Bringing Your Parents to Germany: § 36 Abs. 3 AufenthG for Blue Card Holders and Skilled Workers

For decades, one of the hardest conversations in German immigration law was the one about parents: outside narrow hardship cases, there was simply no route for the parents of adult workers to join them. The 2024 skilled-immigration reform changed that. Since 1 March 2024, § 36 Abs. 3 AufenthG gives parents — and, under certain conditions, parents-in-law — of newly arrived skilled workers a genuine reunification route.

Who Qualifies as a Sponsor

The route is tied to the new generation of skilled workers: it applies where the sponsoring child received their first qualifying residence title on or after 1 March 2024. Qualifying titles include the EU Blue Card (§ 18g AufenthG), the skilled-worker permits (§§ 18a, 18b AufenthG), the ICT Card and further titles in that range. If your first skilled-worker title predates 1 March 2024, this route is closed, and only the exceptional-hardship provision of § 36 Abs. 2 AufenthG remains.

Parents and Parents-in-Law

Both parents of the skilled worker may apply. Parents-in-law — the parents of the skilled worker's spouse — are covered where the spouse permanently resides in Germany with the skilled worker.

What Must Be Shown

The headline advantages: there is no German language requirement and no requirement that the parents be dependent or in need of care. But the general requirements still bite:

• Secured livelihood (§ 5 Abs. 1 Nr. 1 AufenthG) — the law does not waive this requirement. In practice this is the decisive hurdle: the household must cover the parents' living costs and, critically, their health insurance, which for older applicants without access to statutory insurance can be expensive. Plan this before applying, not after.
• Adequate housing for the enlarged household.
• The usual general requirements of § 5 AufenthG: passports, clarified identity, no expulsion interest.

A Route Under Political Discussion

§ 36 Abs. 3 AufenthG has been politically contested since its introduction, and proposals to restrict or repeal it have circulated. As of July 2026 the provision remains in force. Families who qualify should not treat the window as guaranteed indefinitely.

Frequently Asked Questions

My Blue Card was first issued in 2023 — can my parents join me? Not under § 36 Abs. 3, which requires the first qualifying title on or after 1 March 2024. Only the strict hardship route of § 36 Abs. 2 remains — realistically limited to cases such as serious illness with no care alternative abroad.

Do my parents need to speak German? No. § 36 Abs. 3 imposes no language requirement.

What is the biggest practical obstacle? Health insurance. Parents will usually need private cover, and premiums for applicants in their sixties or seventies are substantial. The livelihood calculation must hold up including these costs.

Do my parents get the right to work? Family-reunification permits generally carry the right to take up employment.

This is a young provision with fast-evolving practice — and a political shelf life no one can promise. If your parents may qualify, book a consultation soon and we will assess the numbers together. Book a consultation →

Last reviewed: August 2026 — RAin Fiona Macdonald