Conditions for a permanent residence permit

If your spouse/partner in Denmark is not a Danish or Nordic citizen, he/she will normally need to meet part of the requirements for obtaining a permanent residence permit in order for you to be granted family reunification.

Your spouse/partner in Denmark must normally meet the following requirements:

He/she may not have been sentenced to at least 18 months' unsuspended imprisonment, regardless of the type of offence he/she was convicted for
He/she may not have been sentenced to at least 60 days' unsuspended imprisonment for violation of the Danish Criminal Code, Part 12 (offences against the independence and security of the Danish State) or Part 13 (offences against the Constitution and the supreme authorities of the Danish State, terrorism etc.)
He/she may not have any overdue public debts, unless he/she has been granted a reprieve and the debt does not exceed DKK 100,000 (2011 level)
He/she may not have received public assistance under the terms of the Active Social Policy Act (lov om aktiv socialpolitik) or the Integration Act (integrationsloven) for a period of three years prior to you submitting your application for family reunification
He/she must have submitted a signed declaration about integration and active citizenship in Danish society or must indicate in some other manner that he/she agrees to the contents of the declaration
He/she must have passed Prøve i Dansk 2 (Danish exam, level 2) or a Danish language test of an equivalent level or higher
Unless he/she is retired or on early retirement, he/she must have had ordinary full-time employment in Denmark for at least 2½ out of the past 3 years prior to you submitting your application for family reunification, and he/she must still be employed at the time of being given a decision about the application
Unless he/she is retired, he/she must either have had ordinary full-time employment in Denmark for at least 4 out of the past 4½ years prior to you submitting your application for family reunification, and he/she must still be employed at the time of being given a decision about the application, or he/she must have completed a higher educational programme, professional bachelor’s degree, business academy or vocational upper secondary in Denmark, or he/she must have passed Prøve i Dansk 3 (Danish exam, level 3) or a Danish language test of an equivalent level or higher

Read more about the rules for permanent residence permit. Please note that neither the active citizenship/active citizenship exam requirement, nor the penalty periods in connection with serious crimes apply in the case of family reunification applications.

Your spouse/partner in Denmark does not need to meet the abovementioned requirements if he/she has been granted a permanent residence permit under the current rules for permanent residence permits, cf. the Danish Aliens Act, section 11, as defined in law no. 572 of 31 May 2010.

If your spouse/partner in Denmark has been granted a permanent residence permit under any previous rules, he/she will normally need to meet all the abovementioned requirements. This also applies even if he/she was exempted from one or more of the requirements which applied at that time.

If your spouse/partner was granted a permanent residence permit under previous rules, and on more lenient terms than other foreign nationals, he/she will normally need to meet all the abovementioned requirements.

However, if your spouse/partner was granted a permanent residence permit due to strong ties to Denmark, he/she can be exempted from some of the requirements. This applies to members of the Danish minority in South Schleswig, Germany; foreign nationals who have previously held Danish citizenship; foreign nationals with Danish parents; or Argentinean citizens with Danish parents or grandparents. Members of one of these groups will normally only need to meet the following requirements:

He/she may not have been sentenced to at least 18 months' unsuspended imprisonment, regardless of the type of offence he/she was convicted for
He/she may not have been sentenced to at least 60 days' unsuspended imprisonment for violation of the Danish Criminal Code, Part 12 (offences against the independence and security of the Danish State) or Part 13 (offences against the Constitution and the supreme authorities of the Danish State, terrorism etc.)
He/she may not have any overdue public debts, unless he/she has been granted a reprieve and the debt does not exceed DKK 100,000 (2011 level)
He/she must have passed Prøve i Dansk 2 (Danish exam, level 2) or a Danish language test of an equivalent level or higher

If the Immigration Service decides that your spouse/partner in Denmark does not meet the requirements for family reunification, he/she will still keep his/her residence permit. In other words, your spouse/partner can continue to reside in Denmark, but your application for a residence permit on the grounds of family reunification may be turned down.

Applying for a new permanent residence permit

Your spouse/partner in Denmark can also choose to apply for a new permanent residence permit before you apply for family reunification.

Please note that your spouse/partner in Denmark will have to pay a fee if applying for a permanent residence permit. You, too, will have to pay a fee when applying for family reunification. Read more about fees.

If your spouse/partner chooses to apply for a permanent residence permit, he/she will normally need to meet the active citizenship/active citizenship exam requirement. In other words, he/she will normally need to meet all the requirements for a permanent residence permit.

If the Immigration Service decides that your spouse/partner in Denmark does not meet the requirements for a permanent residence permit, he/she will still keep his/her residence permit. In other words, your spouse/partner can continue to reside in Denmark, but your application for a residence permit on the grounds of family reunification may be turned down.

Dispensation

The overall requirement to meet part of the requirements for obtaining a permanent residence permit can be suspended if special reasons apply. This could be the case, if your spouse/partner in Denmark:

is a refugee or has protected status and still risks persecution in his/her country of origin. Read more about refugees
has children under 18 living in the home who have formed an individual attachment to Denmark, or has children from a previous relationship and has custody of the child or has visitation rights and sees the child on a regular basis. Read more about children under 18
is seriously ill. Read more about serious illness/disability

Furthermore, one or more of the individual requirements can be suspended because of your spouse/partner in Denmark's personal circumstances or situation.

For example, the requirement that your spouse/partner in Denmark has not committed any serious crimes can be suspended if the criminal act took place a long time ago and he/she has not committed any crimes since then.

Regarding the requirement that he/she may not have received public assistance under the terms of the Active Social Policy Act (lov om aktiv socialpolitik) or the Integration Act (integrationsloven) for the past three years, it will be considered whether the three-year penalty period is proportional to the public assistance received. This includes considering whether the foreign national was fully aware that receiving the assistance could affect a later application for family reunification.

The requirement that your spouse/partner must have had full-time employment in Denmark for at least 2½ out of the past 3 years and must still be employed at the time of being given a decision about the application can be suspended if he/she cannot meet the requirement due to long-term education. This could be the case if your spouse/partner was granted a permanent residence permit at the age of 18 after having been born and raised in Denmark, and if he/she is still actively following an education.

If your spouse/partner in Denmark was on maternily leave at the time you applied for family reunification, this should be taken into consideration due to the UN convention to combat discrimination against women. Consequently, if your spouse/partner went on maternity leave in accordance with her employment contract/agreement, the time she was on maternity leave will be regarded as time she has been working.

If your spouse/partner in Denmark is on early retirement, he/she will not need to meet the employment requirement, but will normally still need to meet the other requirements. This includes the requirement to either have completed an educational programme in Denmark or to have completed Prøve i Dansk 3. However, this requirement may be suspended if deemed unproportional when considering the reasons for early retirement.

If your spouse/partner in Denmark has a disability which prevents him/her from meeting one or more of the requirements, the relevant requirements may be suspended. This will usually be most relevant in relation to the employment requirement and the language test requirement.