are you awaiting a decision from the IND? And do you hold a residence permit as a person granted subsidiary protection? If so, check whether you can still be granted a residence permit as a refugee.
Since 12 June 2026, the
As the IND has not yet made a decision on your application for family reunification, these rules also apply to you. It does not matter whether the IND is late in making its decision. There is therefore a chance that the IND will reject your application because you do not meet the new conditions that now apply to family reunification. In that case, it might be wise to find out whether you can still obtain a
What changes has the new law on the dual-status system brought about?
If you are granted a residence permit as a person with subsidiary protection after 12 June 2026, additional conditions for family reunification will apply to you from June onwards:
Under the new rules, you must first wait two years after being granted your residence permit. You can only apply for family reunification after those two years have passed.
Your partner is no longer allowed to come to the Netherlands if you are not married. Your foster children and your adult children are also no longer allowed to come to the Netherlands.
The IND will first check whether you have sufficient income and whether you own your own home. If you do not, your application for family reunification will not be approved, even if you do meet the other conditions. Your home must not be in the reception centre of the
If you have a residence permit as a refugee, the additional conditions set out above do not apply.
What can you do if you want a different residence status?
Do you think you should be granted a residence permit as a refugee rather than as a person with subsidiary protection? Because it is too dangerous for you personally in the country you fled from? Not because your country is dangerous for everyone, but because you yourself are at risk. Because you are being persecuted on grounds such as your race, your religion or your political beliefs. If so, contact the lawyer who helped you with your asylum application. Ask them whether it would be wise to take the matter to court. Do this as soon as possible, as the IND has not yet made a decision. If your lawyer is unavailable, find another one.
What can your lawyer do?
Your lawyer can
Your lawyer can also ask the judge for a 'heroverweging' (review)
As well as appealing against the IND’s decision, your lawyer may also be able to ask the court for a 'bestuurlijke heroverweging' (administrative review). You would then be asking the court to reconsider the previous decision. In other words: whether the IND should have reached a different decision. You will need to show the court, however, that there are new facts and circumstances which mean you should actually have been granted a different residence permit. Your lawyer could, for example, argue that the dual-status system is such a new circumstance. That, prior to 12 June 2026, it did not matter what type of residence permit you held. But that it does matter now, because the IND has not yet made a decision on your family reunification. And that, as a result, the new rules suddenly apply to you as well.
The court has the final say
It is not clear whether the court will allow your lawyer to lodge an appeal. Officially, you are too late to appeal against the IND’s decision. You must always do so within a few weeks of the decision being made. It is also not clear whether the court is prepared to reconsider the earlier decision in light of the changed circumstances. However, it is worth trying both options because otherwise there is a risk that your application for family reunification will be rejected under the new rules.
The IND must make a new decision
If the court allows you to appeal and agrees with you, the IND must review your case again and make a new decision. The IND will then reassess whether, under the rules of the
You must therefore still be able to prove that you are a refugee under the Refugee Convention, and that you fall under one of the grounds for persecution set out in it. Otherwise, you will never be granted a residence permit as a refugee. If you cannot prove that you yourself are at risk in the country from which you fled, the IND will once again refuse to grant you a residence permit as a refugee.
It must be too dangerous for you personally in the country from which you fled
It only makes sense to lodge an appeal or request a review if you can prove that you are personally at risk in the country from which you fled. That is why the first step is to see your lawyer and ask whether it is worth taking action.