# Belgian Family Reunification Visa



## BeauMore (Mar 16, 2014)

Hello All, 

It was nearly two years ago, that my wife and I made the huge decision to relocate to the UK from the US. We have applied for and received the EEA Family Permit and then, with a little difficulty, the EEA 2 Residence Card.

We are now moving to Brussels. I am a US citizen and my wife has dual nationality, US/Irish. She has accepted a full time position in Brussels, beginning mid February.

My assumption, as I began researching the requirements to apply for a visa to accompany her, was that it would be a similar process to applying for a visa to live in the UK. I'm not too surprised to find, that it's not a similar process, and that with any move to a new country, there are new challenges.

Is there a website that lists the required documents, forms, and procedure for applying?

From what I have read thus far:

documents - birth certificate and marriage certificate - must be apostilled
I may have to provide a criminal background check - will I need this for both the US and UK?
I may need to provide a health certificate
I may need to provide proof of health insurance

Any advice, feedback or suggestions are welcome!


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

The UK rules for the family members of an EU national are a bit different from those in the rest of the EU. Take a look at this page: Workers' and pensioners' EU family - Your Europe It's from the Europa (i.e. EU) website. Click on the drop down for Staying abroad for more than 3 months.

Basically, you have the right to accompany your wife and on arrival to apply for a residence permit as the spouse of an EU national exercising their EU rights. There is a link at the bottom of the page to connect you to the appropriate Belgian agency where they should have more information about the specific requirements.

Normally, you need to have marriage and identity documents (for both you and your wife), plus proof of her status (i.e. the fact she has a job). If your wife has a job, she will probably qualify for Belgium's health care system, and your coverage should be included with that. But it should be a simpler process than whatever you needed for the UK EEA family permit.
Cheers,
Bev


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