Family reunification visa

Good luck,

We have been here since November 2021 waiting. We now have family members in poor health and our attorney is writing a letter stating the circumstances so we can travel back on a direct flight. However, if you have to fly, be aware that if you travel through other EU countries, they will give you a hard time, as once the passport is scanned, they will flag you as having overstayed the visa.

@swanhillfarm

Oh wow, I had no idea it could be that long. Sorry to hear that. You/ your lawyer just have not been able to get an appointment since then?

We had this issue with our child when we came at the start of 2022. Once i had my residency card, i could come and go with no problems, but we were specifically told by our lawyers that she couldn't leave the Schengen Area.

Getting an appointment was difficult. We were using our immigration attorneys who actually had someone on staff who literally did nothing but call SEF until they got through. As i recall, you couldn't make appointments online and could only do it if you called...and then when you called they had to have appointments available which they randomly added slots.  We finally got our appointment mid-year.

good luck.

Got it, thank you.  I was told not to leave Portugal and it sounds like you were told you could travel in the Schengen. I wonder if this is specific to the country the person comes from or if I just received wrong information? I'm a US citizen.

I think you're good if you stay within the Schengen as they don't check passports. I've been to Spain a couple of times (via bus) and there is no check of any kind. you should still verify.

I think you're good if you stay within the Schengen as they don't check passports. I've been to Spain a couple of times (via bus) and there is no check of any kind. you should still verify.
-@sponger

There may be no checks at the border, but you should still carry the correct documents with you at all times.

@nac25 let me know if you sort this as I am looking to come to portugal and apply for the reunification visa also. bit scared of doing it after seeing this.

@simonukwales Yeah it got sorted. A new wave of family reunification visas were released in April and my lawyer got us an appointment for the following week.  Received the residence card a month later